Wisdom of Solomon 19:22

For in everything, O Lord, You have exalted and glorified Your people,
And have not neglected to be present with them in every time and place.

Encouraging Words

Throughout the history of mankind, God has honored the people of His covenants. He has continually exalted and glorified them in His heavenly realm, and He will continue to do so throughout eternity. If we are His followers, we need to look for His rewards in His kingdom and not the kingdom of this earth. Glory be to God!

Philippians 4:4-7

Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Command with a Promise

We are told to rejoice in our Lord always, let our gentleness be known to all people, be anxious about nothing, pray in thanksgiving, and let our requests be made known to God. This is almost in the form of command, a directive. What happens when we do this? The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. That is the promise that comes with this command. Glory be to God!

Wisdom of Solomon 15:1-3

Philippians 3:12-14

Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Personal Challenge

As long as we reside here on earth in our temporal bodies, our journey of theosis will never be done. We must continually press on to the goal of being like Christ, following closely in His footsteps. Part of doing this is forgetting that which we have left behind and reaching forward to that which is ahead. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Wisdom of Solomon 12:1-2

For Your immortal Spirit is in all things.
For this reason You correct little by little those who fall away,
And You remind and warn them of the sins they commit
So they may be freed from evil and believe in You, O Lord.

Encouraging Words

The Spirit of God is in all things. That is indeed possible because God is the creator and sustainer of all things, past, present, and future. Because of this, God can use all things to provide guidance for us to draw closer to Him, to correct us when we miss the mark, and free us from the evil of this fallen world. Sometimes our free will gets in the way, but He is patient. Glory be to God!

Philippians 3:8-11

Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Personal Challenge

Paul had a lot going for him before he met Jesus on the road to Damascus. He was educated in the best circles. He was well to do, especially since he was a Roman citizen. He was a leader in his church. And yet, he calls all of that rubbish compared to his new life in Christ. Are we willing to give up everything for Christ? Am I? Do we find everything in Christ, or do we look to ourselves, our jobs, our political leaders, or everything but Christ? Only in Christ will we find eternal life, resurrection from our death. Only in Christ will we find righteousness. There is a price though for these blessings. We must be willing to count all earthly things as rubbish and seek after Him. Glory be to God!

Wisdom of Solomon 8:17-20

Philippians 2:14-16

Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.

Personal Challenge

So, we are to be found as children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation. How do we do that? We start by doing all things without complaining and disputing. Well, we are failing at that if we are participating in the divisive and demeaning practices that we see in our political culture today. We are to shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life. We really must look at our lives and determine to live for Christ the way that He would have us live. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!