Standing Firm In One Spirit
Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so
that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know
that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind
for the faith of the gospel, and are in no way intimidated by your opponents.
For them this is evidence of their destruction, but of your salvation. And this
is God’s doing. For he has graciously granted you the privilege not only of
believing in Christ, but of suffering for him as well – since you are having
the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.
Philippians 1:27-30
Life is hard. We cannot do it all by ourselves. The path by which
God takes us often seems to lead away from what we perceive as our good,
causing us to believe we have missed a turn and taken the wrong road. That is
because most of us have been taught to believe that if we are on the right
track, God’s goodness will always translate into a life free of trouble. But
that is not the case. In fact it’s a pipedream, and is far removed from the
biblical perspective. God’s love often leads us down roads where earthly
comforts fail us. When we come to the end of all our dark valleys, we will
understand that every circumstance has been allowed for our ultimate good. If
we could see the path of our lives, as God sees it, we would understand that
everything that happens has been allowed to happen for our own good.
No trial would cause us to despair
if we knew God’s reason for allowing it.
Our Daily Bread –