I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,
Does it ever strike you that the apostle Paul must have had an amazing memory? And I don't think he was heaps young when he wrote this letter. And does it ever challenge you that he remembered people so often? Actually it challenges me more that he THANKS God every time he remembers them!
always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy,
Isn't it amazing that it fills him with joy to pray for others? Makes me stop and think how many of my prayers are filled with thoughts of others and how much I actually enjoy praying for them.
for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now,
Do I KNOW enough about others to pray for them anyway?
being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ
This gets me every time. How confident am I in the amazing power, and more importantly, love of God, that will pursue and perfect this salvation started in me? And how confident am I that God will do the same for those I care about?
It hurts to watch people walk away, make wrong decisions, turn their backs on God, or just take little steps in the wrong direction. (After all, it all starts with the little things doesn't it?). At recent times I have felt an overwhelming sense of helplessness, knowing that no matter how much I do care, I cannot make the decision for others and God will not force them to choose the right path either.
Perhaps it was Paul's experience with our persistent God who did not relent in pursuing him that caused Paul to say with confidence that God will complete what He has begun. And just as Paul was confident, I too can be confident that God will complete what He has begun in the lives of my friends and in my life. Of course we still need to make the right choice but as far as God is concerned, there won't be a lack of pursuing on His part. After all, His commitment has already been clearly demonstrated at the cross.
Does it ever strike you that the apostle Paul must have had an amazing memory? And I don't think he was heaps young when he wrote this letter. And does it ever challenge you that he remembered people so often? Actually it challenges me more that he THANKS God every time he remembers them!
always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy,
Isn't it amazing that it fills him with joy to pray for others? Makes me stop and think how many of my prayers are filled with thoughts of others and how much I actually enjoy praying for them.
for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now,
Do I KNOW enough about others to pray for them anyway?
being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ
This gets me every time. How confident am I in the amazing power, and more importantly, love of God, that will pursue and perfect this salvation started in me? And how confident am I that God will do the same for those I care about?
It hurts to watch people walk away, make wrong decisions, turn their backs on God, or just take little steps in the wrong direction. (After all, it all starts with the little things doesn't it?). At recent times I have felt an overwhelming sense of helplessness, knowing that no matter how much I do care, I cannot make the decision for others and God will not force them to choose the right path either.
Perhaps it was Paul's experience with our persistent God who did not relent in pursuing him that caused Paul to say with confidence that God will complete what He has begun. And just as Paul was confident, I too can be confident that God will complete what He has begun in the lives of my friends and in my life. Of course we still need to make the right choice but as far as God is concerned, there won't be a lack of pursuing on His part. After all, His commitment has already been clearly demonstrated at the cross.
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