Page 14 - Living Light - A Message of Joy!

Monday December 11 - Fruitful labour
Living in the body... means fruitful labour for me. Philippians 1:22
“I love work; I could watch it all day!” This clichéd witticism does not match up to God’s plans for us. Christian people, as far as they are able, should not be merely passive observers, but are summoned to be ‘fruitful labourers’. The apostle Paul prefaced this sentence by saying ‘if...’; ‘If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labour for me.’ Of course, our Christian labour is dependent upon many factors: physical ability, skill, and aptitude, but most especially spiritual gifting.
What opportunities and giftings has God granted us? Too often we labour to fill roles rather than to exercise a gift. We hear that such-and-such a role needs filling, so our labour becomes role-orientated. Rather we should seek to identify the gifts that God has graciously bestowed upon us, and then seek an outlet to exercise those gifts where possible. There’s a very relevant verse only a couple of pages back in our Bibles; Ephesians 2:10 reads, ‘For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.’ All our endeavours involve seeking to find what is God’s planned work for us to do, and then following that calling faithfully as our service to him.
Heavenly Father, whilst I have breath and energy, let my labours be fruitful and exercised in your service and to your glory. Amen.
Tuesday December 12 - Desiring to be with Christ I desire to depart and be with Christ... Philippians 1:23
“Where your treasure is, your heart will be also”; so declared Jesus in Matthew 6:21. When Paul wrote to the Philippians you get the clear indication that he treasured Jesus above all else, including life itself. His affection for the Lord Jesus was so strong that he was eagerly looking forward to being with him in heaven. The apostle’s language here is a far cry from the routine and dutiful religion that many engage in. Joy, desire and love should surely be better hallmarks of a vibrant Christian faith. For many of us it is time to treasure Jesus anew; to fall in love with him afresh and to desire him above all else.
Paul recognised that his personal wishes – to go to be with Christ in heaven – had to take second place to meeting the practical concerns of helping believers in their maturing faith. This is not the only occasion in which Paul’s own wishes had to be set aside in order to meet God’s immediate plans for his ministry. We too need to prayerfully think through our wishes and whether they are aligned with God’s plans. Desiring Jesus above all else must include obeying him before all other plans and aspirations. As Jesus put it in John’s gospel: “If you love me, you will obey my commandments” (John 14:15).
Lord Jesus, please help me to treasure you and desire an awareness of your presence each and every day. Amen.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
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PRAYER FOR TODAY