Scripture:Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, 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 your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4 4-9)Reflection:Paul reminds us that what we think about can have a big effect on how we live. He encourages us to fill our minds with things that are true, good, pure, kind and worthy of praise.This can be difficult when our minds are filled with worries, fears or negative thoughts. But Paul encourages us not simply to think differently, but to put our faith into practice. The things we learn about God are meant to shape the way we live, the way we treat others and the choices we make each day.Christian peace does not mean that life will always be easy or free from trouble. Instead, it means knowing that God is with us in the middle of it all.So today, perhaps we can bring one worry to God in prayer, choose to focus on what is good, and ask God to help us live out our faith. As Paul reminds us: “The God of peace will be with you.” Lyn Hayes, ALM
Scripture:“Not that I have already obtained this [resurrection from the dead] or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:12-14)Reflection:These verses are quite a complicated way of conveying a simple message; that we should try to live like Jesus, and for Jesus, that we may obtain eternal life. But what struck me in this section was about forgetting the past and pushing on to the future. Too often we can recall negative past experiences of ourselves or others that inhibit our dreams and goals. Or we remember how we acted previously in front of people, so vow never to see them again out of embarrassment. The key remedies that are missing from these verses are grace and faith. Grace comes from God, He knows us and our faults and how much we messed up that one time, but we can step forward again knowing that He thinks just the same of us as He did before, and others are likely to behave in the same way. Nothing is ever as bad as we recall it to be. And we should have the faith to press on, knowing that a path has been laid before us and all our route predestined, but we have to be confident enough to walk it. After all, what a prize awaits us at the end if we truly believe this. This week, know that you have grace and trust in your faith, it will shine out to others around you. Victoria Bray
Scripture & Reflection: Sunday 27th September and for the week ahead:Scripture:"Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously." (2 Corinthians 9:6)Reflection:St Paul was asking for generosity in giving money to support impoverished and persecuted Christians in Jerusalem. He does so by analogy with harvests.Of course, harvests are affected by the weather and by how plants have been tended, so there’s no absolute guarantee that generous sowing will produce generous crops. But it’s a straightforward truth that we cannot harvest unless seeds were sown! And the more we have sown, the greater the chance of a bumper harvest.Harvest Festivals are an annual thanksgiving for all that we owe to what we and others have invested over months and years. Paul is right to appeal to us to be generous in giving.David Harmsworth
