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Day: October 12, 2014

Plan to be Pleased

Plan to be Pleased

“But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel” (Philippians 1:12).

When new Christians begin memorizing Bible verses-

Philippians 4:4 is almost always included:

“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!”

But when those young Christians discover that Paul wrote that verse while confined to prison, shackled in chains-

– it suddenly takes on a whole new meaning:

Rejoice always, even when your faith might cost you your life!

Crises have a way of forcing us to clarify what we actually believe.

Paul was excited (Philippians 1:12) when his faith landed him in prison-

– because he discovered that the Gospel was being preached even more.

In other words-

His crisis was not a crisis of faith.

It was a crisis because of his faith.

And it was a crisis that resulted in his faith-

– being strengthened,

– not weakened.

When Peter was charged with being friends with Christ-

– he denied the relationship existed. Matthew 26:69-75.

The shame he felt caused him to clarify his faith.

And it never failed him again.

The next time you face a crisis-

Your faith will be clarified one way or the other.

– either strong or weak.

Plan to be pleased with what that crisis reveals!

(PR)