Over the next several weeks, I'm going to share some thoughts from Paul's letter to the Philippians. These posts are personal reflections taken from devotional reading of the book. At the beginning of his letter to the Philippian believers, Paul is eminently thankful and joyful: verse 3: "I thank my God in all my remembrances …
Praying with Paul: Philippians 1 [30 Days of Prayer]
“In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy.” (Philippians 1:4) It is fitting that this last day of the 30 Days of Prayer devotional ends with Philippians. This letter of Paul is jam-packed with lived theology as the Apostle writes an epistle of joy from prison to believers suffering greatly. …
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Praying with Paul: Ephesians 1 [30 Days of Prayer]
“For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.” (Ephesians 1:15-16) There are two exemplary prayers of Paul in the letter known as Ephesians. The first prayer arises in 1:15-23 …
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Praying with Paul: Colossians 1 [30 Days of Prayer]
“We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you…For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you.” (Colossians 1:3, 9) To conclude the 30 Days of Prayer, I want us to have some interactive exploration of the Apostle Paul’s prayers …
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30-Days of No Complaining Challenge
Nicole Pajer, a freelance columnist for Rolling Stone and The New York Times, discovered something interesting about complaining. After deciding to participate in what she called a “30-days of No Complaining Challenge,” her entire perspective on her circumstances changed. She realized much of what she complained about were “what-if” situations that had not happened yet. …
Matthew Erickson 