I choose to Shine D01062021
- COUPLES AND SINGLES NETWORK FOR CHRIST INITIATIVE
- Jun 1, 2021
- 2 min read
RENEW REFRESH REFOCUS
CASNFCI SCRIPTURE & PRAYER FOR THE DAY
I choose to Shine
Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. — Philippians 2:15-16.
Good preachers know the value of strong imagery. Metaphors and similes paint word pictures in our minds. In this passage, Paul has two similes, one lovely and the other painful v14-18.
On the one hand, when we behave in Christlike ways as Paul has been urging throughout Philippians 2, we can shine like stars in the sky. Though the world around us may often seem like a morally dark place, in God’s strength we can be like nighttime stars that pierce the darkness and twinkle in beauty.
On the other hand, Paul raises the possibility that he might not live much longer. He says he could be poured out like a drink offering to complete the sacrifice of service the Philippians were engaged in through their Christian living. If the star imagery warmed the hearts of the Christians in Philippi, this drink-offering image probably gave them a chill. They would not want their founding pastor to die.
But Paul does not want them to feel sad. He sees the possibility of dying for Christ as a reason to rejoice! Jesus said that the servant is not greater than the master. If the world mistreated Jesus, his followers may experience the same.
So, shine like stars, but don’t be surprised if some people in the world do not like that. And if they don’t, do not despair. Look to Jesus and follow in his footsteps.
PRAYER
Lord, strengthen us so that we can daily live confidently with endless reasons to rejoice in you even to the end. In Jesus’ name Amen.
Rev. Isaac G. Y Bangalu Founder & CE
Couples & Singles Network for Christ Initiative
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Thank You.
Glory to God