This fall my church has been working through a sermon series called "injoy" as we study of the book of Philippians. Throughout the letter to the church we see Paul expressing gratitude over and over, despite being imprisoned and unable to do the ministry he longs to do. Paul describes many ways we can experience joy in our lives as we follow Jesus.
Last week we studied 4.4-7 and in this familiar passage we read a simple call: "Rejoice in the Lord always." I found myself thinking about all the ways I rejoice in my life and the things that cause me to do so. What does that look like to rejoice always? In all circumstances, we can rejoice - through Christ who gives us the strength to do so (v 13). We can't rejoice when we are anxious. I think the two are mutually exclusive- like serving God and money (matthew 6.24) or desiring approval from both man and God (galatians 1.10). When I was a kid I would read sentences and practice putting the emphasis on each word of the sentence. I ran up the stairs. I ran up the stairs. I ran up the stairs. Etc. I think I was a little OCD. But I found myself doing this on Sunday with this phrase "Rejoice in the Lord always." Rejoice in the Lord always. Rejoice in the Lord always. Rejoice in the Lord always. I kept repeating these lines, and this "in the Lord" part of the command just kept jumping out at me. I actually rejoice quite a bit in my life, but in the Lord? I take delight in quite a few things... but in the Lord do I delight? I guess it goes back to gratitude, that in all things we really can rejoice, and we see such a great picture of that in Paul's life, especially in Philippians.
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Friday marked the end of week 1 of NaNoWriMo, the annual world-wide novel writing competition where crazy people attempt to create a 50,000 word novel out of thin air. In 30 days. The chart at the left shows my progress in my first week of the competition. Attempting to write 1666-2000 words a day has proven to be quite challenging. Not that I thought it would be easy. I usually log about 500 words relatively easily and then hit a mental wall. But the good stuff comes when I push past it. Just like running, I've found that once I push past the wall at 1-2 miles and keep going, I start to believe I am capable of continuing and I get into a rhythm where I don't even have to think. The writing or running just becomes routine. It's like working on autopilot. Not every day is like that but experiencing a couple of them make me want to push through and get to that point. It was during his college years that CS Lewis learned what it meant to believe in Christ.
It was during his college years that Karl Marx shed his Christian faith. More than ever before, the college campus is a battleground of ideas, competing for followers. Everyone will graduate as believers, but in what? It isn’t a question whether tomorrow’s leaders are on campus or whether these leaders will influence our country and our world. The question is who will shape and influence them? The old tagline of Campus Crusade for Christ was, “win the campus today and you will win the world tomorrow.” Almost every major political, athletic, social, military and religious leader will pass through either a high school or college campus. To reach them with the gospel is to effectively reach the world. The campus ministry of Cru focuses on students, because high school and college represent the small window of time where individuals are open to changing their ideas, beliefs and perceptions of the world. This is the reason roughly 90% of all Christians made their decision for Christ before they reached the age of 21. The fact is, this strategy of fulfilling the Great Commission by reaching the college campus is not a new idea. Cru certainly did not invent it! This strategy is the result of the observation that God has chosen to use college students in key ways to advance his kingdom around the world. |
Amy WellnerEncouraging others to intentionally live out their God-given identity. Archives
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