Friday, December 7, 2018

It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be put to shame in any way, but that by my speaking with all boldness, Christ will be exalted now as always in my body, whether by life or by death.
Philippians 1:20

What does that even mean? This is just another way of stating the goal of a Christian life is to glorify God in everything we do. How do we glorify God? ...We make God look Good (although he clearly needs no help with this).

Think of God as a distant star, much more brilliant than our own sun, but to the human eye, he is just a dim speck in the night sky. We as believers are called to be a telescope to bring the truth about God into view for the unbeliever. Through us, and especially through how we handle trials, and he promises us trials, Christ may be magnified to a skeptical, unbelieving world.

It doesn’t matter what you do for a living- a construction worker, a stay at home parent, a lawyer or a business person...What matters is how we can answer the question ‘What are you living for?’ Your answer to that question will determine the direction of your life. If your purpose is vague or fuzzy, you direction will be fuzzy. If you don’t know your purpose you will be swept along by the current of our world, doing what seems to bring happiness.

In Philippians in view of Paul’s circumstances, it is remarkable that his main focus was not on getting released from prison, but rather on exalting Christ. Whether he lived or died wasn’t the issue; all that mattered to Paul was that he exalted his Lord and Savior.

Dear Heavenly Father, May I always exalt Christ through my actions, thoughts, and feelings; I pray that by exalting you every day that the world might see your brilliance. Amen.

Luke Rodgers is Deputy Director of Planning and Projects at The Salvation Army in Philadelphia. He is a long time partner of Lutheran Congregational Services.

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