Over the past few months, life has been quite hectic. I’ve experienced a heavier than usual work schedule, got busy addressing some thorny ministry issues, and felt burdened by world events, war, food shortages, and inflation. I found myself a little overwhelmed and cynical, tempted to just go through the motions of life. I looked to God’s word for counsel and the Holy Spirit brought Philippians 4:8-9 to mind: “…brothers (and sisters), whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
Through meditating on these verses daily and putting these thoughts into practice, God has given me peace even during the most stressful days dealing with unexpected mechanical breakdowns on the job or on days with endless tasks that demand my attention until I run out of time.
I have learned from these verses not to dwell on all that has gone wrong, but rather to replace my reaction with prayer (asking God for help), patience (refraining from anger), perseverance (staying on task, being longsuffering), and faith (trusting in God’s providence). As I made strides in replacing negative, worldly responses with God-pleasing responses to my unwanted circumstances, I started to ponder how this same principle can be applied to relationships, especially within the body of Christ.
Working together for the Lord is not always free of tension or conflict. The memories of deep-seated disagreements or personality clashes tend to accumulate in our hearts as the years go by. Our private thoughts or conversations about our fellow believers are not always godly. But God reminds us to dwell on the excellent, the praiseworthy characteristics of our fellow brothers and sisters. This practice will produce two results: 1) we learn not to dwell on the individual’s blind spots or negative characteristics, and 2) we learn not to harbor any grudges or resentment toward that individual. This does not mean we pretend that tension does not exist, but it does place our hearts in the right place to nurture or restore relationships at the proper time.
Brothers and sisters, try meditating on Philippians 4:8-9 and putting it into practice, not only toward our daily circumstances and trials, but also toward those who are closest to us, whether it’s at work, ministry, or home. This will put our hearts in line with God so that when we interact with each other, we see the good in them that God does.