Read: Philippians 1:1-2 Paul and Timothy, both of us committed servants of Christ Jesus, write this letter to all the followers of Jesus in Philippi, pastors and ministers included. We greet you with the grace and peace that comes from God our Father and our Master, Jesus Christ.
4:6-7 Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
8-9 Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.
Shalom to you now, shalom, my friends. May God’s full mercies bless you, my friends. In all your living and through your loving, Christ be your shalom, Christ be your shalom.*
In a church I pastored, we sang “Shalom to You” after the benediction as we held hands. Most people sang facing forward, as a hymn, or with eyes closed, as a prayer, until I suggested that we should turn to our neighbor and sing it to each other as a blessing. Their initial reluctance was quickly overcome, as we all began to see the hymn as a way of asking God’s peace for one another.
This is very much as we read in Paul’s epistles, as he offers his readers, “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Imagine what would happen if, during the Advent season, we were to
offer such words to those we meet: “May God’s full mercies bless you, my friends, Christ be your shalom.”
Shalom can be a greeting, a farewell, a desire for peace and wholeness, in a personal or global sense, and a wish for wellness and prosperityfor the person we greet. “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Shalom to you, my friends.
Prayer: May God’s shalom be yours as we prepare to celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace. Amen.[Sam Ramirez, Lakeland, Florida, United States]
*Shalom to You, words by Elise Eslinger; ©1989, The United Methodist Publishing House.
Donate to Society of St. Andrew
Society of St. Andrew
Gleaning America's Fields
Feeding America's Hungry
3383 Sweet Hollow Rd.
Big Island, Virginia 24526 United States
800-333-4597
Church@EndHunger.org
More information about the Society of St. Andrew and its hunger-relief programs - Gleaning Network, Potato & Produce Project, Harvest of Hope and Hunger Relief Advocate Initiative - is available online at EndHunger.org.
Feed your spiritual hunger during the weeks leading up to Christmas with these daily devotions from Society of St. Andrew, offering scripture readings, meditations, and prayers focusing on the coming birth of Jesus, the “Prince of Peace.”
And as you feed your spiritual hunger, we invite you to give generously to feed the physical hunger of nearly 50 million low-income Americans through the gleaning and food distribution ministries of Society of St. Andrew.
Through your faithful giving, as you are fed, so will our hungry brothers and sisters be fed. Every dollar you share will put 50 servings of healthy, nourishing food on their plates this winter.
May God’s light shine brightly through you in this holy season.
From: sosapr@endhunger.org
3383 Sweet Hollow Rd.
Big Island, Virginia 24526 United States
____________________________
No comments:
Post a Comment