Philippians‬ ‭2:14-15 (NLT)

Lights in the World

“Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people.”

Beloved,

Let us model and walk out this life like Paul. The wisdom from about 61 AD still applies to us today. It is important for us to think about what we are thinking about and the words that come out of our mouths. Offenses, unfair situations, and things out of our control will happen but it’s our responsibility to not pick up the hurt and take on each of those situations alone. Each of us will experience trials and blessings but the posture of our heart can determine how we go through each circumstance. Are you going to add on to the offense and the unfair situation by replaying it over and over again in your mind. Do not allow your mind to come up with hypothetical situations that only frustrate you further. We can not change the past, the hurts, and the offensive words but we can choose to forgive.

Forgiveness is not a feeling but a choice. This does not mean for us to allow the same cycles to repeat themselves but we can take steps to protect our mind, will, and emotions for all of these things flow out of the heart. Let us pick and choose our battles. It is healthy to slow down and be still in these moments. Allow the promptings of the Holy Spirit to guide you on how to proceed and move forward. A key step to this is not to complain or argue. This is a hard step but we can do it through Jesus grace.

It took me some time to write this because I had to walk this out myself and I still do not have it all the way down. This is the beauty of our God, He does not expect us to be perfect or perform perfectly. We have a wonderful savior and friend who walks out everyday with us, sees, and hears everything. It is true, He will not leave or forsake you and He will demonstrate this in every situation. It may be hard to see those nuggets of His grace around you when these situations happen and this is when its healthy to slow down and be still. Take those complaints and hurts directly to Him for He will not add fuel to it but will mend it. It is written in Philippians 4:6-7, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

When we take our genuine thoughts, feelings, and emotions to our Heavenly Father, He understands us thanks to Jesus who has experienced everything we did, are experiencing now, and will experience in the future. We must trust the Lord to fight our battles and make it right. It’s written in Romans 12:19, “Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.” Let’s us choose to give everything to Abba and Jesus. Let us not sin but live clean lives.

Did you know complaining is murmuring and murmuring is a sin. This is why Paul prompts us to live innocently and shine bright in the dark world we are living in. I love how Paul wrote in Philippians 3:12-13, “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.” We have a promise to go from glory to glory. We have not seen, heard, or imagined what God has for us who believe. Let us choose to let go of the past, enjoy the present, and look forward with hope and expectation for the wonderful days that are ahead.

I pray that as you choose to shift your perspective, you will be able to see yourself and your circumstances the way Abba and Jesus see them. Let us not hold fast to the things of this world but hold fast to a heavenly perspective for Abba and Jesus will work all things together for your good because He loves you. In Jesus Name. Amen!

Written By:

A Child of the Most High

Anastasia