Last Sunday at The Family Church here in Gainesville, Florida, our senior pastor Philip Griffin continued his new series about the Bible's New Testament book of Philippians with the second sermon, titled Finding Joy in the Tough Times. Since Philippians is a letter Paul wrote from a Roman prison, it's pretty clear that he was in the middle of some very tough times when he wrote it, living a harsh existence while constantly chained to a guard of the palace. Yet the feeling thoughout this epistle is one of abundant joy, a joy he had found through his faith in Christ...
Using the passage Philippians 1:12-26 as his guide (click on the passage's link to read it through Bible Gateway), Philip lists three keys to finding and keeping joy in the midst of difficult times: know that adversity can advance God's kingdom, refuse to be offended, and live knowing what really matters. In spite of his incarceration, Paul not only wrote letters to churches he had helped to plant, but also was in a position to witness and minister to the many guards he encountered there...advancing God's kingdom in the process. His outlook and behavior inspired other Christians to boldly dare to spread the Gospel in the face of danger and persecution. As for being offended, in any group of people...even at church...there are folks who do some pretty mean things. Refusing to be offended means to not respond in kind to their provocations...there are bigger matters at hand. Speaking of "bigger matters", living for Christ means to exalt him and not oneself. And that self-exaltation can lead to all sorts of nasty personal traps. Pastor Philip added a mnemonic device built upon the word JOY: first comes J for Jesus, second comes O for others (community), and last comes Y for yourself. Pretty nifty, huh?
The Family Church (2022 SW 122nd Street) meets Sunday mornings with its services at 9 and 10:30. The people here are friendly and easy to talk to...what a great place to make new friends! Besides the on-spot message, there is a time devoted to worship through inspiring music along with prayer and discipleship opportunities. And the hospitality center offers coffee and refreshments before and between services. I'm looking forward to Part 3 of Philip's Philippians series this Sunday. Oh, if you want to see this most recent sermon, you can view it on the church's YouTube video site...here's a link to it:[link]...
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