Dr. Tom Pace 1 Corinthians 15:10a (NIV) But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. Reflection: I call this the “Popeye the Sailor Man” verse, and it is one of my favorites. In the midst of the great depression, cartoonist E.C. Segar created a profoundly human character, who claimed his identity each and every episode with a catchy little ditty that has endured for almost a century. I’m Popeye the sailor man. I’m Popeye the sailor man. I yam what I yam and dat's all what I [...]

Rev. Cliff Ritter   Matthew 6:14-15 (New International Version)   14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.   Reflection: There is an extended passage of scripture that I want to memorize. I think I know it fairly well but memorizing chapters at a time comes with no small effort on my part. I think I need to find the motivation to step into this cause in this season of my [...]

Rev. Katie Montgomery Mears 5-7 Lot, who was traveling with Abram, was also rich in sheep and cattle and tents. But the land couldn’t support both of them; they had too many possessions. They couldn’t both live there—quarrels broke out between Abram’s shepherds and Lot’s shepherds. The Canaanites and Perizzites were also living on the land at the time. 8-9 Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not have fighting between us, between your shepherds and my shepherds. After all, we’re family. Look around. Isn’t there plenty of land out there? Let’s separate. If you go left, I’ll go right; if [...]

Rhonda Ward Philippians 4:15-20 (NIV) 15 Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; 16 for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid more than once when I was in need. 17 Not that I desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account. 18 I have received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied, now that I [...]

Steve Carroll Philippians 4:4-7 (NRSV) 4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Reflection: I don’t know about you, but I sometimes do not feel close to God. To be more honest, I often, do not feel close to God. There [...]

Martha Hill Jamison Philippians 3:12-4:1 (NIV) Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,  I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us, then, who are mature should take such a [...]

Cynthia Wier Philippians 3:lb-11 (NIV) Further, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you. Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh. For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: [...]

Justin Bair Philippians 2:19-30 Timothy and Epaphroditus 19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I, too, may be consoled by news of you. 20 I have no one so like myself who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. 21 All of them are seeking their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But Timothy’s worth you know, how like a son with a father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. 23 I hope therefore to send him as soon as I see how things [...]

Jenna Lindley Philippians 2:12-13 (NIV) 12 Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Reflection: On March 4, 1933, wearing a morning coat and striped trousers, Franklin Delano Roosevelt took the Presidential oath with his right hand raised and his left hand on his family Bible. America, cloaked in fear, was in the middle of the Great [...]

Edith Nordloh Philippians 2:1-11 (NRSV) “2 make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind…….5  Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ……” Reflection: I am not inherently a good servant. I am rebellious and argumentative and sometimes righteously indignant or simply self-righteous. In light of these characteristics, motherhood and marriage have been a challenge for me. The self-sacrifice required to care for young children and the compromises required for sharing a life with another person has stretched me and tried my patience and [...]