“Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.” Philippians 1:27a
A friend’s quick status update on Facebook not long ago reminded me of her family’s need for prayer that morning. They were dealing with some folks who have not only waged a legal war against them but are lying about them as well. As I began praying for my friends, the Lord brought the above verse to mind, and I immediately prayed it for them.
“Lord, no matter what happens, no matter what they face, help my friends conduct themselves in a manner worthy of You. Help them to react to all that happens with calmness and grace.”
As I continued to pray, I felt led to share this wisdom from the Word with them. I went back to the status update and left a comment, assuring them of my prayers and then shared the scripture with them. A few minutes later, I saw their reply—they were trying their best to do the very thing the verse exhorts us all to do.
And yes, this verse is for all of us. Whatever happens, we are to walk worthy. Worthy of our Lord and Savior.
When times are good and we are rejoicing, we need to walk worthy. In other words, when good things happen or we succeed, who gets the praise? And are we careful not to lose our heads and do something unwise in the thrill of an exciting moment? Do we follow the admonition in 2 Timothy 4:5a — “But you, keep your head in all situations . . .”
Of course, the more difficult times to walk worthy are when times are bad. When a friend or loved one betrays us . . . when someone hurts our kids . . . when our husbands or wives lose their tempers with us . . . when someone gossips about us . . . and yes, even when a devastating crisis knocks us to our knees. What do we do then? Do we walk worthy?
How are we able to do this? How can we conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel no matter what happens? Only by His grace. Only by His power…
“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:8
*Flickr photo by peasap, Creative Commons License
Walking worthy… one of the reasons I wear my bracelet inscribed with the word “entrusted.”
This is such a timely post, Cheryl. I’ve just been praying about this very thing this morning. A situation has moved into my world, and I need walk worthy of the Jesus who named me as his–Christian!
Thank you.
peace`elaine
Elaine, I’m so glad this post at the right time for you. What a blessing to hear!