Walk of Faith

“As it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.”

~Philippians 1:20-26

For a law abiding citizen, I’ve spent a lot of time in prison. My late husband was in both state and federal prisons, where I met and married him and spent the last four years of his stretch in visiting rooms all over the country. The feds like to move their charges around a bit. One of my sons is in the federal system, and is also moved around quite often, but never close to me. Sometimes I think it’s a conspiracy to keep us as far apart as possible. I don’t get to see him often. I have also worked as a drug and alcohol counselor in the prison system, and I’ve been involved in prison ministry, so I’ve seen prison from every side. But no matter how much prison I’ve seen, I’ve never seen it the way the Apostle Paul did. There was no judge or jury, no three hots and a cot, no visiting days, TVs, weight piles or boneyards. It was a dark, dank cell with rats, insects and a prisoner chained to the floor. There was no early release or parole, and prisoners often died from disease or malnutrition, unless the governor of the province released them. But Paul, bound and chained to the floor never lost his joy. Instead, he dictated letters to be sent to the churches he established so the congregations wouldn’t lose heart over his situation. He knew sheep scatter when the shepherd is gone. He also knew that no matter where he was, Christ was with him. His only goal in life was to see Christ glorified and preach the gospel. Imagine if today’s prisons were full of prisoners like that!

“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel (Philippians 1:27).”

Paul wanted the people to continue their walk of faith whether or not he was present. The same thing Christ wants of all of us. We cannot physically see, hear or touch Jesus Christ, but we can see, hear and touch Him through the Holy Spirit, in our inner being, in our own spirits. He is alive and real, living within our spirits through His own. It’s a mind-bender but it’s the coolest thing I’ve ever experienced. When we get that into our minds and hearts and understand the full implications, we can rejoice like Paul. No matter what happens in this life, the important thing is that Christ is glorified in our lives. In prison? Death of a loved one? Cheated on by a spouse? Talked about by a friend? Left behind by the crowd? Fired? Got a failing grade on a test? It doesn’t matter. Is Christ glorified in your life by what you do no matter what’s going on? That’s the important question and the only that matters. Life sucks. It sucks bad. Life will knock you down, jump on top of you and beat the crap out of you. And when you try to get up, it’ll kick you in the face. But that isn’t important either. What’s important is when you were on the ground, was your manner of life worthy o the gospel of Christ?

“And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins (Colossians 1:9-14).”

Read Psalm 131-150

©2018 Marie McGaha