Wednesday 25 Apr 2012

Wednesday Reading: Philippians 4:10-12

Key Verse: Philippians 4:11
11  Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.

Devotion:
You may have guessed that this chapter has a lot to offer by now! How wonderful it is to be able to go back on your old notes made and to see how your thoughts about verses have changed over time; being able to build up more knowledge and wisdom is what reading God’s Word should be able in my mind. I have always looked at this passage as being a declaration of Paul’s being content with what he has, but in reality it starts with him giving thanks for what the people from Philippi had done and that was to give him a special spiritual gift.

Most of our lives we like to look out for physical gifts and we are normally very pleased to get them. We look for them at birthdays, Christmas and any other celebration we like to have – you could say that we now expect them to come around year after year. And then when we get to the time when they stop or we don’t get what we want, we feel down or rejected in some way. Whilst we do not have a description of what it was that Paul received, it was the fact that he had received something at all and that it had appeared to come from the heart rather than out of a feeling of necessity.

There is always something very special about receiving an unexpected gift and when we know that it has come from the heart of the giver it is worth so much more. The most treasured gifts I have received are not the biggest and best looking but the ones that people have personally made for me or have given to me on the spur of the moment. And then there are those very special gifts which are just words.

If you can find it in yourself to be pleased, satisfied and content with the things that others are willing to share with you, then you will find that you are going to be much happier with your lot in life. If you are going to expect gifts to come in all the time then you are always going to find yourself in want for more. Paul had been through the ups and downs of life and now he was coming to grips with just how special some of our gifts in life are, and not the big expensive ones but those small and special ones given in love. It is these gifts, whether given or received, that make our world go round and they should never be discounted nor be ignored but lifted up in thanks for what they actually are. God’s gift to us may seem very small to some people, but it comes with the deepest and fondest love from our God!

Points to Ponder:
Do you like giving gifts?

Have you remembered to thank God for His gift to you?