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The Secret
Devotional for Saturday, June 1, 2002 by Lynne Phipps
Philippians 4:12-13 - I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength. (NIV)Ephesians 3:17-18 - I pray that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.
Have you ever thought about the fact that flowers have no choice whatsoever as to where they are planted? Bulbs tend to be planted by gardeners. Some seeds are planted, but many are scattered. Some are picked up by the wind, others get caught in the fur of animals, while still others are dropped off here and there by birds. Whatever the case though, the flowers have no choice in where they will grow and bloom.
Life can be a lot like this too. The circumstances of life can carry us in directions we would never have chosen. They can drop us off into situations far different from any we have thus far experienced.
The apostle Paul discovered this first hand. He was beaten up, run out of town, unjustly tossed into jail, shipwrecked, and bitten by a poisonous snake. Yet, amidst it all, he grew and bloomed where he found himself, for he had discovered a secret. Paul had found that things and circumstances weren't as important as where he was: rooted and established in the soil of God's love. God's love empowered him to be content, growing and blooming for Jesus, within his innermost being as well as outwardly, glorifying God through his words and actions, no matter where life's circumstances planted him.
Have you found Paul's secret yet?
Prayer: Lord God and most wonderful and gracious Father, thank you that the soil of your love is able to provide sufficient nourishment and strength to enable us to bloom where we are planted. Grant us open hearts and humble wills, O God, to accept with contentment the circumstances in which we find ourselves this day, knowing that you are with us always, and you are able and willing to supply our every need. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.
Lynne Phipps <lynnephipps@hotmail.com>
Atlin, British Columbia, Canada
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Today's Music:
Stand Up, Stand Up For Jesus.