Sermon 11-17-02 thankful even when…. Phil 4:11-13
Pony story
Paul to phillipians…..dirty, hungry, scared, hiding, fed to lions
I have learned in all things to be content
Paul had the life, wealth, prestige, power
Paul gave up the life….poor, rejected,
We can be thankful even when things aren’t going well because
1. it can always be worse
I had no shoes, he had no feet
Man who’s daughter died
2. we learn and grow in times of trial….James 1:2
2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Rob Blair
3. because this is still good
thanksgiving Sunday in Mozambique
4. because in times of trial I rely on him more
2 Corinthians 12:10Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.
Jeff Madden
Finally we can be thankful because we have Christ
I can do all things thru Christ who strengthens me
Gina Kennedy
German pastor…now thank we all our God
Prayer
So not focus on circumstances, focus on God
Find your strength not in things, but in him
Then we will be content because we have found the Christ who strengthens us
I cried because I had no shoes Until I saw a man who had no feet.
I don't recall when I first heard the phrase. It seems that I've known it forever. Whenever I thought that my life was horrible, I would remember it and realize that many were much worse off than I. It helped to put my problems in perspective.
When Nicki died, I thought again of the old phrase. This time, though, I felt that I was "the man who had no feet." There was no one worse off than I.
I was able to count the ways that my loss was the worst. Eighteen, I was convinced, was the worst possible age for a child to be when they died. A sudden death was much worse than a long-term illness because I didn't get a chance to say goodbye.
I even thought it was worse to lose a daughter than a son because a daughter would be more like her mother and therefore more likely to be a friend in addition to being a child.
With the passage of more than five years, however, I have gained a little bit of perspective again. There are some worse off than I am. Since meeting some of you personally and others who I just know a little about, I can see how each loss has its own unique pain.
The loss of a little one means the loss of the joy of childhood and the dreams. The loss of an older child means losing the person you have come to know over years.
A sudden loss means there's no chance to finish things and to say goodbye. A long-term illness makes it necessary to think of finishing things and saying goodbye.
As for losing a son or a daughter, I realize now that the thought is a ridiculous one. The relationship may be different, but is no less loving and real.
I feel now that others who have lost children are closer to "having no feet" than I am. I hear your stories or see things on the news and I am grateful that I didn't have to go through those things.
But the ones who I feel are the worst off are the ones who never had anyone to love and to be loved by. They may have feet, but they have no hearts.
