Stone's Hill Community Church
Our new series is called "Letters from Prison" - which is a study of Paul's prison epistles. One of these prison epistles is the book of Philippians. It's predominant theme is "joy." Have you ever talked to someone and they said to you, “I just want to be happy. I want to enjoy life. I want to be able to laugh again; to see the beauty that I’m now living. I just want my family to get along. I want my important relationships to work right. I want to understand life purpose better.” Quite honestly, we have probably all said these things to ourselves at one time or another. This series is for all of us who have ever had thoughts like this. It’s about releasing the tension that is already there and learning how not to create more relational tension going forward. It’s about refusing to allow circumstances to dominate our attitudes. And ironically enough, the words to Philippians were written by an incarcerated man! Welcome to Stones Hill Community Church and Online Notes!
Welcome!
We welcome you to Stone's Hill today!
A typical Stone's Hill service has music (feel free to sing out); some announcements (things that are upcoming that you can be a part of); a message out of the Bible (God speaks to us through his Word); and an opportunity for you to respond to the message (either immediately in the case of a decision that needs to be made OR in the future as you live out the message in your life.)
So relax and enjoy your morning! We're so glad you are here!
Philippians 1:1-14 NIV
Letters from Prison - Philippians
Paul is teaching in Philippians that it’s not the circumstances of your life, it’s not whether things go well for you or go ill for you, it’s the way you define life that will determine whether you stand or fall in this world.
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What is your definition of life? What are you living for? What is the most important thing for you? what is that thing which will make your life worth living regardless of what else happens? What is life?
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Later in Philippians 1, Paul will say “to live is Christ.” Tragedies and troubles come to us, and they take away that which makes our life worth living. Unless you change your definition of life, you collapse. We say, “To me, to live is to have that.” When the circumstances, the tragedies of life, come and go after your bottom lines, you utterly collapse. Paul says there is only one definition of life. There is only one bottom line.
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If your whole life is collapsing, the problem is not the circumstance of your life; it’s the definition of your life. What do you live for? Who do you live for? What’s the passion for which you live? What drives you? What sucks up your energies? What dominates your time? What dominates your thinking? What dominates your reading? What makes your life tick? What passion do you carry in your heart?
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Everybody is passionate about something. All of us have someone or something that we live for - some passion or ideal that drives us on giving our life purpose - some sense of meaning raising us up from a mere level of existence.
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What is your bottom line?