Eat This BookSample

Read: Philippians 4:4-7

Process: When someone repeats themselves, we can make the assumption that what they have to say is very important. Here, Paul uses this tactic with the word “Rejoice.” Notice how Paul doesn’t tell us that we should ONLY rejoice when things are in order, when all the kids are happy, when our financial situation is perfect, or when the whole family is healthy. Instead, he says we should rejoice ALWAYS.

Act: For too much of our lives, we tend to have situational joy. This means that the joy we experience is solely based off of our present situation. However, Paul is able to rejoice always because he’s focused on the only source of true joy: Christ alone. Paul’s hope in Jesus Christ is the only way he is able to experience joy behind bars. He even gives us very practical ways we can experience this joy: 

- Don’t be anxious about anything

- Pray to God

- Give thanks to God 

This lifestyle will allow you to experience true joy found only in Christ. Paul mentions that the peace of God transcends all our human understanding. This means we can still have true peace in our lives, even when it doesn’t make sense. Even when our situation is telling us we shouldn’t, God is telling us we can and should! We must look to God’s word to find the steps to achieve true joy.

Prayer: Father, we pray for these practical ways of joy and peace to become daily habits of ours. We pray for Your peace to come upon those who are struggling, whether physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually. Would you open my eyes to see more clearly how EATING THIS BOOK involves me consuming it and allowing it to consume me?