15 "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.
17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."
Called to peace...hmmm...then why is life so "unpeaceful" a lot of the time? As author/speaker/pastor Chuck Swindoll says, "happiness is a choice". I need to remember that my circumstances shouldn't dictate my attitude. Verse 15 also says we are called to peace. I wonder why we don't hear more about that calling?
Of course, being a musician, I love verse 16. I believe God does use music to minister deep within our souls. There's nothing as healing and refreshing as worshiping God, and often times music is the tool that moves us in that direction.
Verse 17 reminds us that no matter what we're doing or have to be doing, it can glorify God. I'm glad for this. Otherwise, there would be a lot of meaningless mundane drudgery, wouldn't there?
Finally, notice there are 3 admonitions to give thanks in these 3 verses.
- verse 15: "And be thankful"
- verse 16: "with gratitude in your hearts"
- verse 17: "giving thanks to God"
Maybe that's the secret to peace, real peace - an attitude of gratitude - remembering what Christ has done for us.
Think I need to work on that some more :-)
Hi
ReplyDeleteI'm new to the blog, Tracey invited me to join and I am a missionary in Haiti with New Life for Haiti, in which Crossroads is also a part of! In fact 9 people from Crossroads will be coming to visit this summer, which is very exciting!
Thanks for doing this blog, I think it's a great way to study the word together and to hear comments. This is a hard set of verses, but I would totally agree....singing is a wonderful form of praise to the Lord, even if you can't carry a tune...sing loud with praise...God loves it. AND choose each morning to be happy and at peace...it's a mindset!
Joline - thanks for your comments. I've met you at Crossroads before and heard your presentation about your mission work. I look forward to talking with you more as we blog!
ReplyDeleteChris
I agree, circumstances shouldn't dictate my attitude. I think I would a mess alot of the time if I based my happiness on things seen. My happiness is based on things unseen and for the hope the Lord provides me thru His Word. Chris, I am like you, I love to sing praises, music ministers to me to much!! God does have a sense of humor, He instilled in me love for music, yet I can't carry a tune in a bucket.
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