“Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, 
that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel, 
so that my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known 
throughout the praetorian guard and to everyone else, 
and that most of the brothers and sisters, 
trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, 
have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear.”
~~Philippians 1:12-14~~

So, I was reading in Philippians 1 this morning and something popped out at me.  Well, I should say, God showed me something about myself.  Something that the human side of me wishes He hadn’t; but something that the spiritual side of me is glad He did. 

In the first chapter of the Philippians (v. 12-14), Paul is talking about how his imprisonment has proven to be a blessing because “what has happened (to him) has really served to advance the gospel” and that he is “in chains for Christ”.

I was pondering how this passage might apply to my life.  You know, very few of us will ever face being imprisoned, let alone being imprisoned for sharing the gospel; but we all have had to go through trying situations. 

As I was thinking, the Spirit began to speak and he revealed that, when I go through hardships, my focus is always on the wrong thing – ME.   

Here’s how things usually go in the life of Karen.  A hard time hits.  I throw and attend a party, of the “pity” variety.  I mope and sulk, feeling sorry for myself.  Then when the party’s over, I eventually get around to looking at things from a more spiritual perspective, trying to figure out what God is trying to teach me through my hard time.  And that’s a good thing to think about, right?   Right.  It is good to consider how God may be trying to use my situation to make me more like His Son.  But there is something “not so good” if that’s where my thought process stops. 

You see, God never gives us insight, never teaches us something just for ourselves. God’s purpose in hardships is so that when He teaches us or comforts us, we then turn around and do the same for someone else facing a hard time.  Put more plainly, God allows things into our lives to further HIS cause.  It’s not just about “me”.  Whatever situation you are in, whatever circumstance you are having to bear, whatever trial you are knee-deep in…God wants you to use it as a bridge to cross into the lives of those around you.  Use your hard time as a platform from which you can share the love and sustaining power of Jesus.  

I think the most amazing thing to me, after having heard from the Spirit this morning, is that Paul didn’t waste time at his own “party”; but instead he moved right into action using imprisonment as a means to reach people with the gospel; people he otherwise would never have come into contact with. 

BOTTOM LINE…God has every one of us in a specific place today for a reason.

God has every one of us in a specific place today for a reason.  That reason being because He wants to use us to minister and share Him with those we encounter along the way. 

Catch the last sentence of this passage:  “Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.” How incredibly timeless God’s Word is!!!!  Down through the ages, Paul’s imprisonment has continued to be used to encourage believers, like it did for me this morning.     

So the question for the day is:  Are you going to allow Paul’s example, in using his negative circumstance as a tool for sharing Christ, to become a reality in your life by using your trying circumstance to share Christ with the people with whom you have contact? 

Oh Lord, give me the courage and the boldness to share You with others, using everything that enters my life as a bridge to cross into the lives of others with the great news of You.