Let your gentleness be evident to all.
Philippians 4:5 NIV
Confession.
This was my family's "go to" verse for me for years.
It was on the fridge, and took forever to find its way to change my attitude.
And every now and then that ungentleness reappears...which for me found it's expression in both what I say and how I say it...
Evident.
Paul is clear, our attitudes need more than our intellectual agreement. They've got to be worked out in the real world.
(I have quite a list to work on...kindness, generosity, patience...they need evidence!)
And then there's the "to all".
It's easy to be gentle with those who are gentle, with those you like, but this is "to all"
Paul wants our character to be consistent...so even when I have bad news, tough medicine or criticism to give, Paul is telling me that my heart should be consistent and my gentleness evident...to all
#ouch
#lovepeople
Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can't see - such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. Colossians 1:15-16 NLT OK so this is an English translation of a letter Paul wrote to a church 2,000 years ago, but does it feel like Paul is wrestling with words and ideas to try and capture all of who Jesus is, of who God is, of how does it work that the walking around Jesus was also there before the beginning of the beginning of everything we can see and touch and know. Not only that but Jesus was somehow the agent of everything that has been made in the physical, social, and spiritual. Jesus is at the centre of it all. Walking around Jesus. Cooking fish for breakfast Jesus. Heart aching as he ...
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