Thanks for the Memory
I thank my God in all my remembrance of you. (Phil. 1:3)
Read: Phil. 1:3-11; Col. 1:12; Acts 28:15; I Jn. 1:7
What Is God Saying?
Philipp1ans is a letter without shadows. It is all rejoicing, all light, all thankfulness, all good memories. There are no heresies to be put to rest. There are no personal conflicts except a reference to a minor disagreement between Euodia and Synteche, and even this closes with the assurance that their names are in the Book of Life. And then, following immediately, ‘Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rej0ice.’ This letter arises out of the deep affection Paul had for the Christians who were the first to meet him when he brought the Gospel to Europe. It was a giant step for Paul and he always had a special thankfulness in his heart as he remembered these people. He was thankful for their partnership in the Gospel from the first day until now. He cannot remember them without being thankful (1:5). He cannot pray for them without joy (1:4).
How Does This Apply To Us?
Paul had special people in mind because God had sent them into his life to meet his special needs. It is possible to have hearts filled with the love of God for all the world. It is also inevitable that some people should rise to the top of our grateful memories. We don't love others less because we love them more. Love embraces all, but God, in His mercy, allows us to be especially close to certain people in whose faces we have seen the joy of the Lord and from whose lives there has flowed the goodness of the Lord. It is not wrong to come to the Lord in prayer with thankfulness for special people. It is not wrong. It’s all right.
Pray With Me
Dear Lord, when I am thankful, I remember. When I remember, I am thankful. You have filled my heart with Your goodness. Through all my days I have known either the cleansing grace of Your sunshine or the refreshing mercy of Your rain. I have never awakened to a day, however dreary its prospect, when I have not seen evidence of Your love. I have never come upon a day, however burdensome its duties, when Your strength has not surged into my being. Your love is brought to my remembrance when I am quiet in prayer; when I am busy with good and happy chores; and when I listen again to Your beautiful, reassuring promise, ‘Lo, I am with you always.’
But Lord, I also remember the blessings which are mine because of others. ‘I thank my God in all my remembrance’ of parents who cared for my needs before I could respond to either them or You. I thank You for their sacrifices and for their confidence that the seeds that they planted would bear fruit. ‘I thank my God in all my remembrance’ of friends who have remembered me in prayer and sustained me by counsel. I thank You for their loyalty when others might have given up and for their understanding when the better self was slow to surface. ‘I thank my God in all my remembrance’ of wife and children whose response in human love gives meaning to life's most tender and beautiful relationships. I thank You for their patience in the face of unintended wrong and their optimism in the running tide of hardship.
For all that I have, because I have You, I would remember to be thankful. For all that I have, because You have showered Your love on me through others, I would remember to be thankful. And above all, for all that I have because of Your unspeakable Gift, Jesus Christ my Lord, I would remember to be thankful.
To His glory, my praise; in His name, my prayer. Amen.
Moving On In The Life of Prayer
If we count the blessings that have come to us through the faithfulness and love of others we will have the stuff of which real prayers are made. Let us thank God every time we remember what someone means to us because God sent him or her to help with the load, to cheer our spirits, or to shed some light along our path. That will keep us busy in the exercise of prayer. It will also make prayer for us what it was for Paul, ‘always in every prayer with joy’ (1:4). Prayer was never a burden to Paul. It doesn't need to be for us.
