“I thank my God every time I remember you… I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel… being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will complete it.” (Phil. 1:3-6)
“Hordes of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea.” (Ezek. 47:9-10)
Dear Jesus, what a privilege, joy, hope you have given us—living and loving as friends and partners in the Gospel. Not the kind of partners who are owners-and-voters of a corporation. But partners in belonging to you, sharing the Gospel, and engaging in your commitment to “make all things new.” Why would we want to live any other way?
You’ve made us fishers of men, serving you with nets of grace, and have positioned us along the banks of the “river of life.” It’s the life-giving river that flows from Eden, through world history and our hearts, all the way into the new heaven and new earth (Ezek. 47:9-10; John 7:37-38; Rev. 22:1-3).
Jesus, thank you for writing us into your story of redeeming grace and transforming love. Thank you for “catching and releasing” us into the only life that is truly abundant. Thank you for freeing us from dreams that don’t include you and a vision that can’t see beyond a comfortable retirement.
Thank you for friendships that are partnerships in the Gospel and your present-and-coming-Kingdom. It’s your work and you will complete it—in us and through us. Hallelujah, thank you, and So Very Amen.