“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
Dear Jesus, as the last week of August 2022 winds down, thank you for a diverse tapestry of friends who share one common passion and delight. And that is, as Paul calls it, “partnership in the gospel.”
Not partnership, as in being owners-and-voters of a corporation. But partnership as in belonging to you, being clothed in your righteousness and engaged in your commitment to “make all things new.”
Indeed, it’s wonderful to have friends who believe taking “us-ies” is far better than taking “selfies”—friends who really believe listening is better than telling, giving grace is better than getting even, and that being weak together is sweeter than trying to impress each other.
Thank you for writing us into your story of redeeming grace and transforming love. Thank you for rescuing us from Gospel-less religion and grace-less spirituality. Thank you for freeing us from dreams that don’t include you, or at best, treat you like an “add on.’ Thank you for rescuing us from a lifestyle that makes you important and respect-worthy, but not essential, supreme, and worship-worthy.
Jesus stoke the flames of our passion for your now-and-coming-Kingdom. One day we’ll bury each other, but today is a day for making much of you, laughing the laughter of grace, and serving you with palpable joy and hope. May the Gospel increasingly be central to our thinking, feeling, and choosing. So Very Amen.