05/17/2020 - Joy and Pain - Philippians 1:1-14

I'm very excited to announce "Joy Unchained" is the new series beginning this Sunday. It's a study in the book of Philippians which is written by the apostle Paul while a prisoner of Rome. What would he want to tell us while wearing the chains? The message is simply this: there is joy in adversity. I don't remember much about the early years of my public school education. I do remember feeling anxious. I also remember not fully trusting my parents when they said the experience would be good for me. "Yeah right, how could being around kids I've never met and in a new environment be good for me??" Eventually I gave in and it worked. I made a lot of new friends. Have you noticed this spiritual principle? God often has to "shake us up" to move us beyond where we are in life. As the country begins to reopen we find a variety of (and oftentimes heated) opinions regarding safety, security and sanitization. There were big challenges as we entered quarantine but there might be bigger ones as we re-engage. It seems that everyone is in one of two places. We are either entering adversity or we are coming out of adversity but either way we can know that this is not the last adversity we will ever face. So what is the secret to finding joy in adversity? Paul gives us the answer and it's not found in something but in someone.