A simple prayer

A group of 15 gathered with me, here in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, for conversation on Saint Paul’s letter to the Philippians. We’ll meet for four weeks exploring this letter. The letter is often described as the book of joy, primarily because Paul was in prison for his faith when he wrote it. He wanted to encourage the fledging congregation to remain hopeful and grounded in Christ under all circumstances, including suffering.

The letter contains core convictions about Jesus' identity, gratitude as an essential discipline, faithful courage under stress, the peace of God that surpasses all understanding and, the capacity to think upon the things that matter most. The challenge facing the congregation within the Roman empire is the same as contemporary congregations: continue a faithful witness under the pressure to assimilate and "tone it down" to avoid persecution.

It would be a delight to have people all over spending a few weeks re-imagining life together and faithful witness in our time. ( N. T. Wright and Fred Craddock will be in the background.)

Here is a simple prayer from Philippians 1:9-11, that is worth praying for others and yourself. “I pray that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best, and be pure and blameless at the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes from Jesus Christ - to the praise of the glory of God.” Try it.