Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
One of the most misunderstood verses in the entire Bible is our verse today. People have often used this verse as a motivational verse to help them succeed in their business, in sports, and in their personal lives. It's so important to understand the context of this verse.
Philippians chapter 4, verse 13. It says: "For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength."
Paul's Context: Prison and Faith
This is the Apostle Paul, and he's writing from a prison cell. If you know anything about Paul, Paul was very bold in his faith. He preached that Jesus was the way, the truth, and the life, and that put him in prison. He puts pen to paper, and then he writes verse 13 and he says, "For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength."
The Secret to Contentment
Now, a couple of verses earlier, he gives us a context of what it means to be content. And this is what he says. Verse 12: "I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little."
Then we get to our Verse of the Day. Paul's secret to being content was this: he was attached to Christ. That's why, whether he has a lot or little, he can say, well, I can still do everything through Christ who gives me strength. Because Paul understood that his strength was a result of being attached to Jesus.
Abiding in Christ
I don't know what the days ahead are going to look like for you or for me, or in the years ahead. But here's what I do know. Our strength will come from abiding in Jesus Christ. What does that look like? I think on a practical level, it's important that we set an appointment with God every day. Just like we set appointments with people for coffee or for dinner, set an appointment with God. What that does is it'll help you guard that time with just you and the Lord.
The other thing we can do is we can fill our minds with truth every day. What that does is it gives us clarity. It gives us direction and correction as well. Here's what happens when we abide. God's going to begin to fill us with strength. Where there's confusion, He's going to give clarity in our lives, but we're not promised a pain-free life.
God With Us in Our Pain
As I look at the life of Paul, he faced rejection. He had to go to prison. He was shipwrecked. But the promise of the Gospel, in the midst of our pain and in the midst of our suffering, is that we have a God who is present in our pain. He is Emmanuel, God with us. No matter what the days ahead are going to look like for you or for me, the reminder is this:
"For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength."
