Devotional of the Week February 8-14

Phillipians 1: 20-30

"According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not. For I am a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and be with Christ; which is far better: Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith; that your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again. Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; and in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God. For unto you is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake; having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me."

Going through conflict is a natural part of life. As long as you are living, you cannot help but go through conflict. You do not have to create conflict to experience it, because conflict will find you, no matter how hard you try to avoid it. I have been through many conflicts in my life, and some have been my fault, while other conflicts have come from sources out of my control. Are you feeling overwhelmed by conflict? Are there problems in your life that are spiralling out of control? Sometimes things can get so bad that you feel like giving up, or ending it all. Here is the thing: Conflict is our teacher. From conflict we learn about ourselves and how we handle the world and life circumstances. It is during trying times that our character is severely tested to see what we are really made of. Conflict can either make or break us. Through Christ's power, we have the power to not only go through conflict, but also to be victorious over conflict. We must therefore learn to put our full trust and confidence in Him, to give us the victory. We must be patient, and learn how to endure while we are going through difficulties, for the one that endures will be victorious.