Dear BAGBR Churches,

Philippians 1: 12 “…my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel.”

When we think of circumstances in our life turning out for the greater progress of the gospel, we most often like to think about good that has come our way—success, promotion, recognition.  In the case of Paul he was imprisoned in Rome.  This sounds like regression and not progression!  And yet, Paul was a faithful witness, sharing the gospel with all the guards that were assigned to him. As a result, many were coming to faith in Christ. Now the entirety of the Praetorian Guard in Rome was a ripe field for the Gospel. The apostle would have never had direct access to them unless he was in prison in Rome.  Paul realized that his circumstances were divinely designed by God!  So, he determined that being in prison was as much a “mission trip” as was his call to Macedonia or his call to labor three years in Ephesus. 

If we are inconvenienced or limited in the place we find ourselves, is it because of something wrong we have done? Or could it be that we have done nothing wrong?  At this point, it matters not!  We should accept the fact that where we are is where we must be—on assignment for the Lord, making the most of it—for His glory and our good.  We should not focus on the circumstances we find ourselves in, but rather we should focus on our calling to be obedient to Christ. When we think in this way, He transforms our misery into mission, our complaining into witnessing, disappointments into appointments, and our challenges into opportunities. 

Sometimes we may find ourselves in places among people that we would not have chosen nor desired, but God put us there by design.  Don’t Whine, SHINE.

 In  Christ,
Tommy Middleton

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