Philippians 1:6,9,10,14,15,20,22,27,28
[For I am] confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ;
and that most of the brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear. Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even from envy and strife, but some also from good will; according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I shall not be put to shame in anything, but [that] with all boldness, Christ shall even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ; so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; in no way alarmed by your opponents-- which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and that too, from God.
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At certain times, just like the apostle Paul, we all find ourselves in prison. You may not actually be behind bars, but when your spirit is locked up because of fear, hurt, anger, resentment, or disappointment, you are every bit as stuck. But again, God has a great strategy for getting you “unstuck.” Don’t look at the bars that bind you, the body that is not as strong as it once was, the circumstance that you can’t control. Instead set your mind on the fruits of the Spirit which are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22,23), and your energies on laboring fruitfully. Fruitful labor is Bible-speak for what you are doing when you do anything positive, to God’s glory, keeping those fruits of the Spirit in mind. You may not like where you are right now. Labor there, anyway. God has put you there for a reason. If you spend your day thinking how miserable some circumstance or person is, you are indeed in prison. It is easy to complain. But when things are really tough for you, and you keep that loving, peaceful, gentle attitude anyway, that’s when you are really glorifying God. Your body may not be as strong as it once was or you might be fearful that you are not adequate for some task. Labor there anyway. Take the mind and the body that you have at this time, at this moment, and do the best that you can with a peaceful, fruitful spirit. Again, that is how you bring honor to God. It’s so easy to be happy when everything is going your way. But the real mark of your character is when you are in prison, a tricky time in your life, and yet you still retain your peace and labor fruitfully. At the end of the day, it is your prison bars, those things that are most difficult for you, that will bring you closer to God because you will rely on His help and direction to set you free and restore your peace. So as you wait for God’s peace to set in, labor fruitfully no matter what the circumstance. This is the way to take control and emerge triumphantly each day no matter what is happening in your life.
Click the link below to see my books,
"Keeping Your Lamp Lit"
http://www.amazon.com/Keeping-Your-Lamp-Lit-Schuler/dp/1451559321/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277386999&sr=1-1#noop
"Good Strategies for Bad Times"
http://www.amazon.com/Good-Strategies-Bad-Times-Schuler/dp/1438257775/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1265471485&sr=8-1