+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
E100:17.d – Paul to the Churches
Rejoice in the Lord – Philippians 4:2-9 (NLT)
Words of Encouragement
Philippians 4:2 Now I appeal to Euodia and Syntyche. Please, because you belong to the Lord, settle your disagreement. 3 And I ask you, my true partner, to help these two women, for they worked hard with me in telling others the Good News. They worked along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are written in the Book of Life.
4 Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! 5 Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.
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“Rejoice in the Lord always” – George Rathbone (1874-1951)
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Prayer:
O Lord, I call upon you; hasten to me! Give ear to my voice when I call to you! Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!
Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips! Do not let my heart incline to any evil, to busy myself with wicked deeds in company with men who work iniquity, and let me not eat of their delicacies! (Psalm 141:1-4)
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Closing Sentence
The Lord bless us, and keep us from all evil, and bring us to everlasting life.
+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
Peanut Gallery: During the month of June we are reading through the Book of Proverbs, one chapter per day. “Growing in Character” is the theme; each day we will look for practical advice on living a wise and godly life in this present age.
I recommend that you begin by reading through the entire chapter for the day yourself (a link will be included, see below.) There is something for everyone in the Book of Proverbs. I will focus on what speaks to me in the chapter and follow that theme for the day. But the verse that speaks to me, on any particular day, may be different from the wisdom God has for you… and you don’t want to miss out.
+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Opening sentence and prayer
One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.
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Open my eyes, Lord, to see the wonderful truths in your instructions. Psalm 119:18 (NLT)
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A reading from Proverbs: Proverbs 4:23 (NLT)
Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.
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A reading from the Letters: Philippians 4:6-8 (NLT)
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
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A reading from the Gospels: Luke 6:45 (NLT)
A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.
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Reflection:
Garbage in, garbage out (GIGO) in the field of computer science or information and communications technology refers to the fact that computers, since they operate by logical processes, will unquestioningly process unintended, even nonsensical, input data (“garbage in”) and produce undesired, often nonsensical, output (“garbage out”).
The underlying principle was noted by the inventor of the first programmable computing device design:
On two occasions I have been asked, “Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?” … I am not able rightly to apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question. — Charles Babbage, Passages from the Life of a Philosopher
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Treasury of a Good Heart (23/09/2011 by Gary Burton)
I have observed people in the body of Christ for years. I have seen how God uses those that fill themselves with God’s word and seek to faithfully do what the word says by applying it in their daily lives. What it has produced is a treasury of a good heart, and what comes out of their mouth is careful, timely and good, prepared for the moment. Having this treasury of a good heart is not a one time deposit in our hearts – but is gained on a daily basis as we transact business with Jesus. Relationships such as spouses, children, coworkers – and all of life’s drama draw on the treasury that is built up in our hearts.
To help refill the treasury of my heart:
Read the word daily
Apply it to my heart and life
Be refilled with his Holy Spirit daily
Worship
Gather weekly with other believers
Prayer
Lord refill me today with your Holy Spirit and may the words that come out of my mouth be a reflection and evidence of your goodness, gentleness and kindness that is deposited in my heart.
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Canticle
Christ, as a light illumine and guide me. Christ, as a shield overshadow me. Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful. Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me. This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me on my left and my right.
Blessing
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
The Peanut Gallery 