Devotionals Detail

Reading: Philippians 1:1-11

When we hear the word “partnership” – you might think of a business, legal or management definition. Across all, a partnership is a relationship between people agreeing to share the profits and losses of a business or organization together. Each contributes resources, manages the enterprise, and shares risk and reward. Even in a marriage, the mutual covenant to share all of life together – through sickness and health, richer and poorer – is a partnership. So when Paul prays for the Philippians’ “partnership in the gospel” what does he mean?

As Paul writes to this congregation in the church of Phillipi, he gives great thanks for their financial, relational and spiritual support while he is in prison. They have seen each other through a lot of ups and downs as they began this new church. In the Philippians, he sees a ministry partner, but more important, a partnership despite his incapacity to continue as he had been. He remembers all they have been and rejoices in what they continue to be, even without his presence. You sense his joy for them, as well as his concern that their “partnership” is seeing diminishing returns, since he does not know when he will be released from prison or visit them again. Paul’s situation begs a question of us as well:

“What does it mean to have partnership in the gospel when there is no guarantee of a tangible return?”

The world tells us to cut our losses. If a partnership doesn’t “serve our needs,” we release it from our lives. When returns diminish in our investment, the natural tendency is to pull out before the ship sinks. But Paul tells the Philippians to do something completely different: Rejoice, and keep partnering anyway.

When life doesn’t seem to be going our way, when our Biblical study isn’t giving us guidance for the situation at hand, when the seeds of faith we planted aren’t bearing fruit in this moment– what do we do? It happens to all of us at some time or another – our trust in God is shaken, our walk with Christ wavers, and the Holy Spirit isn’t felt. In those seasons, Paul tells us: Rejoice, and keep partnering anyway.

It’s not an easy thing to do – to believe that God is still at work when you aren’t feeling the Divine presence. It goes against our instinct toward self-protection and self-preservation. And I’ve seen it time and time again as people disconnect from God and the church, because that relationship is not the partnership they hoped, wanted or needed it to be for that time of their life. So, for anyone who may be reading this who is feeling that way, remember these words from Paul: “I am confident of this, that the one who began a good

work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” May this assurance encourage you to rejoice, and keep partnering anyway.