Regarding Philippians, how do I apply this to myself?:
When pondering Philippians, I normally think about an email that was sent to me by a friend when I was on a tough business trip in April of 1994. The note contained Philippians 4:8 - "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things" (NIV). One thing is for sure in reading this passage: even if not one single thing before us seems excellent to think about in the moment, we can always think about God.
Regarding Philippians, how do I apply this to my community?:
When I was on the Leadership Team of Salt and Light, we were challenged to memorize twenty Bible verses. Being a rather new Christian, it was challenging, yet I committed to it. However, in doing the rope memorization, I was often not soaking in the meaning. Yet all these years later, I still have a number of those verses memorized.
One weekend, I wanted to get away after so much stuff at my job. I drove to Blacksburg, Virginia, and attended the Virginia Tech vs. Syracuse football game. That night I camped in a field in National Forest land. By flashlight I read and memorized Philippians 4:6-7. I am thankful that I have this verse memorized. And though I think Bible memorization can be of much benefit, I do not think it should be forced on people. And Bible memorization does not mean you understand it in your heart! What separates Scripture, which is inspired by God, from other writings is that God always has a message for your heart, and that is what you must have for goodness!
Hunter Irvine
Scripture Love Blog
