SPEAKER_00: Hi everyone, it's Nancy with your Wednesday edition of our daily walk.
SPEAKER_00: This past Sunday we began a new sermon series in the book of Philippians, which begins with these two verses.
SPEAKER_00: Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who were at Philippi with the overseers and the deacons.
SPEAKER_00: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
SPEAKER_00: The Apostle Paul used that greeting of grace and peace often in his writing, so I did a little digging into that blessing.
SPEAKER_00: It's a common one used in Christian greetings.
SPEAKER_00: As I did so, I came across an article written by Katie Augustine.
SPEAKER_00: Listen to her opening comment.
SPEAKER_00: Paul wrote 13 books of the New Testament, and guess what?
SPEAKER_00: He started every single book with those two words.
SPEAKER_00: Grace and peace to you.
SPEAKER_00: Don't believe me?
SPEAKER_00: Check out the verse view verses of each of his books.
SPEAKER_00: Clearly, grace and peace was Paul's signature greeting.
SPEAKER_00: If he lived today, those words would be considered his ministry's mission statement, his brand, and probably be on his Instagram profile.
SPEAKER_00: End quote.
SPEAKER_00: Pastor Aaron talked about grace and took us to Paul's writing in Ephesians chapter two.
SPEAKER_00: Yet my mind lingered on the word peace, perhaps because there's some challenging things stirring in my life lately and taking my focus.
SPEAKER_00: I'm thankful daily for God's grace that picks me up and restores me when I fall short of his desires for me.
SPEAKER_00: His grace is sufficient to guide me and provide for me when I call on him.
SPEAKER_00: And yet the Lord is reminding me in fresh ways of the peace he offers if I will draw close and keep the eyes of my heart on him.
SPEAKER_00: Miss Augustine wrote, You can keep a quiet heart living in the light of God's grace and enveloped in the protection of his peace.
SPEAKER_00: The Lord's been reminding me that peace is not driven by circumstances being calmed down or cleared up.
SPEAKER_00: It's a peace that flows from our relationship with him.
SPEAKER_00: It comes when we acknowledge his presence with us and trust that he's firmly in control of our lives.
SPEAKER_00: Listen as I paraphrase a challenge from Ms.
SPEAKER_00: Augustine's writing.
SPEAKER_00: She said, Look around at your life.
SPEAKER_00: How are things today?
SPEAKER_00: In divided, uncertain times as we look to the future with no clue what it will hold.
SPEAKER_00: I urge you to hold on to the treasure of these two words, grace and peace, as a reminder that God sent his only son into the world to save us from our lost condition.
SPEAKER_00: God knows what the future will bring, and we can trust we are safe in his capable hands.
SPEAKER_00: With this faith in your heart, heaven is yours and earth holds nothing to worry you.
SPEAKER_00: And here is that phrase once again.
SPEAKER_00: You can keep a quiet heart living in the light of God's grace and enveloped in the protection of his peace.
SPEAKER_00: Let me close our time here with this familiar blessing from Numbers chapter six.
SPEAKER_00: May it wash over us in a fresh way today with God's grace and peace.
SPEAKER_00: The Lord bless you and keep you.
SPEAKER_00: The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
SPEAKER_00: The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
SPEAKER_00: Amen.