A little while ago, I produced a verse by verse series in Philippians. I really enjoyed that exercise and have been wondering if I should take on another book. Well it turns out that 1 Thessalonians is the victim of my machinations, and hopefully, the thoughts produced by this fantastic book will edify and encourage the reader.

As with Philippians I am going to limit each post to one verse, and hopefully produce a short, succinct read for my friends who follow.

1 Thessalonians 2:20 For you are our glory and joy.

We have dealt with both the joy and the glory aspects of Paul’s heart regarding this church in a previous discussion. See last weeks posting 1 Thessalonian Bits – 2:19.

For this mornings brief verse, Paul simply wants to summarize his heart towards those he longs to see, Yes it appears as though he has vanished, yet all the more he desires to see them, and to let them know of how circumstances and forces have restrained him.

As a minor add on to the discussion of glory, as we previously mentioned the association of glory with boasting and that boasting in others may be a righteous activity, a unifying energy, and a faith building exercise that not only honors God, but builds up the church.

Of course, self boasting, that type of boasting of which I am expert at, seems to be the problem. Did you know that I am the greatest boaster of them all? Boast boast boast – Look at me!

Not going to go there!

Paul continually boasts of the Lord Jesus and not himself. And Paul is boasting of a tiny little band of folks that may be struggling with the apparent absence of their father in the faith. He is boasting of a small congregation that has turned their lives around in the face of opposition, even in the face of the evil one.

Yes Paul was separated from his loved ones, but he took great pride in his little church.

Struggling little churches are not to be looked down upon. Without velvet or silk pews, fancy hymnals and solid oak pulpits, God can still perform mighty miracles in the lives of the sanctified. Churches that may be vilified by the common man, or the high powered influencer can still produce a light for those who are seeking.

If my reader is in the midst of a struggle, be it personal or body life, remember God is the God of little things. He seeks to change the world through one life at a time, and He has been pretty dang successful so far.

Trust Him in the difficult times, when loneliness, distractions and discouragements seem to pile up. His heart towards the little church just may be the same as the apostles heart to the Thessalonians!

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Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion.