Philippians 4:13

13 Christ is the one who gives me the strength to do whatever I must do. 

Now Paul’s strength wasn’t just an inner source of confidence that allowed him to walk around with pride and ego. This strength is an endurance that allows Paul to continue through all the pain and strife that he has faced. Out of context, this is the perfect coffee mug verse, but when you look at the full context of what Paul is saying in verses 10 through 13 – you start to see something different. 

Paul shares his gratitude for the Philippian church for supporting him along his missionary journey. He mentions that he’s not buttering them up to get more from them, because he has learned to be satisfied with whatever is happening to him. Paul’s been put through a lot on his various missionary journeys. From being chased out of towns, jailed multiple times, flogged nearly to death, shipwrecked, and more that we know is record – Paul’s been through a lot. Most of us might read this and think: “How did Paul not just give up?” 

How many of us can say that about our own lives? When we stop and reflect on things that we’ve dealt with and gone through, do you ever question: “How did I make it through this?” This is something that I’ve tended to ask myself only afterI’ve gone through difficult circumstances. We don’t really think about it during the situation. We just know we have to push ahead. That tenacity to continue onwards is where we see the strength of Christ often come in. It’s not just a Christ-enabled endurance and peace in the middle of chaos. It’s a peace in the middle of the chaos. It’s a quiet that allows the stress to be given to God and allows your focus to remain on what you need to do. When I’ve seen this, I’ve noticed that my mind moves away from focusing on the stress and focusing on what I need to do to take care of me. It’s a way for me to calm down and refocus on what I need to do to move out of the strife and stressful moments. It’s truly a reminder that: “No matter what happens to me, I have Christ’s strength supporting me to strengthen me in whatever situation I’m in.” This verse talks about not achieving every goal, but is about being sustained in whatever season I’’m in. 

REFLECTION CHECKPOINT: How have you heard this verse used before? How have you understood this verse in your Christian journey?