1 Thessalonians

The Prayer Sandwich {1 Thessalonians 5:16-18}

8:30 PM

I stumbled upon something recently that has revolutionized my prayer life and I’m <SO EXCITED> to finally be able to share it with you today!! Of course you know that with God nothing happens by accident; I didn’t simply stubble, but God revealed something that has changed me forever! Now where do I start …


It all began when I was teaching a women’s Bible class one morning. I actually planned to talk about I Thessalonians 5:17, but the verse was so small, that I decided to include 16 and 18 with it, for they were good too. I wrote them on the board like this:
Rejoice always,
Pray without ceasing
Give thanks in all circumstances;
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

During my lesson someone made the comment that, “pray without ceasing” was in the middle of the commands to rejoice and give thanks! (It was a light-bulb moment for me!)

I saw the sandwich!!




While in college, studying for a degree in early childhood education, I was taught that when it came to parent-teacher conferences, we should always sandwich what we wanted the parents to know between two positives! For example:
Your child is such a hard worker!
Even though she’s struggling right now in math
I’m confident she’ll eventually master it with some extra help!


Though, our prayers are completely different from a parent-teacher conference, it suddenly occurred to me that God wants our prayers seasoned with joy and thanksgiving! Do you naturally season all your prayers with joy and thanksgiving?

I hadn’t been! Not always. I usually tended to get straight to the point!

BUT, I also discovered recently that ALL three of these commands here are covered by Paul’s last statement in verse 18, “for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for YOU.” (emphasis mine). These three verses were meant to be kept together!

And the Lord gave me the longest migraine headache of my life to drive home this lesson!! I’d been suffering with the same migraine headache for a week, trying everything I knew to do to try to get rid of it, when finally one night I went straight to bed after dinner because I just didn’t want to deal with the pain any longer.

The Lord woke me during the night at 2AM with the headache still there, and I immediately lay there and began talking to Him, “Well Lord, I’ve tried everything I know to get rid of this headache and it’s still here.”

“Not everything.” was His reply and He reminded me of what He had recently revealed to me in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18. I had to agree that I’ve never thought to rejoice and give thanks for a migraine headache, but I had grumbled and complained and begged for it to be gone A LOT! So, I began praising Him and giving thanks for everything I could think of! There was a party going on in my brain, and the next thing I knew it was morning! I'd fallen back to sleep and now daylight was shining through my windows!

I woke and the headache was still there!! But my whole countenance had changed!! I was so light and joy-FILLED and I was NOT going to allow that headache to keep me down any longer. I got up, dressed and went about my day filled with His Holy Spirit and the headache eventually disappeared, though I can’t tell you when it happened exactly.

Here in 1 Thessalonians, chapter 5, Paul is writing to a new church of young believers, and it seems as though he is quickly trying to write down all these finally instructions for them to follow before he closes the letter and sends it off. Most of what I’ve read about these three verses speaks of the impossibility to keep them! Can we really rejoice always, pray continually, and give thanks in every and all circumstance??

YES! I don’t believe The Lord would have Paul include these commands to this group of young believers, who were facing constant persecution, if they were impossible to follow! I also believe our first clue for how to follow the commands is found in the final words of verse 18. “for this is the will of God… for you.” This is God’s will for all of us, but it’s, “in Christ Jesus” or in other words, through Christ Jesus!! We can't leave Christ Jesus out! 

 ...For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.We must include Christ Jesus for Paul told us in the letter to the Philippian church that we “can do all things through Christ…”(Phil 4:13)

I have also discovered that by seasoning our constant conversations with God with joy and thanksgiving we are actually speaking truth to our hearts and strengthening our resolve as we pray!! Proving once more that these commands are for OUR BENEFIT, and not God's.But don’t take my word for it, start putting these verses into practice and see for yourselves!






1 Thessalonians

Pursuing a life of Purpose (1 Thessalonians 4-5)

9:00 PM


This year is almost coming to an end and I believe it’s time for us to take the time to slow down a bit and meditate in how many ways we’ve been blessed by our Heavenly Father throughout this ending year.

So many people become so busy thinking about the celebration of the holyday season: the food, the gifts and decorations. The commercial advertisements are continually trying to convince us we need to buy more to make this season special. So many people live these days in busyness and anxiety. Trying to be “Merry” according to family or cultural traditions, but we could easily fall in the trap and forget the “reason for the season”!  Paul encourages us (the Church) to focus on what truly glorifies the Lord:

“Finally, believers, we ask and admonish you in the Lord Jesus, that you follow the instruction that you received from us about how you ought to walk and please God (just as you are actually doing) and that you excel even more and more [pursuing a life of purpose and living in a way that expresses gratitude to God for your salvation]” (4:1) (Emphasis mine)
“9 Now concerning brotherly love, you have no need for anyone to write you, for you have been [personally] taught by God to love one another [that is, to have an unselfish concern for others and to do things for their benefit]…. But we urge you, brothers and sisters, that you excel [in this matter] more and more, 11 and to make it your ambition to live 
quietly and peacefully,” (4:9, 11a)


-To excel more and more: this means that Christian maturity is never finished on this side of eternity. No matter how far a Christian has come in love and holiness, they can still abound more and more.

-We need to live a quiet and peaceful life so that we can really take the time and give the attention to listen to God and get to know Him better. We need to live not only for our time in this world, but prepared for eternity (4:13-18).

Paul is calling us to be awake, sober, and watchful: “So then let us not sleep [in spiritual indifference] as the rest [of the world does], but let us keep wide awake [alert and cautious] and let us be sober [self-controlled, calm, and wise]. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we [believers] belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope and confident assurance of salvation. (5: 6-8 AMP)

Paul used in this verse the image of a soldier's armor to illustrate the idea of watchfulness. A soldier is a good example of someone who must watch and be sober, and he is equipped to do that with his armor. Isn’t that awesome?

-Putting on the breastplate (to protect our heart) of faith and love, and as a helmet (to protect our mind) the hope of salvation. “We need the spiritual armour, or the three Christian graces, faith, love, and hope. Faith; if we believe that the eye of God is always upon us, that there is another world to prepare for, we shall see reason to watch and be sober.” M.Henry

By taking Paul’s following instructions we will be not only sober and alert, but live with joy:

“Rejoice always and delight in your faith; 17 be unceasing and persistent in prayer; 18 in every situation [no matter what the circumstances] be thankful and continually give thanks to God; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” (5:16-18)

Not only rejoicing in happy situations, but in sorrows also. Paul reminds us to rejoice always because our joy isn't based in our circumstances, but in God. Circumstances change, but our God doesn't! “Laying our concerns at our Lord’s feet with thanksgiving, reminds us that someone greater than us is concerned about what we are going through.” (iWorship Bible)

I encourage you to continue these final weeks of 2018 putting on “your armor” and with an attitude of thanksgiving. Here are some quotes on gratitude:

"When joy and prayer are married their first born child is gratitude." (Spurgeon)

"It is not joy that makes us grateful, it is gratitude that makes us joyful." *

"Small seeds of gratitude will provide a harvest of hope." *

"Gratitude is the best attitude." *

"Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings. Turn routine jobs into joy. And change ordinary opportunities into blessings." —​ William Arthur Ward

"Today be thankful and think how rich you are. Your family is priceless, your time is gold and your health is wealth." *

"For each new morning with its light, for rest and shelter of night, for health and food, for love and friends, for everything thy goodness sends." —​ Ralph Waldo Emmerson

"Let our hearts be full of both thanks and giving." *

"Gratitude turns what we have into enough."  *

"I'm thankful for so many things, but mostly, God. Without him I'd have nothing else to be thankful for." — Unknown *

"If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, 'thank you,' that would suffice." — Meister Eckhart






1 Thessalonians

Appointed for Salvation {1 Thessalonians 5}

12:30 AM

Image result for 1 thessalonians 5:9I like to plan.  I like to know who, what, where, when, 
why and how.   When there’s a detour, I can become anxious.  But we don’t know many things.  Much of life catches us off guard.  I bet if I asked you five years ago would there be 3 hurricanes and a massive earthquake all back to back, you’d say, ‘no way’.  Or if you’ve ever been broken into you’d tell me you never thought that would happen to you.  But that’s how Jesus tells us He will return (Matthew 24:32-44).  Only our Heavenly Father knows when He will send Jesus to return to earth.  And while we are here, there’s work to be done.  We are to keep on doing God’s work until we die or until we see the unmistakable return of our Savior.


I don’t know about you, but I haven’t gotten bored with reading my bible.  I don’t skim much anymore either.  No, I dig deeper because I want to know more.   There are probably very few books I’ve read more than once.  That’s what I think Paul is reminding us here in this final chapter of the book of 1 Thessalonians.  We need to encourage others to keep reading and studying their bibles.  We need to encourage them to keep on doing what is God's will. We need to 'live in peace with each other' (v. 13b). We need to thank our teachers for their hard work.  If you say nothing, then how will they know?  They deserve our love and support for all the work that they do teaching and encouraging us!

Paul reminds us yet again to pray continually.  It’s not our natural inclination to be joyful, to pray continually and to give thanks.  But we are to obey the Lord in these commands and they should not fluctuate based on our circumstances.  When we make a conscious decision to do what God says, we begin to see people in a whole new perspective.  And when we do God’s will, we will find it easier to be joyful and thankful. 

When I begin my day by reading scripture, praying, studying and journaling, I find myself in prayer throughout the day.  Sometimes it’s like an ongoing conversation because someone is in surgery, or I know one of my kids has to take a difficult test.  Other times it’s spontaneous due to a sudden change in the course of my day.  Or because something wonderful has occurred.  I believe this is having a prayerful attitude all day long.  

I recently decided to spend more time praying about something I used to complain about.  And I’m here to say, I’m much happier!  My perspective looks so much different.  I’ve even suggested to other people to pray for something they just never considered praying about.

Related imageI think we often forget that we are to thank God IN everything, not FOR everything.  After all, evil does not come from God, but we can be thankful FOR God’s presence and for the good He will accomplish through this distress.

Just as we refer to God as three-in-one, our entire being, body, soul and spirit are our entire being.  Paul was trying to tell us that God must be involved in every aspect of our life.  It’s wrong for us to think that we can separate the spiritual life from everything else.  We can’t just live for God one day a week.  Christ is in control all day, every day, not just the religious day.





1 Thessalonians

Words of Comfort

5:00 AM

Words of Comfort  {1 Thessalonians 4}


It seems everywhere I look I see dire predictions about the upcoming date, September 23. Supposedly the sun will be in the constellation Virgo (the virgin),  along with the moon near Virgo's feet. Additionally, Jupiter will be in Virgo, while the planets Venus, Mars, and Mercury will be above and to the right of Virgo in the constellation Leo. Some people claim that this a fulfillment of a sign given in Revelation 12:1-2, "And a great sign appeared in heaven: a women clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; and she was with child; and she cried out, being in labor and in pain to give birth." These events are supposed to cause death and destruction, ushering in the Rapture, the  beginning of the tribulation, and the end of the world. It is the latest among a long string of failed predictions used to conjure fear and panic in the heart of Christians everywhere. But here in 1 Thessalonians four when Paul speaks of death and the Rapture, his words are used for comfort and hope. 

The Thessalonian believers, who knew through Paul's teaching that Christ would indeed return, struggled with questions not only about the fate of those who died before Jesus came back, but about those who were still alive on that glorious day. Paul tackles first the subject of death with, "We do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus Himself died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus." (vs. 13-14) I love how Paul uses "asleep" to describe death. For Christians death isn't a final destination, but rather a beautiful transition from this world to heaven. 2 Corinthians 5:8 tells us that "To be absent from the body [is] to be home with the Lord." What a wonderful declaration! After all, isn't that our hope? Not only to see our loved ones again, but to be with our Lord and Savior for all of eternity! And that's just what Paul wants us to remember so that unlike unbelievers who grieve with no hope, we have the assurance of the promises of God. 

Next Paul goes on to describe what will happen when Jesus returns for His church. "The Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord." Jesus will bring with Him the spirits of those who died as believers. Their bodies will rise and be reunited with their spirits, and they will receive new glorified bodies. And those who are alive will be gathered directly into His presence, and also receive new glorified bodies. This is known as the Rapture and is the fulfillment of the promise Jesus made in John 14:1-3  to prepare a place where we will be with Him forever. And in God's perfect timing, Jesus will come for us and take us to our eternal home. 


Could there be a more wonderful promise? In our new glorified bodies, the blind will see, the deaf will hear, the lame will walk. No more will we experience pain, sickness, or decay. Our bodies will be perfect in every way! Paul ends with this encouragement, "Comfort one another with these words." (v. 18) Even though "we do not know the day nor the hour" (Matt. 25:13) of Jesus' return, we know He is returning. So "lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." (Luke 21:28), and cry, Maranatha, Maranatha!

1 Thessalonians

Building Strong Faith {1 Thessalonians 3}

2:08 AM



Paul arrived in the Greek city of Thessalonica after he and his coworker Silas had received a terrible beating and been imprisoned in the city of Philippi. 

During their short time in Thessalonica, Paul, Silas, and Timothy led several of the Thessalonians to faith in Jesus and this new nucleus of believers formed a church. But soon trouble started, and Paul, Silas, and Timothy were forced to run for their lives and Paul and Silas were forbidden from entering Thessalonica again. So the three of them traveled to the cities of Berea and Athens. It was while they were in Athens that Paul’s concern for the Thessalonian Christians reached its peak, so he sent Timothy back to the city to find out how things were.

For some reason the city ban against Paul and Silas didn’t apply to Timothy. Timothy was a young and inexperienced ministry intern, probably in his early 20's, yet here Paul empowers him to be an extension of God to the Thessalonians. Timothy’s mission is to strengthen and encourage the Thessalonians in their faith. 

Timothy had a Greek father and probably looked Greek. He would, therefore, have attracted no special attention in a Greek city, whereas Paul was immediately recognizable as a Jew  It is also likely that because of his youth the authorities didn’t notice him.



Love for New Believers

Paul’s problem is that he is separated from the Thessalonian Christians by distance and circumstances

For Paul, to  leave these new believers was like an experience of bereavement. This is a good lesson for us today. Paul so loved the Thessalonian believers that he would have risked his own life to return to them.  He wanted to give of himself and his resources for them, as a father provides for his or her children. Paul had a passion for new believers. Do we have this type of earnest desire for new believers? Do we long to see other believers and help them grow in their faith? Have we recently invested in new believers?

 Paul is most interested in the faith of these believers, not their comfort, welfare, or prosperity. The word “strengthen” is a building term that means to cause a structure to become more secure. 

Paul basically wanted Timothy to coach them to help in order to take the next step. Paul wanted Timothy to strengthen and encourage the Thessalonians so they wouldn’t waver when problems and suffering came upon them.


Trials and Persecution

No sooner had the Thessalonians trusted in Jesus when the bottom seemed to fall out of their lives. This is true in the life of every Christian. The truth is, if you aren’t presently in a trial you are either headed out of a trial or right now preparing to head into a trial. 

Some of us will face this type of affliction from our family members, coworkers, neighbors, and classmates. We may also face other trials such as terminal illness, loss of job, robbery, imprisonment, death of a loved one, or divorce. This is a part of life. Regardless of how we may try, we can’t avoid afflictions.  They are part and parcel of every believer’s experience. Afflictions are not accidents—they are appointments.

Many believers turn their back on God as a result of trials and one of the main reasons this happens is that many new believers have not been told the truth about Christianity. Instead, they have been told that being a Christian is all about health, wealth, and prosperity. However, the truth is that the Christian life is as sweet as honey and at times, life will turn difficult and disappointing. This is why Paul told these brand new Christians time and time  that they would face trials.

There the importance of building each other on strong faith...to be ready for what it is to come.

Be encouraged today <3




1 Thessalonians

Entrusted With The Gospel {1 Thessalonians 2}

12:30 AM



If you have accepted. Christ as your Savior then you have been entrusted with something very special: the Gospel.
The "gospel" means "good news"
The "good news" we are to share is the story of the Savior, Jesus, and how he saves us from eternal separation from God. 

 Psalm 96:2-4 Sing to the LORD; praise his name. Each day proclaim the good news that he saves. Publish his glorious deeds among the nations. Tell everyone about the amazing things he does. Great is the LORD! He is most worthy of praise! He is to be feared above all gods.

Paul took this entrusted mission very seriously and was always mindful that his ultimate goal was to honor God:
 “but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts.” (v4)

In this chapter, Paul discloses some of the attributes and values he embraced when sharing the gospel with others.

1. He considered his time invested in others to be valuable and worth risk and hardship.
“For you yourselves know, brothers, that our coming to you was not in vain. But though we had already suffered and been shamefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we had boldness in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of much conflict.” ( v1-2)

2. He valued honesty and truth.
“For our appeal does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive,” (v3)

3. He did not seek personal attention or gain.
“For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others.. (v5-6)

4. He showed those he discipled parental guidance and affection. 
“But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children." (v7)
“For you know how, like a father with his children we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.” (v 11-12)

5. He realized that his most valuable earthly accomplishment would be represented by each lost soul who gained eternal life. 
“For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? For you are our glory and joy.” (v19-20)

Like Paul, our earthly mission is to share the gospel, investing our time and talents in others to glorify God. Ask God to give you a passionate, affectionate, loving heart that truly cares about the eternal well being of others. 

1 Thessalonians

Energized By Faith, Motivated By Love {1 Thesalonians 1}

12:00 AM

Just  imagine for a moment  how you would feel if you suddenly received a thank you note from your “superhero of the faith” commending you for things you’ve recently done. This was pretty much Paul’s motive in writing this letter to the Thessalonians. In it, he thanks them for their fruitful work produced by their faith in the Lord, and celebrates the endurance their hope has inspired in the face of much persecution. Truth be told, this is one letter I wouldn’t mind receiving one day, so let’s see what the Thessalonians did to deserve such praise from Paul!

“We give thanks to God always for all of you, continually mentioning you in our prayers; recalling unceasingly before our God and Father your work energized by faith, and your service motivated by love and unwavering hope in [the return of] our Lord Jesus Christ. (1:2-3)

Faith, Hope & Love. Do you recall hearing those same words joined together once before?

The work they did was,
  • Energized by their faith
  • Motivated by their love for the Lord and others, and unwavering hope (that will not disappoint) in the Lord’s return.

I wonder if the same could be said of you (and I) in what we’re doing? I believe when this is true of each of us, we won’t run the risk of growing weary in our work. The secret lies in where they were focused, not on the circumstances around them. They were facing mounting persecution, yet their faith and love for their Lord Jesus Christ, along with their hope that He would return one day caused them to persevere! BUT hold on,

“ Brothers and sisters beloved by God, we know that He has chosen you;  for our good news [of salvation] come to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with great conviction.” (1:4-5)

Whoa! Not only were they energized by their faith in Jesus, motivated by their love and the hope of His return, they were also trusting in His word and the power of the Holy Spirit! How can anyone fail with that combination all tied together!?

You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your benefit. You became imitators of us and of the Lord, after you welcomed our message in [a time of] great trouble with the joy supplied by the Holy Spirit; so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 1:6-7)

Their final key component was to follow the examples of other godly men and women who were leading the way! And the result of all of this was, “ the word of the Lord has resounded from you and has echoed [like thunder], not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place [the news of] your [great] faith in God has spread...” (1:8)

When Paul started the church in Thessalonica what gave his message and ministry credibility was the kind of men he and his team proved to be while living among the Thessalonians. Displaying Jesus happens best when we “do life” among people.  Nothing replaces the opportunity for others to see how Jesus influences the real routine of our lives: family, friendships, work, trials, etc.. like,
  • God’s Holy Spirit to be living and active in our lives.
  • For us to live among other people with intentionality.

In 2004, my husband and I took over a very large Young Married Life Group class. These were couples with mostly young children at the time, and we thought one way to get to know each couple and their children better would be to invite one family over to enjoy Sunday dinner with our kids and grandchildren each week. What we later came to realize was that, what we demonstrated during those dinners; in how our whole family interacted with one another spoke volumes over anything we taught on that morning!  We know this now, because of what those couples later came back and told us. In so many words, they confessed our words took on greater weight after they could see that we were speaking from experience.

Displaying that level of transparency and vulnerability is almost necessary in this day and age if we want people to see the difference Jesus has made in our lives, and I believe we should place our lives on display with Christians and non-Christians alike!

God has given each of us a life message! When we became His child, we also became His messenger! Did you ever think of that? 
God wants to speak to the world through you. You may think you don’t have anything to share, but that’s where you’re wrong! All of us have a story to tell. We all have experiences unlike any other that God wants to use to bring others into His family. And just sometimes that story can be told through our actions, better than our words!

God Word says, “Those who believe in the Son of God have the testimony of God in them” (1 John 5:10a). We all just need to get out there and begin to share it!!