By Maureen Buckingham
   While praying today, I believe God led me to this verse in Philippians 4:9 (AMPC) to share with you:  "Practice what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and model your way of living on it, and the God of peace (of untroubled, undisturbed well-being) will be with you."
We have a God of peace, so why all the stress? Makes you think doesn't it?
   We have the amazing privilege to learn, receive and hear so much here in North America. We have had countless opportunities to experience great teaching, preaching, ministry and corporate prayer and worship. There have been many who have walked before us that have accomplished great things for God's Kingdom and we can now examine their life and learn by their example. However, as powerful and as life-changing all these are or can be, we have a tendency to forget or to resort to our own strength in times of struggle or even just in our on-going life of career, family, ministry and endeavoring to find the 'good life'.
   "Model your way of living on it." This phrase in the Greek means: to exercise, practice, to be busy with, carry on, to undertake, to do, to accomplish, perform
   Paul wanted them to take what he had taught and demonstrated and get on with walking in the purposes of God. He is reminding them of what Jesus said in Matthew 28, (amp Bible) "Go then and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you, and behold, I am with you all the days (perpetually, uniformly, and on every occasion), to the [very] close and consummation of the age. Amen
   When my mother passed away, many were shocked at the impact one life had in a region. She didn't speak at huge meetings or crusades, she didn't lead an international ministry yet she touched thousands of lives through simply living and practicing what she learned, received, heard and saw. Each day seeds were sown through her words and actions that have brought forth a harvest and will continue to multiply.
   What has God given to you? What has he put within you? What have you learned? What godly character have you seen in others that you need to practice and model your way of living after? You can even ask God by His Spirit to bring things back to your remembrance because He is always ready to enable us for His glory. John 14:26
   There is so much more for all of us to walk in and experience. Don't let the lies of the enemy tell you that this is all there is or that peace is found by trying to order your life by human understanding. We have so much more to enter into as His children and so much more to impart to the world around us. Food for thought: Maybe some of our stress is because we have not walked in what God has given us or because we have not walked in the purposes He has for us today.....?