Philippians 1:12-20 (The Message)
12-14I want to report to you, friends, that my imprisonment here has had the opposite of its intended effect. Instead of being squelched, the Message has actually prospered. All the soldiers here, and everyone else, too, found out that I'm in jail because of this Messiah. That piqued their curiosity, and now they've learned all about him. Not only that, but most of the followers of Jesus here have become far more sure of themselves in the faith than ever, speaking out fearlessly about God, about the Messiah.
15-17It's true that some here preach Christ because with me out of the way, they think they'll step right into the spotlight. But the others do it with the best heart in the world. One group is motivated by pure love, knowing that I am here defending the Message, wanting to help. The others, now that I'm out of the picture, are merely greedy, hoping to get something out of it for themselves. Their motives are bad. They see me as their competition, and so the worse it goes for me, the better—they think—for them.
18-21So how am I to respond? I've decided that I really don't care about their motives, whether mixed, bad, or indifferent. Every time one of them opens his mouth, Christ is proclaimed, so I just cheer them on!
Lord, we thank you.
Lord, we believe that the trials Brian and his family face will spread the gospel and help others in similar circumstances.
Lord, we also believe that Brian’s temporary condition as a prisoner to leukemia is for Christ Jesus, and that he is suffering for his Lord.
Lord, don’t let him suffer in vain. I pray that because of his suffering, many spiritual lives will grow; that because of his healing, the confidence of our prayers will double—and that because of his testimony, many hearts will boldly preach the message of Christ’s cross as well as his resurrecting power.
Lord, no matter how difficult this situation is, no matter the imperfections of Brian’s parents and those of us surrounding him, we look to you. Lord, in everything we look to you.
Sometimes, we are weak. Sometimes, we get attacked. Sometimes, we stumble in our speech, make mistakes, and wrongly interpret your heart. We fail to follow your guidance—but in the end, what does that matter?
In the end, you are triumphant one. There is glory hidden in Brian’s illness, and in the end, your heart will be revealed and spread throughout the nations. Therefore, we are thankful to participate in Brian’s victory against leukemia. We are thankful that we are eye-witnesses to this battle.
Lord, thank you for calling us to pray for Brian. Thank you, Holy Spirit, for moving among us as we pray—helping us, opening our hearts, and instructing us as we intercede for Brian.
Lord, we believe that your same Holy Spirit is continuously upon Brian’s sickbed. You are leading Brian, commanding him to wake up, and calling him to become a powerful prayer warrior.
Lord, we praise you, and we desire to see you work a supernatural miracle upon Brian’s body. We hope for his quick recovery, and we hope that in this time of waiting, you will grow Uncle Mark, Auntie Anita, and Vivian. Mature them through this training so that they will become admirals and generals of your spiritual army—able to spread your gospel with Brian.
Lord, once again we pray that you will give us faith, and that you will give Brian courage so that he can boldly confront the daily challenge of testing his body’s limits. Let his nerves, limbs, consciousness, and any hurt places to have daily breakthroughs in healing.
Oh, Lord, we praise you. We don’t see a sick Brian, but a powerful Jesus Christ showing his holy might on Brian.
In the name of Jesus Christ, may God fulfill his Holy Word right before our eyes.
Amen.
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