Recently I was reading the book of Philippians in the Bible and midway through the infamous last chapter I read something that stood out to me about the Apostle Paul, his life and how authentic he was! Let me share with you the scripture and some thoughts about what God was showing me personally about this great leader.
Philippians 4:9 (NLT) Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you “heard from me” and “saw me doing”. Then the God of peace will be with you.
Authenticity in a sense means “What You See is What You Get”! To be authentic, requires actions to precede words. Your outward witness matches your inner experience and there’s nothing to hide. To one of the Apostle’s favorite supportive church bodies, he tells them that whatever they do, they need to follow his life’s example. That’s a powerful statement! And what’s more, he gives us a vision of his lifestyle in the previous verses…
Verse 4: Always maintain the fullness of joy in the Lord so you can sound it out by rejoicing…
Verse 5: May everyone see that you are considerate in all you do…
Verse 6: Don’t worry, be happy! Instead of worry and stressing, pray by telling God your needs and thanking Him for all you have…
Verse 7: Enjoy the peace of God beyond anything we can imagine and let it guard your hearts and minds…
Verse 8: Fix your thoughts on what is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
In verse 9, Paul is not telling us what to do; He is saying look at my example and follow what you see! What they saw in him was the same thing with what they heard from him. It gives a great force to what we say to others when we can appeal to what they have seen in us.
Prayer: God no matter where I’m at in life and what I’m doing to complete your call in me, may I be transparent before you, always receiving your mercies and walking in your graces, completely real with nothing hiding deep within me. May my outer expressions match my inner experiences with You Father and Your Son my Lord.