Philippians 1:18b-21, 27-30 (ESV)

Yes, and I will rejoice, [19] for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, [20] as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. [21] For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

[27] Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, [28] and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. [29] For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, [30] engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

So much of our faith is tied to our experience. When things are going good, we trust God. When things are painful, difficult, or uncomfortable, we wonder where God is and why he has abandoned us. That was clearly not Paul’s mentality. The Apostle Paul wrote this letter to the Philippian believers to encourage them. He was sitting in a Roman prison. I am sure that he would rather have been out planting and building up churches, but God called him to sit in a Roman prison. Rather than complaining about his condition, he rejoiced. How can he possibly rejoice in his condition?

He rejoiced because he knew that believers were praying for him. He rejoiced because he knew that the Spirit who worked powerfully through him when he was out preaching was just as present in his life in prison. He rejoiced because he knew that his “now” was not forever. He was in prison, but he knew that it would not last. He would be released. He would be released by his death, or he would be released by the government. Either way, he would be released. We too often forget that our “now” is not forever. Finally, he rejoiced because he realized that God was working through him despite his circumstances. Everybody, all the guards, all the officials, all the population of Rome knew that his imprisonment was because of Christ. The gospel was being preached. The gospel was being talked about. People were coming to faith because of his imprisonment. So Paul rejoiced.

Our initial response to that might be, “Well, I’m not Paul, and I don’t see crowds of people coming to faith because of my pain, or depression, or difficulties. Maybe that is because you have not learned to rejoice. Maybe that is because you have not learned to let go of the results. Paul was okay with imprisonment, release, or death. To him it was all the same because it was all about Jesus, not about him. It is amazing what a difference it makes when we let go of the results. We have heard the phrase, “Let go and let God” many times. What does that mean? Essentially it means that we should stop tying our hopes to specific results and leave it in God’s hands. “Now” is never forever. “Now” might be a long time, but it is not forever. What God chooses to do with us, and how he chooses to cause things to turn out is his business. Our business is that in the midst of it we want people to see Jesus. Rejoicing starts when we let go of our expectations and begin to look around and see God at work in the lives of others. After all, it’s not about us. That is the secret to contentment that the Apostle Paul had learned. So, let go and look around. See God at work.