PBPC Daily - Friday, May 1

A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. - Proverbs 17:17

Good morning and welcome to Friday.

Early on in the coronavirus crisis, as we were beginning to shelter in place and were contemplating the potential magnitude of the situation, I received several phone calls, emails, and texts from old friends and family members that I don't connect with regularly. I also reached out in this way myself. It wasn't as if we were saying goodbye to one another; we were certainly checking in to see how one another were doing, but there was also something more - a desire to connect with those people who have been important in our lives.

It makes sense that when the future is uncertain, these important people come to our minds, and we are more likely to reach out to them if we aren't sure we'll have another opportunity. But as things settle down again and we adapt to a new pattern of life, the urgency recedes and what might have been action returns to simply good intention.

Who are the people in your life that God has used over the years to bless you? Perhaps it was someone who shared Christ with you or helped you to grow in your faith; or maybe it was someone that was there for you when you were facing a dark time and really needed a friend. Friends like these are a gift from God; it is friends like these that the apostle Paul has in mind when he writes his letter to the Philippians:

I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for you. - Philippians 1:3-4

Take a moment today to think of one person in your life that has been a great blessing to you, maybe someone you haven't talked to in a while. Give God thanks for bringing this person into your life. And then reach out to that person, if you can - by phone, email, text, or written note - and say thank you to them.

Have a blessed weekend,

Pastor Chris