Philippians 1:3-10, "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace. For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ. And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ. Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God."

"Bend and stretch, touch your toes, tuck in that tummy, build up those abs, bench pressing, running, jogging, power walking": all words we may think of when hearing the term 'working out.' When it comes to staying trim and healthy we all need a good work out. It increases our blood flow, helps with our concentration, and keeps the old ticker going. However, working out isn't all physical exercise. Working out, or rather starting something and bringing it to completion, can often be an arduous task in itself.

We all have something we start and never finish no matter how small or how large. Something we started and  never seem to find the time to complete. Something we begin and then realize we bit off more than we can chew. Something we find that we just don't have the right tools or the strength to complete on our own.

There may be times you seem to be groping for something that is just out of reach. Something that is lacking within your life like a hole in your heart that needs to be filled or a tear that needs mended. It is hard to reach that ultimate goal if you are hanging onto the reins of the past. Things you hang onto without realizing they are what's holding you back with your relationship with your heavenly Father. 

God is right there working in and through you helping you to work out what you have need of and He has the strength and the right tools to do the job. Working out your own salvation means allowing God to accomplish His perfect will in and through your life. He knows what you have need of and can fill the void that is missing in your life. Listening to that still small voice that knows your innermost thoughts and cries, the Spirit of Christ can bring you through to victory.

Philippians 2:12-13, "Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure."

Your salvation begins and ends at the cross of Jesus Christ. It means you have been saved from the penalty of sin and the wrath to come. You have become a child of God clothed in His righteousness; however, our acceptance of Jesus Christ as our Savior does not mean we have fully come to the knowledge and understanding of what He has offered us through the power of His grace. To become throughly acquainted with Him as our God and Father and to be set or joined together in mind in knowing His perfect will for you.

We have a word that is a light unto our path and a lamp unto our feet, but when the word of God is speaking to you about certain areas that need mending, often the heart refuses to listen. You cannot live a victorious life if you reject the voice of God, but running to it can bring salvation when you listen and obey its call.

If you have felt or experienced rejection by a parent, you may fall short of coming to a complete understanding of God as your heavenly Father. When a child is rejected by a parent through lack of love, an inattentive attitude, or mental, physical, or sexual abuse, it leaves scars that stay throughout their adult life. Scars that interfere with their relationships with others. Scars of anger, fear, doubt, and mistrust that follow them throughout their lifetime.

If you have suffered rejection you can feel there is no hope to the emptiness you feel inside. What you have seen in that parent is reflected in your life and in how you view others. It's that view that can and will hinder the relationship you have with God as your heavenly Father. That view can be obscured by the belief that God sits as an all powerful authority that administers wrath and indignation whenever you do something wrong. Then, whenever trials and tests come your way, you can feel you are constantly under condemnation.. 

Jesus said, "If you have seen Me you have seen the Father." In the works that He did, in the things that He said, all was to reveal God as our heavenly Father. Looking at God through the life of Jesus Christ as recorded in the gospels reveals to us that we serve a God Who loves us. A God Who desires the best for us. A God Who will go through everything and anything with us even when we do it wrong.

Through the Son we see a Father Who prepared for His miraculous birth. Through the Son we see a Father Who protected Him from death when He sent a message to his earthly father to flee into Egypt. Through the Son we see a Father Who is touched by our infirmities and Who is able to meet all our needs according to His riches in glory. Through the Son we see the unconditional love of a Father Who sees past all our faults and forgives us no matter what we have done. Through the Son we see a Father Who was willing to die in our place so that we might have eternal life. And, finally, through the Son we see a Father Who raised Him from the dead and ascended Him into heaven, where He will be with His heavenly Father forever.

Philippians chapter two tells us, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:  That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling."

You have not been rejected child of God, but you have been called by a heavenly call. Destined to be seated together with Christ. Pray for and forgive those who have abused you and spitefully used you, because you have been forgiven much, therefore, you too forgive. Put all that rejection on the altar and receive all the love that God the Father has given you through Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior. You have a Father in heaven Who was willing to pay the ultimate price for you. Willing to die in your place so that you might have life. Life more abundantly.

Philippians 3:13-15, "Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you."

Working out to completion our own salvation is a daily walk with our Lord. Putting on the mind of Christ, journeying toward the higher call of God, and putting behind us those things that are past. Daily presenting our bodies a living sacrifice upon the altar, holy and acceptable to God, which is our reasonable service of worship. Putting on the new man, our new life in Christ, knowing that the old man died in Him and we have been raised together with Him in newness of life. Knowing that all things have been put under His feet and at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow and whatsoever we ask the Father in Jesus name He shall give it to us.

The Old Testament saints never knew God as their heavenly Father, but we have this available to us through the love that was revealed in Jesus Christ. The Spirit of Christ which works in you is His strength and the tool through which the love of God works mightily in you, child of God. You are not alone, you have not be rejected, but you have been set free by the power of God that works in you. You have been given a new life. Knowing the resurrection power of God dwells in you can and will set you free from any shame or guilt you may be feeling in your heart. Understanding the will of God in your life by putting on the mind of Christ will breathe a fresh awareness of the love of God that is contained in the bowels of your heart. 

Paul's words in Philippians chapter four, ("Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you," 8-9), reveal to us that as long as our thoughts dwell on our heavenly Father, His words and His promises, we shall have peace in our hearts. And that peace is a peace that passes all understanding.

Rejection can come in many ways. Through a friend, a peer, a sibling, a relative, a spouse, or even a child we can feel or be rejected. There are schools, employers, loan officers, and many fields of services that are all forms of judges and juries that we all face at some point in our life; but praise be to God, we have been given the strength and the tools to overcome any form of rejection.

There is a God in heaven that knows what you have gone through because He is a God Who has suffered rejection. The rejection of Who He is, of His authority, of His commandments, of His word, and, ultimately, the rejection of His Son Who they put to death on a cross. He is a God Who is willing and able to help you overcome whatever feeling of rejection you may have in your heart because He has been there, done that. There is a friend that sticks closer than a brother when you need Him the most because He understands what it feels like to be friendless.

God knew you before you were formed in your mother's womb. He has prepared a path for your life and He will lead you to those still waters you so desire. So drink from His fountain of life and allow His love to penetrate that broken place that is in your heart. All you have to do is to call upon His name, obey His still small voice, and He will fill you with a peace that passes all understanding.

  Paul wrote to the church at Philippi admonishing them, "Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample. (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things,) " (3:17-19). Jesus said that out of the good treasure of our heart will come forth good things. We need to be mindful of where our heart is set. If it is set on those things that are above then our affections are as Paul's, set for the defense of the gospel. If there is jealousy and selfishness hidden in your heart then your mind is set on those things that are earthly, sensual, for this wisdom is not from above (James 3:14-15). Pull that jar of jealousy out, child of God, and start 'Setting your Affections on Things Above'.  

* The scriptures we are going to look at next is Paul's Epistle to the church at Colosse. So, child of God, read through the book of Colossians before beginning the next page.

*Revised July 19, 2008