Many of you are familiar with and maybe even fans of the Mission Impossible TV series from 1966 starring Peter Graves as Jim Phelps or the film series starring Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt. Both are focused on a secret government agency called the IMF or Impossible Mission Force. For practical purposes to everyone else, this agency does not exist, because they take on secret assignments that would be considered impossible.
Today we start on a Mission, a mission called “Mission I’mPossible.” It’s a mission for you to believe in God and yourself. To believe in God’s ability to make the impossible to become possible.
We are going to start this mission in Phil. 4 where the apostle Paul reveals that he has learned that things he once would have thought were impossible, are possible. What he thought he could not do, he learned he can. These things that he has learned and practiced, he wants us to learn from him as well and to do it in our own lives.
Let’s see in Phil. 4:8-20 (NKJV) what we can learn that we can do:
- I can be content where God wants me. (v.10-12)
- I can be content or find sufficiency even when my circumstances change. Paul said that he could be content in whatever circumstance he was in. It’s a great reminder that our circumstances are always changing, but that doesn’t mean that our attitude has to change as well. We can keep a positive, stable attitude even when our circumstances change to the worse.
- I can be content even when my comfort level changes. Paul said that he has lived with plenty and he has lived in want. It’s naturally more comfortable to live with plenty than to live in want or need. How comfortable we are can change quickly. Our economy had been doing quite well until the coronavirus started spreading. When that occurred, the Dow dropped in one day the most it had ever in history. Well, that made things a lot more uncomfortable! We can still be content knowing that God is going to take care of us, even when the economy looks bleak right now.
- I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me. (v.13)
- The action taken to do what is needed is dependent on us. Notice that Paul said, I can do. God expects us to move forward by taking action even in difficult circumstances of life. God moves as we move.
- The ability to do is what is needed is dependent on Christ. When we take the action, Christ strengthens us to continue to move forward. Christ gives us the power and knowledge to do whatever is needed in our circumstances.
- I can get all my needs met. (v.14-19)
- Sometimes God uses special people to meet our needs as he did with the Philippians for Paul. God positions people in our lives to help us along our way in life. Those special people may be people already in your life or it may someone that God brings into your life unexpectedly.
- Sometimes God uses His spiritual power to cause things to happen in us and for us. God has all the resources to meet all our needs in life. So it doesn’t matter what he can see or calculate, because God has endless resources.
Paul learned through his experiences that he could by trusting in God and His power and provisions. Whatever you are facing right now, let me tell you, you can! You just have to believe!
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