For August 8, 2026
Friends in Time of Need by Greg Holmes, D.MIN – Director of Missions serving 17 churches
PAUL’S LETTER to the church at Philippi is filled to overflowing with an authentic love for his fellow Christians there. “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart. God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 1:3-8) As we read of the warmth of his feelings towards his brothers and sisters in Christ, we have those same feelings stirred within us; memories of good times of fellowship that we have shared with others come to the forefront of our minds, and we relive cherished moments of good times gone by. Faces of friends we have not seen for a while appear in almost photographic detail, and as we contemplate them, even deeper memories emerge. Times spent joyously together in celebration of some life event—a wedding, perhaps, or the christening of a grandchild—are mixed poignantly with the shared sorrows of the passing of a loved one, theirs or ours.