Philippians 1:2-4

"Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.
Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy."
Philippians 1:2-4


In the spirit of "do unto others," this is a very cool way to begin a letter. :)  Later in the letter Paul tells the Philippians, "I have you in my heart." ... all of these things we rarely say to anyone, and even when we do, only to immediate (or potential) family members. :)  I think it is absolutely great that Paul was able to express love to the people in Philippi... and I think that perhaps, we should be more willing to express love to the people around us in general.  At church, we call each other "brother" and "sister" ... but how much do we really include those brothers and sisters in our lives?  Do we take the time to tell the people around us that we love and care for them?  ... Since we love it when people tell us how cool we are... maybe we should tell them more often. :)  I also love how Paul says that he makes his request with joy... he really loves these people, and their happiness makes him happy.  We all need people like that in our lives... and not just a few. :)  Today, let's get out there... expand those connections, talk sincerely and openly... tell people the things that you like about them, and how much you appreciate having them around.  We don't *only* have to mourn with those that mourn... we can laugh with them too. :)