Shirts don’t have them. Swim trunks do. So do finer women’s skirts, pants, and dresses.
We’re talking of inside pockets, ones out of view for those little things that are important to carry with us, but that we don’t want to show the world.
We’re most conscious of these in men’s suit coats or winter outerwear. Most have an inside breast pocket on the left side. The best quality jackets have one on the right side, also. They’re great for wallets, phones, or even a stick of gum for that after-dinner chew.
There’s something else we use our inside pocket for. It’s great for stitching our initials, our logo, or a special message to the one we love.
What was stitched on Paul’s inside pocket, the one that no one could see, unless they knew Paul really well?
Paul’s pocket revealed the honor of the ministry entrusted unto him. He carried it next to his breast. Each time he reached inside to pull a nugget of truth from the Lord, he was aware of it. Yet he never let it elevate his opinion of himself above that of other men.
2 Corinthians 6:2-3 tells us:
“For he says, ‘In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.’ …We put no obstacle in anyone's way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry.”
Paul was concerned about each of the people under his ministry. He took it as a matter of honor. His ministry was his one prize. It was gifted unto him through revelation, and he knew the specialness of that gift.
God had smiled on him in a way he smiled upon no other man of Paul’s day. How could Paul not rejoice in that, and how could he not feel the weight of that great call upon his life?
Paul considered himself the hand of God to the Jews, first, and the gentiles, second. He considered the work of God his work, and he tackled it with enthusiasm and gusto.
He was reminded of the honor of his call each time he reached into his coat and touched the stitching next to his heart. His honor overflowed his pocket, flooded his emotions, and brought him to his knees in celebration of the Plan of Salvation and the need to send the message of Christ and the cross unto the entire world.
When the name of Jesus rests next to our heart, we’ll feel its power calling to us all the time.
Copyright © 2016 MyChurchNotes.net
Originally Published 6-02-16 in Relationships