And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:7
This is a very familiar verse to many. We ask God for this peace and we pray for this peace for others. So why don’t more Christians actually have it and walk in it? The fact is we simply bypass the preceding verses that tell us how to get it. We want peace but neglect to do what God instructs to get it.
Philippians 4:4-6 says “ Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
Easier said than done, right? Not really. Looking carefully we see that we are to rejoice in the Lord always. It’s not saying we have to rejoice in our circumstance but that we rejoice in the Lord. We can rejoice in the Lord always by keeping the price He paid for us and the realization that we were sinners deserving of death at the forefront of our minds. I mean we have eternal life because Jesus laid down His life for us and then rose again. How awesome is that!!! Certainly something we can rejoice about every day for the rest of our lives.
Next, “let your reasonableness be known to everyone.” Admittedly, a little harder since we tend to naturally be selfish and not objective. However, “with God all things are possible” (Matt 19:26b). When we step back from a situation momentarily, we can see more clearly to make sound judgments. The last part in verse 6 is not hard if we truly believe God is who He says He is and in whom we profess we believe. When we truly deep down believe that God is all powerful and that all things work together for good for those who love God, then it is so much easier to not be anxious because we trust an all powerful, all knowing, and loving God!
Something happens when we pray and speak out loud to God about the things that are causing anxiety. A weight seems to be lifted. When we add thankfulness into our prayers it is a flood that comes as we remember all the things He has already done and it becomes so much easier to trust Him with the things that are happening now. At first it may be difficult to pray or remember to pray about everything, but like most anything in life the more we do it the easier it gets. It forms a habit and becomes natural to do. It takes time and training to do this. It’s not hard but it does take commitment and thought.
Another thing that helps is when we apply the instructions in 2 Corinthians 10:5 “take every thought captive”. When worry and anxiety creep in, take those thoughts captive. Remove them from your mind by not dwelling on them and playing out situations in your mind. Oftentimes we get worked up about things that have not even happened by going over all the “what ifs”. We need to stop doing this. We are not God. We do not know what people are thinking, what is in their heart, what they will say, what they will do, or what will happen in a situation. It is time to start trusting the One who does.
Change your focus by thinking on the things Philippians 4:8 tells us to “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.“ When we change what we think about and focus on, it changes our attitude and heart. Having peace is a choice. We can all have it if we follow the instructions given to us in the word of God.
Written by Rebecca Murzin
