Non-Sensical Peace

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Philippians 4:6-7 (NKJV) Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

What it is speaking to me:

We like control. When things are going the way we want them to, we are happy. When they don't...not so much. Often we can link peace to results. Results we like, and so peace comes. The sales mark is hit, the bank account looks strong, the doctor's report is good, the car is running well, the appliances all work at home, and the obnoxious neighbor is behaving themselves. All is well, we are at peace.

I don't know about you, but rarely do the stars align so completely for me. There is almost always a fly in the ointment, something isn't quite right, something isn't quite how I want it...and subsequently peace is absent.

But Paul describes a peace that "surpasses all understanding." That means it doesn't have to make logical sense. Our situation doesn't have to be resolved for us to have peace about it. In fact I think there is some peace that is only found when you ARE surrounded by unresolved confusion.

That kind of peace guards our hearts and minds, and that word "guards" is a military image of a sentry posted at the gate. God isn't waiting for your circumstances to settle down before he stations that peace at the door of your heart. He sends it now, into the middle of the mess, the moment you stop worrying and come to him instead. In that posture, a peace shows up that you cannot manufacture, cannot explain, and did not earn. It simply surpasses your ability to make sense of it.

What is it saying to you?

What peace are you lacking?

What do you do when that is the case?

What is currently guarding your heart and mind?

What are we going to do about it?

Bring one specific anxiety to God in prayer today. Then ask for the peace that doesn't need an explanation.