Peace Beyond Understanding

It wasn't until I was in the midst of one of my most difficult seasons that I made this discovery...

 [This is the sixth part in a series on the book of Philippians.]

Philippians 4:4-9  

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me–put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. 

I can think of MANY times in my life where things were not going my way. I have had more than my share of bad days, bad weeks, even bad MONTHS!  Times when everything seems to be chaotic, where everything I did seemed to backfire, or just fail. It seemed like the whole world was against me, and I was stressed out, depressed, angry, anxious, and feeling like I was ready to have a SERIOUS MENTAL BREAKDOWN! At the time, I was following Jesus and I had read this scripture before, yet somehow, I wasn't feeling at peace.  

In times of peace, where things WERE going my way, this scripture made total sense. I would read over it and think to myself, "Yup!  God gives us peace. I am at peace." But looking back, I really had NO CLUE what this "peace of God, which transcends all understanding" actually meant.  

In the times when things are going our way, its EASY to have peace. There is nothing strange about having peace in times of prosperity. In fact, it would be pretty WEIRD to NOT have peace when things are going good. That would probably mean something is wrong with you. See a doctor. But when things are NOT going your way, when nothing is going right for you, when everything is backfiring on you, and the world is against you, those are the times when having PEACE would "transcend", or "be beyond" understanding. THAT is where the God of peace can really display his power in your life.  

We all have seen the curve balls life can throw. We've all been through the struggles, and stresses that todays world can bring. In today's world you have to balance work, church, friends, family, finances, keeping up on the latest trends, hobbies, personal projects, news, reading your Bible (or putting it off), Facebook, Tweets, blog posts (ok, maybe those last few aren't that big of a deal for you). When all these things are not going your way it's not hard to think EVERYTHING in the world is against you! And the thing you and I must take comfort in is this: God knows what you're going through, and He has sent your comfort already. He's ready to get you through it, to help you come out better on the other side.  

In verse 6, Paul tells us the FIRST thing we should do when dealing with life's troubles. "...in everything, by PRAYER and petition, with THANKSGIVING, present your requests to God." Then in the next verse, Paul tells us what will happen when we do that, "And the peace of God, which TRANSCENDS ALL UNDERSTANDING, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."  

Through PRAYER, petition, and THANKSGIVING present your requests to GOD.

We also see in 1 Peter 5:7 that we should "Cast all [our] anxiety on Him because he cares for [us]."

God wants us to give our anxiety, and our pain over to him. The way we do that is by PRAYER. That is STEP 1.

Step 2, Paul tells us is to change our focus. Sometimes we focus too much on all the things going WRONG. We tend to forget about everything else. In verse 8, Paul shows us what to focus on:  

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things."

We need to stop. PRAY. Then take our focus outside of our circumstances, and focus on the positive things God has put in our lives.

TRUTH-  Jesus Christ died for you, because He LOVES YOU!

NOBLE-  What are the NOBLE things God has put in your life?

RIGHT-  When are the times where you did something that was RIGHT?

PURE-  What images come to mind when you think of what is PURE?

LOVELY-  What do you think of when you hear the word LOVELY?

EXCELLENT / PRAISEWORTHY-  What are some things God has done in your life that were EXCELLENT or PRAISEWORTHY?

Then we can experience that peace that will go BEYOND human understanding. The peace that could only come through God, who is bigger that ANY circumstance that could ever come against us. There is NO CIRCUMSTANCE that dictates God, and that same God lives in those who call Him Lord and Savior. Therefore, our CIRCUMSTANCES DO NOT DICTATE OUR PEACE.  

The peace from God, who lives in you, is BEYOND UNDERSTANDING.  When you have taken hold of this, your circumstances can be overwhelming, and yet you will smile, knowing God is near. You will be ready to "Live a Life That Demands an Explanation."

Have you ever experienced this kind of peace? Tell me about it in the comments below!