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The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7, ESV).
I want the peace of God to guard my heart and my mind. When I have trouble, I don’t want my mind spinning with questions and concerns, and I don’t want my heart to become bitter.
Paul writes in Philippians 4:7 that the peace of God can take control of any situation. It’s best to trust in God’s peace rather than our reactions.
How do we release the peace of God?
First: Lots of trials are needed.
What? We don’t pay the price of peace unless our lives become so desperate that there is nowhere else to go. The things of this world that take away our peace—we don’t give them up easily.
God allows struggle for us to realize the inadequacies of the flesh in which we cling for false comfort. James comments. . .
Consider it all joy, [my brothers and sisters], when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing (James 1:2-4, NASB1995).
Second: A sacrifice of righteousness is needed.
Psalm 4 has great promises for answered prayer. In the middle of this Psalm, we read. . .
Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and [put your] trust in the Lord (v. 5).
Let’s consider the example of Jesus and His sacrifice to become the Prince of Peace.
The spirit of control over this world was broken through His own demise. Those who follow Jesus must offer a sacrifice, too—giving up what we think is valuable for the sake of righteousness in ourselves and others.
Third: Release control.
The desire to control destroys peace. Control attempts to be command-central in a world of chaos. Frustrating, to say the least. But if we willingly entrust all things to God—there’s nothing left to lose, no need to control, and finally, peace.
Of the three practices above, what is taking your peace?
Is it discouragement from trials, unrighteousness held too tightly, or a desire to be the center of all things? Throughout my ministry, I’ve remembered a helpful quote by Henri Nouwen. . .
Nothing can be written about ministry without a deeper understanding of the ways in which the minister can make his own wounds available as a source of healing.
The peace of God comes from the Spirit of God. Since it’s supernatural, we can experience it in our most difficult moments. And once known, this peace becomes the objective of our life with Jesus.
Let’s be sensitive to what is destroying peace in our lives and turn back to Jesus.