S107P8 – At work within us: God’s peace
Php. 4:6-7
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.
They were identical twins, which led most people to believe that they were identical in every way. While they looked the same, and some people very close to them even had a tough time telling them apart, their resemblance to one another was mostly superficial. The firstborn tended to be more deliberate and calculating in her approach to life, making decisions in a levelheaded way. Her sister was much less secure in herself and often second-guessed her decisions before pulling the trigger. It was the younger sister who often froze out of fear and needed some convincing and prodding to know that her decision was safe. That was the job of her older sister, the only one who could calm her and give her the peace she needed to move despite her apprehensions.
Many of us have that one person who can bring us down a few notches and give us confidence when we are lacking. Some of us might even have more than one person who fills that role in our lives. For those who follow Christ, we are able to rely on him and the work that his peace can accomplish in us during those times. This passage tells us to put everything in the hands of God and just let go. The expectation is that we take any fear, anxiety or apprehension and put it to the side. We exchange those often paralyzing emotions for a peace that we cannot explain or try to manifest on our own. The work of that peace is protective in nature. By guarding our hearts and minds, it allows us to make decisions critically and soberly from a spiritual perspective.
The peace of God is part of our armor. The gospel of peace prepares us to move, and that means that it informs our movement and decision-making. We take steps according to the prompting and the leading of God’s peace within us. It is like our compass, rudder and wind all in one. If we allow God’s peace to do its job, then we have the inner resolve and confidence to move according to the Spirit’s prompting. If not, we really are trying to navigate this trip on our own, unprepared for the wind and the waves, unsure of the direction in which we should go, led by our emotions. If we are wise, we will yield to the work of God’s peace in us so that we remain on course. Father, thank You for this peace we do not even understand that guards us and keeps us in your will.