Rejoice and find peace!
“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 every situation, 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 and sisters, 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.”
Philippians 4:4-8
Paul was writing to the Philippians and telling them to rejoice in the Lord… whatever the circumstance, continue to praise and rejoice in God because He’s going to take care of you. He’s never far away (if He seems it, He’s not the one who moved).
When we read over and over in scripture to not be anxious about anything, it may seem impossible at times, but it’s not. While you can’t control what TEMPTS you to be anxious, you can make a conscious choice to turn your worries into prayer. “by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving” – This looks like talking to God, thanking God for His promises and what you know He’s going to do for you, taking the promises you read in scripture back to Him and saying, “Heavenly Father, thank you for this promise! I’m asking that you do this now. You told me you were going to take care of me. however you choose to do that, thank you!”
The next verse, verse 8, I would pick as my theme verse for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. You have a choice where your thoughts dwell. As the saying goes, you can’t keep a bird from flying over your head, but you can keep it from nesting in your hair. When you’re tempted to ruminate over the worries, it’s about training yourself to focus on what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy. Acknowledge the struggle, claim the promise.
When I read that verse about God’s peace guarding our hearts and minds, I think of the day our infant daughter died. We knew she wasn’t going to be able to survive because of a fatal birth defect. We had been grieving for months before she was even born. BUT the day she died, there is no explanation on earth for the amount of peace I felt. I felt like we touched Heaven. I’ve not ever felt the peace to that degree any other time, but it was so surreal. When we truly seek God first (like in Matthew 6), we can find that kind of peace… even part of the armor is the shoes of the readiness of the gospel of peace. I love that – the gospel of peace. Not the gospel of condemnation, or the gospel of rules, or anything like that – the gospel of peace.
God has promised peace. train yourself to focus on His truths so you can experience it!
