Do not be anxious about anything, 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 your minds in Christ Jesus.     Philippians 4:6-7 ESV

Peace is something we all want in our lives. Well, most of us do. I know some people that seem to thrive on drama, but for the most part I believe that Christians just want peace. The problem is that whole spiritual warfare thing. We live here on earth where there is this spiritual war going on all around us. The devil uses his minions to do his dirty work.

We are told in 1 Peter 5:8 that we need to always be alert because the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. We must always be on guard. Our scripture passage for today tells us to go to God and let our requests be made to known to Him with thanksgiving. We need to be thankful for all He has blessed us with. We need to be mindful of all He has done for us. It tells us that we need not be anxious because we can lift our requests up to God and trust in Him. When we do this we can have the peace of God which surpasses all understanding.

I know that is easier said than done. I have spent many sleepless nights filled with anxiety. Tony Evans explained in a way that makes sense to me. He explained it as emotional doubt. It doesn’t mean that we doubt God, it just means that the devil brings up past experiences and uses those to try to shake our faith. It means that we have a hard time controlling our anxiety when we are facing a difficult situation. He explained this in a sermon about God’s wisdom.

We need to understand that God knows all and sees all. He should always be our main focus (Matthew 6:33). We should trust in Him. We should trust in Romans 8:28 which tells us that God works all things out for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. This means that even when it looks as though things are falling apart, God is just jumbling the pieces so that He can put them back together in a way that works for you. In Jeremiah 29:11, God tells His people, the Israelites, that He has good plans for them, plans for prosperity and for their welfare and not for destruction. The Israelites were messing up big time. God tried to warn them through Isaiah and Jeremiah, but they didn’t listen. He knew they weren’t going to listen and He told them through Jeremiah that they would suffer Babylonian captivity, but He would restore them. He had good plans for them. Even those in captivity fared well when they stuck close to God and trusted in Him.

I don’t know what trials and tribulations you are facing today. I have no idea what your future holds, but I do know who holds your future. I can tell you that there have been things in my life that have happened and I thought, at the time, was the worst possible outcome. But God had better plans for me. He was working all things out for my good. I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed, so it has taken a while for me to understand, but He has always been there for me. He has walked with me through the fire and through the flood and has brought me through safely. He has helped me even when I haven’t been as faithful as I should have been. He has been there with me through my trials and my times of doubt.

I have finally learned that through a constant, deep relationship with Him that I can trust Him. I can rely on Him to take even the worst of situations and bring good out of them for me. We need God’s power and God’s strength to get us through each and every day. God’s peace is an added bonus.

We are told in John 10:10 that the devil comes to kill, steal and destroy. He wants to kill your spirit, steal your joy and destroy your witness. But we are also told that God comes to give us life in abundance.

When we are in close relationship with Jesus Christ, we are connected to Him like a branch is connected to a vine (John 15:4-5). The vine gives the branch life. This allows us to tap into His strength, His power, and His peace.

My prayer for you today is that you have the peace of God which surpasses all understanding. Come what may, He’s got this.

Have a great day!