The Peace of God

Philippians 4:7 The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

I have, with heart pounding and mind racing, begged God for his peace. In my self-inflicted disaster, I have sought comfort and calm in Him. God, I have made a mess of life. I am a wreck. Please fill me with your peace.

Paul, in today’s passage tells me the peace of God is there for the taking. I just need to do what it takes to dwell in it. I recently realized that I often ask God for a magical peace, just as I asked for magical deliverance from addiction. I did not want to do anything to attain it. I just wanted him to supernaturally do all the heavy lifting.

When I ask for peace though, God asks me if I am willing to let go of that which is causing me angst. Are you willing to leave that pursuit? Are you willing to abandon yourself and dwell in me? I did not plan on this. I just wanted peace of mind. I was not ready to change my behavior.

To know the peace of God though, I must dwell in God, not in self. It is in my focus on me and my own pursuits that I cause myself anxiety. It is only in doing whatever it takes to abandon me that I can rest in the peace and joy of God.

If I find myself twisted in knots, I must examine the unhealthy pursuits I am clinging to. Do I need to abandon my resentment, anger, social media, relationships, behavioral patterns, pornography, alcohol, or even my job?

I do not get to continue in my angst-inducing pursuits of self, while asking God for his peace. That is not how the peace of God works. I only attain his peace when I abandon self and dwell in Him. The peace of God is a consequence of my behavior, not a magical charm for which I pray.

Author’s Note: I had a few people ask where the Facebook post was yesterday. The answer, is that I deactivated my Facebook account. In my own pursuit of God, I must continually be honest about that which is causing me destruction. In short, social media has become one of those things, so it had to go. I do realize that it is free promotion for my blog but chasing the numbers was part of my problem, so for now, my Facebook footprint is gone. You all, of course may tell others where to find the blog (www.theseedsofthespirit.com) and you may share it on social media. I just won’t know it. Thank-you for the understanding.