“Guarding our Hearts and Minds”
Philippians 4:4-9
Recently, I got an email from a friend living in another state.
She writes: “Everything feels uncertain.
My mind often jumps to worst-case scenarios.
I have no control over this pandemic…
…No control over who visits my parents…
…No control over whether a loved one will contract COVID-19…
…No control over the lockdown in my city…
…No control over whether another recession is on the horizon.
I’m worried.
I’m a Christian and I’m worried.
And what, if anything, can I do about it?”
Perhaps you have been dealing with some of the same thoughts and worries.
I think most of us have, to one degree or another.
(pause)
It may seem strange that the letter in which Paul writes the most about peace, joy and rejoicing is Philippians since when he wrote it--he was in prison.
He didn’t even know whether he would be set free or if he would be put to death.
But it is in the midst of this terribly difficult and uncertain situation that Paul writes about discovering the secret of peace and joy in Christ Jesus.
A few verses beyond what I just read this morning, Paul writes: “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.
I have learned to secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”
Paul has found a source of happiness that will never fail.
It consists in a ongoing relationship with the risen Christ, Who has already gone through the lowest point of the human condition.
Rooted in Christ’s life, Paul experiences a joy that nothing can take away.
Whether he lives or dies, whether others shower him with praise or contempt, all is the same to him when it is seen from the standpoint of His relationship with Jesus Christ.
And that kind of God-given peace and joy does not make natural sense.
It really is a gift from God.
You know, the Bible tells us that God isn’t indifferent about the details of our lives.
God knows us personally.
God cares about us personally and deeply and nothing is out of God’s control.
Now, humanly speaking, my joy or happiness or contentment depends on my circumstances.
I am happy when I am surrounded by friends, when my future looks bright, when I have a rewarding job.
But if my happiness depended solely on outward circumstances, it would be impossible to “Rejoice in the Lord always,” because—no matter what—in this life we all go through dark valleys and exhilarating mountaintops.
Several years ago, I organized a weekend retreat in a nice motel in the mountains.
I mentioned the retreat several times during the announcements on Sunday morning, showing pictures of the attractive setting for the retreat.
It was off-season, and we got a really good deal on the price.
A young man who had only visited our church once or twice asked me, “Can I go?”
I said, “Sure, that would be great.”
Then he asked if his wife could go.
The tone of his voice indicated to me that he thought this was all too good to be true.
I was like, “definitely, your wife can come.”
So, Pete and Jessica came to the retreat.
The first evening, as we sat in a circle talking about faith issues, Pete said that he had some real problems with what he called “the God thing.”
His grandmother was a strong Christian, but she had lived a hard life.
How could God allow such a thing to happen?
We all sat in our chairs staring at our shoes—hoping someone would come up with a good answer.
Finally, another young guy on the retreat said, “Pete, what about your grandmother? Is she a happy person Pete said that she was very happy in spite of the many difficulties she had suffered through.
Then the young man said, “Maybe that’s the answer, Pete. God didn’t give her an easy life, but He did give her a happy life.”
That was the answer Pete needed to hear.
During that weekend, he and his wife became Christians.
The next thing I knew, they were teaching a Sunday school class.
Then Pete, went off to seminary in order to become a pastor.
We all have problems; we all have difficulties, but there is a “peace of God, which transcends all understanding,” which is available to us no matter the circumstances of our lives
And the word for this kind of “peace” shows up nearly 100 times in the New Testament.
And it has its roots in the Hebrew word “Shalom,” which is used a lot in the Old Testament.
And what peace and shalom mean is more than the absence of violence or trouble—although they can mean that.
Both words signify the kind of well-being that comes from a deep relationship with God—the kind of wholeness that comes from having the image of God, once shattered by sin, restored in those who believe.
I once heard a speaker say that the difference between having “peace with God” and experiencing “the peace of God” is the difference between Jesus Christ being just your Savior and Jesus Christ being your Lord as well.
Having “the Peace of God, which transcends all understanding,” is a free gift from God that we learn to cultivate through bringing everything to God in prayer with thanksgiving.
It really is a choice we make.
John Wesley used to say that a “sour Christian; is a sad thing indeed.”
When Paul’s famous, “Rejoice in the Lord always” arrived at the Church in Philippi, it wasn’t to a untroubled group that the scroll was read out loud.
The Philippians were troubled by external threats and internal strife.
They were happy to get a note from Paul, but they might have thought to themselves, “Rejoice…always? Really? Do you know what my day was like?”
But it turns out that Paul does know.
It’s no accident that he talks so much about his own hardships in the beginning of the letter.
He offers himself as an example of suffering to the Philippians.
He’s imprisoned and has enemies all over the place.
But Paul tells them that his response to all this is “I rejoice.”
And his reason for this joy is Jesus Christ.
“Rejoice in the Lord,” says Paul, because prosperity and happy times and the other potential reasons for rejoicing can’t be counted on to continue “always.”
When our concerns have been left in God’s loving care, the peace of God that is beyond comprehension will guard and protect our hearts and minds.
We can have security knowing that God is caring for us, and we can have sanity when we replace worry with faith and prayer.
The Prophet Isaiah knew God’s peace when he wrote in Isaiah Chapter 26:3-4, “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.
Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.”
In verse 8 of Philippians Chapter 4 Paul writes, “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.”
There is sanity, right here.
Trusting in God, includes giving our troubles and fears to God and then allowing the Holy Spirit to direct our hearts and minds—to guard our hearts and minds—by thinking about good things rather than obsessing about worries.
And Paul not only urges the Philippians and us, to think about good things, he urges us to put these good things into practice…
… “Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice.”
We are in the midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic.
And peace doesn’t mean that we ignore the risks or the situation.
Peace isn’t saying, “Oh, everything will be fine.”
Peace doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take precautions for our safety and the safety of others.
Peace is acknowledging that the present circumstances may be bad, but we have the opportunity to live unafraid because of a hope that isn’t based on wearing a mask or the development of a vaccine, but a hope that rests in a relationship with the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ.
There once was a king who offered a prize to the artist who could paint the best picture of peace.
The picture that the king picked looked like this:
The mountains were bare and rocky.
Above them was an angry sky from which rain fell and lightening thundered.
Down the side of the mountain was a massive, rushing waterfall.
Behind the waterfall a tiny bush grew out of a crack in a rock.
In the bush a mother bird had built her nest.
There, in the midst of the rushing, angry water, sat the mother bird on her nest in perfect peace.
Someone asked the king why he picked this picture.
“Because,” explained the king, “peace does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work.
Peace means to be in the midst of all those things and still be calm in your heart.
This is the real meaning of peace.”
Paul doesn’t just simply tell the Philippians to stop worrying, he gives them the antidote—prayer.
In any and every situation we can bring our requests, our needs, our problems to God in prayer and leave them, with gratitude in God’s capable hands.
God cares for you and me, and God cares about you and me.
Peter understood this when he wrote: “Cast all your anxieties on him because he cares for you.”
Have you handed over ownership of your life to the Lordship of Jesus Christ?
Do you trust God with your cares, your troubles, your hardships, your anxiety?
Every time you start to feel worried and anxious, make the conscious decision to pray about whatever is bothering you and hand the situation over to God.
And be thankful!
“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Praise God!
Amen.
