Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Want peace?

Whew!  I noticed that I haven't written in my blog since September 7th!  As I looked back over my calendar, I noticed that that's when we began traveling a lot and had lots of guests/meetings in our home.  I guess traveling, hosting and blogging consistently don't mix well in my little world!  Thankfully, I am not traveling this week and can actually pull a few thoughts together to blog!

There is a wonderful recipe for peace between the pages of Philippians and I want to share it with you!  I don't really understand the notion of NOT sharing recipes.  Why wouldn't we want people to have their taste buds tantalized or to... 'Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!'?  (Psalms 34:8 NLT)  Of course, I believe the enemy of our soul wants us to glide over these verses and NOT recognize this recipe!

We are to rejoice in the Lord and not in our circumstances, possessions, relationships, etc.  He is that one constant in our lives that will never change and will always be with us!  'He also says to the Son, “In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundation of the earth and made the heavens with your hands. They will perish, but you remain forever. They will wear out like old clothing. You will fold them up like a cloak and discard them like old clothing. But you are always the same; you will live forever.” (Hebrews 1:10-12 NLT)

We are to pray about everything with thanksgiving!  Turn your thoughts into prayers of supplication and thanksgiving throughout the day.  This takes great discipline as we take each thought captive to the obedience of Christ, yet it is the key ingredient to experiencing God's peace, joy, peace, and victory in our lives here on this earth.  (II Corinthians 10:3-5)  We must also remember that essential element of thankfulness with each prayer.  We are not to give thanks because of everything that comes our way, but in everything, as this is God's will.  In essence, these verses in  I Thessalonians say the same thing:  'Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.' (I Thessalonians 5:16-18 NKJV)  God's peace will guard our hearts and minds as we rejoice in Him and pray about everything with thankful hearts!

We are also to only think on those things that are true - in line with who God is and what His Word says, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent and worthy of praise.  We can do this only with God's help!  Thus, the quality of the 'ingredients' of our thoughts are essential as well.  The old motto, 'garbage in, garbage out', continues to hold true; we must feed our minds on the Word of God, who He is, and those things that promote healthy and wholesome thoughts.  Thus, the second promise will come true in our lives as we practice this truth of thinking on quality things...the peace of God will be with us!

This is not a practice that you say, 'I got this one.'  It is a daily, constant battle that we face in our minds that requires diligence, perseverance and self-control.  I must constantly remind myself of these truths so that the God of peace will be with me and will exude His peace both in and through me for His glorification!  I'm praying that you will experience His peace and presence in your lives on a daily basis!

'Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 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. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.' (Philippians 4:4-9 ESV)

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