Promise of Peace from the Prince of Peace.

Many wise people have said,

"Never let your circumstances define you. You must define your circumstances."

We can't control what happens. We can only control our reactions.

So,

"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." ~Philippians 4:4-7

I've always loved these verses, but it kind of just hit me today: the last part is a promise! 

The peace of God WILL guard our hearts and minds in Jesus if we hold up our end of the deal and rejoice, not being anxious, and presenting our concerns to God through prayer with thanksgiving. 

That's a guarantee. 

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Gossip.

It's so easy to see everyone else's faults. 
It's so easy to point out what he did wrong. 
It's so easy to recognize where she fell short of perfection. 
But look around you and remember that every person you see and every person about which you think, "How could they possibly be like that?" or "How dare they?" or "I've tried to find something nice to say about her/him, but there just isn't anything good there," is considered by Jesus as

someone worth dying for. 

"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." ~John 3:16

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Where I belong.

People often ask me, "So are you going to move back to California to teach when you graduate..or stay in Michigan?" My response is usually, "I don't know...maybe neither." Which is true! I really DO NOT KNOW what God has for me down the road. And even though I can make plans and feel led a certain way, I don't even really know where I will be next year, or even next month! For all I know, God could bring something into my life to change everything because He has done that many times, even very recently.


Living in California, moving for school to Michigan, spending a month in Thailand, etc. makes it difficult to know exactly where (as in location) I belong. Right now I belong in Michigan, (except for the summer), but what is after that? I cannot tell you. The future is wide open, which is exciting, but also scary. I don't know where I'm headed, but I know the One leading me. I am tired of trying to figure out where I am "supposed" to be and what I'm "supposed" to do. I already know that where I belong is in the presence of God.  From there He is very good at making it clear where I am to go and what I am to do when He decides I need to know.
So I think the song "Where I belong" by Cory Asbury pretty much says it all:


"Your presence is all I’m longing for here in the secret place
Your nearness is all I’m waiting for here in the quiet place, here in the secret place

My soul waits for you alone
Like the watchmen wait for dawn.

Here I’ve finally found the place
Where we’ll meet, Lord, face to face.

I’ve finally found where I belong, I’ve finally found where I belong, In Your presence
I’ve finally found where I belong, to be with You, to be with You

I am my Beloved’s and He is mine, so come into Your garden and take delight in me
Take delight in me 

Delight in me, Delight in me
Delight in me, Delight in me

Here in Your presence, God, I find my rest
Here in Your presence, God."




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Love.

So often our modern culture bases the definition of love on what we get from it. Everyone is seeking to be loved to fill an empty spot deep in the soul. But 1 Corinthians 13:5 says that love "is not self-seeking." So seeking to be loved is not what love is about.

If we go around demanding what we want because we love something or someone, is that really love? Isn't the  real essence of love a sacrifice? We should not love others for the love we feel in return. We should love because Christ loves us and we are thus compelled to that same kind of deep, sacrificial love for others. We should love in a way that sets aside our selfish wants and truly desire the best for others. God will give us everything we need. We should do everything within our power to give others what they truly need according to Christ's will for their lives--NOT what our selfish little selves want for their lives. Sometimes this means being hurt. Sometimes this means letting go. But that's okay because in the end, sacrifice is what real love is all about, right?

"Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." ~John 15:13

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God's will.

"Fear is never a part of God's will." (Anna Wilkinson) 


When I heard Anna say this last week in chapel, I realized something about God's will and what we believe it to be. I think we all worry too much about what we're supposed to do, where we're supposed to go, whom we're supposed to be with, etc. But in reality, although those things are important, the bigger question is "how" or "in what way?"

In what way are we supposed to do whatever it is we do?

In what way are we supposed to go wherever we go?

In what way are we supposed to love people?

"And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:8)

"My command is this: Love others as I have loved you." (John 15:12)

"So whatever you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." (1 Corinthians 10:31)

That's it. 
It doesn't matter where we go or what we do next. It only matters the way in which we do whatever we do.


We must go about our lives loving as Jesus loves, walking humbly with God, and glorifying Him with everything we do.



THAT is His will for us.
Everything else that is specific to our lives will be revealed in His timing.
We don't have to worry about those things now.
We only have to make sure we are walking with God every step of the way.

Fear.

God never said "Don't worry...because nothing will go wrong..."
He said, 

"Do not fear, for I am with you;

Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you and help you.

I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." ~Isaiah 41:10

Letting go of our fears doesn't mean they won't come true. 


It means believing the fact that even if our fears come true, 

God will walk with us through everything.

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