“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 my life…
…No control over what might happen to me tomorrow…
…I have no control over whether a loved one will experience a tragedy…
…I have no control over the crime in my city…
…I have no control over the terrible things I read in the news.
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 do, 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 describes 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 of an ongoing relationship with the risen Christ, Who has already gone through the lowest point anyone can.
With his life 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 scorn, 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—naturally 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.
Both words mean 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.”
Do you find yourself living as a sour Christian?
When Paul’s famous, “Rejoice in the Lord always” letter arrived at the Church in Philippi, it wasn’t to an 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.
And our hearts and minds are very precious things.
When I was a child, my mother said to me, “Ken, we should always thank God for our sanity.”
I didn’t understand what she meant then, but I do now…
…and perhaps I should add that we should also pray to God for sanity or for the ability to keep it.
There is a lot of crazy stuff going on in our world and none of us are immune from its effects.
And no one is any better than anyone else—rich, poor, black, white, or whatever.
But, we can find sanity in trusting in God and in loving others with a sacred, holy, and unconditional love.
When we look at someone, can we look past the things that are unpleasant and instead see a person who is created in God’s image?
Can we see not an enemy but another person who struggles just as we do?
Can we see another person, who despite differences in circumstance, skin color or nationality, is no different that us, and is loved by God just as much as we are?
If we do this, it brings peace and it guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus Who loves and died for us all.
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.”
HERE is sanity.
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.
Do you read the news in the morning, and obsess over the state of politics in our country?
Do you watch the news on t-v and wring your hands?
Perhaps it’s time to put down our phones and turn off the t-v.
There is nothing we can do, as average Americans to change what happens in Washington, except to vote our conscience on election day.
Otherwise, what good does worrying do?
As Jesus says: “Can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your life span?”
It’s cool that Paul not only urges the Philippians and us, to think about good things, he urges us to put these good things into practice.
And this brings us peace because when we are helping others, loving others in real and tangible ways—like feeding the hungry and taking care of persons in need, we are not worrying about ourselves nor about the things we have no control over.
We are, instead, trusting in God, and striving to love our neighbors as we love ourselves.
(pause)
Our world is filled with horrible evil and catastrophic events like the fires in Maui.
And peace doesn’t mean that we ignore these things.
Peace isn’t saying, “Oh, everything will be fine. I’ll just sit back and close my eyes.”
Peace doesn’t mean we shouldn’t care 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 the political climate or what’s going on in the news, but rather 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--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?
Is Jesus not only your Savior, but your Lord as well?
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!
Is it possible to “Rejoice in the Lord always,” to live non-violent gentle lives of love for our fellow human beings, to be non-anxious people of faith?
Paul says, “Yes.”
“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.”
May it be so.
Please pray with me, if you will:
Lord God,
I worry.
I stress over things I cannot control.
And when I do this, I am not trusting in You with my whole heart.
I am not believing that YOU care for me and that everything will ultimately work out for the good.
Please forgive me for my lack of faith.
Lord I believe.
Help me in my unbelief.
Enable me to focus, not on myself, but on loving You and loving others.
May the activities I partake in, may the things I spend my time thinking about be lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy.
Lord, I want to be at peace.
I give my entire life over to you.
I give You my anxiety.
I give You my worries.
I trust You with my life.
Guard my heart and mind.
In Christ Jesus my Lord.
Amen.
