7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
One of the benefits of being a Jesus-follower is that we can experience a peace that actively keeps us safe from ourselves. One of my greatest struggles, and one of the struggles I find as I talk with so many other people, is our own thought life. We allow our minds to get so filled with the concerns of the day that we forget that God has things in control. Our minds start down the negative path so fast that we spend the day worrying about every possible negative contingency. Our lives fill with concern. We get ulcers and high blood pressure. All this happens because our minds move us away from the God who has all things under His care. This verse tells us that the peace of God will work in our lives to eliminate this negative cycle. But what is the peace of God? This is the peace that God Himself experiences. This peace is the peace he has when He looks into the future. Do you think He is worried about the financial markets or the political turmoil in the world? Does he lose sleep over these things? We can experience for ourselves God’s peace. In fact, the Lord wants us to share in His peace. He doesn’t want us consumed by cares and concerns, so He offers us something unique to Himself. We get to share in His peace. And when we do that, our hearts and our minds don’t descend into despair and chaos. God’s peace acts as security force around our heart and mind. Anything that would interrupt our experiencing peace is kept at bay. God’s peace pushes all those negatives aside leaving no room for their return, as long as peace stays present. Where God’s peace exists there is no room for the other things. So if you are consumed by cares and concerns, allow God’s peace to act as a doorkeeper on your heart and mind. Draw in close to the Lord and let His peace invade the dark corners of your heart. Allow that peace to push out the rabbit trails of your mind. We do that by putting our mind on God’s things. The next two verses spell these things out. Take time to look them up and read them. Memorize these verses and keep your mind focused. Then God’s peace will do its job in your heart.
The Arnold Journey 