God's Peace is Crucial

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in all things, 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.” Philippians 4v6-7.

It’s a verse we all know, and lately, we’ve had the opportunity to really put it into practise.

For a week before the lockdown started here, I just felt like staying home. I did not feel fear – I just had peace about staying at home. We had no confirmed cases yet, but I just did not want to go anywhere. We had been invited to an event, and decided not to go – the person who invited us came down with a very severe flu not long afterwards – at about the same time the first cases of the virus were tested here. We had been planning a family trip to visit some friends living on the other side of the country, and I just did not have peace about doing that. In a family of unbelievers, it was difficult to explain to them – I couldn’t tell them I’d had a dream a year ago, because they probably would have laughed. I couldn’t explain to them how I just did not have peace about making the trip. I prayed about it and decided I would just go along with them, putting aside my feelings. As it happened, travel restrictions were issued the day before we were supposed to leave, preventing us from making the trip.

A couple of weeks later, I began to worry, thinking that I should not be holed up at home, I should be ‘out there’, praying for the sick. I was quite tormented by this. I brought it to God in prayer, and I didn’t receive any answer. When that happens, I look to his word, where answers already exist. I was drawn to a whole lot of scriptures about peace, and these were the answer to my prayer. I had to be honest and ask myself, “am I staying home because I’m fearful, or because that is what I feel God is telling me to do?” As I considered this, I knew that if He told me to go out there, I would. I knew in my spirit that I had not received that instruction, and I had absolute peace about being at home. The Bible tells us to respect the authority of earthly leaders, because they would have no authority if it were not given them by God. We are also told to obey God before men – so if they passed a law contrary to his word, that would be the only time we would not have to obey it. So because the law was that we should stay at home, I have done so, and have had peace about doing it.

I’ve heard of churches who defied the stay at home orders – and their pastors and many members of their congregations have contracted the virus, and some have even died. That made me really think about the truth of Psalm 91 – we will have the protection of the Most High only IF we abide in his will and obey his commands. Sometimes we read that and claim it, and then wonder why it doesn’t work out they way we expected it to, but we ignored the condition – the IF. And how do we know we are obeying his commands? Peace. Peace is a rudder, and it is an answer to prayer. Also, Jesus said, “blessed are the peace makers, for they will be called the sons of God” (as opposed to those who rebel against authority). He said, “blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” (as opposed to those who express pride and consider themselves untouchable). And he tells us that we will be commended for “patient endurance”, not for rebellion. As Perry Stone so appropriately said – “you cannot name and claim what God never told you to take.”

In one of my other posts, unspoken warnings, I’d written that God will have the time he needs with us – and if we don’t give it to him willingly, he will take it by force, for our own good. He has done that now. He has brought us to this place where we must put aside our fast-paced lifestyles and calm down and slow down to his pace. What this lockdown is (whatever the enemy might think it is), it is a gift to us from God – a Sabbath for our souls and our minds, to meditate on his word, to spend hours in prayer and in the word. It is a time to go deeper with God and really receive, a time to “be still, and know that I am God”. And during this time, amongst other prayers, I have asked him, “what will we do with no income? What will we eat? What will we wear?” As Jesus says, our heavenly Father knows we need these things. I have not received any answer to these questions – but in bringing these anxieties to him, I have received his peace. And it really does surpass understanding, because it makes more sense right now to be panicking and worrying; and yet, I have peace. I watch the news reports – what Bill Gates is up to during this lock down, what the World Economic Forum is planning for the world during this lock down, and many other rabbit holes. They all certainly have big plans. But so did Pharaoh. So did Nimrod. This is a time where we really learn to apply our trust in God, and not only talk about it. He provided for the Israelites in the wilderness; He provided for Elijah during the drought; He multiplied fish and loaves of bread. But if we are double minded, as James says, we must not expect to receive anything from the Lord – we must trust him and lean on him and believe him when he tells us that he will take care of us; we must not have fear and anxiety. I have been so grateful for this lockdown, because I’ve been able to sit down without a time restraint and meditate on the Word, memorize scripture, pour out my heart to him and receive from him – and in doing this, I have peace. When those earthly worries threaten to invade my mind, I go into a room, shut the door, close my eyes, and calm my soul by repeating slowly all the memorized scriptures I know, to keep my mind focused on him, and then I ask him to speak to me. We must use this time to know the voice of our shepherd, because it’s a voice we need to know that we know.