God, Our Guardian of Peace

By Rachel Otto, Resonate Moscow

What decision are you facing? What unknown is looming? What frustration or disagreement are you having with a brother or sister? What unrealized hope or desire are you longing for?

In just four verses, Philippians 4:4-7 unpacks a way of living for the family of God that helps us unlock peace through life’s unknowns and challenges.

Prayer. Gratitude. Peace. (Repeat)

Let’s read the passage from two slightly different translations.

Philippians 4:4-7 (NIV)

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 (NLT)

Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Paul had a special love for this group of believers and often in his letter, you can hear him thanking them for how they’ve partnered with him in the gospel and supported him. Verses 4-7 come right after he lovingly calls out a few members of the church to work out their issues with each other. He then gives us a beautiful picture of the life God offers believers in the midst of our struggle.

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

Sometimes I wonder if we hear this verse and think we’re just supposed to muster up some secret stockpile of self-motivation to “just get it done” and choose joy. The problem with that interpretation is he doesn’t just say rejoice, he says rejoice in the Lord! That takes it from an “I think I can” Little-Engine-Who-Could struggle and turns our hearts to the source. The Rock of Ages. The Wellspring of Life. A much better source of renewal and joy. 

When we turn our thoughts and hearts towards Christ and step closer into his presence, joy is a natural overflow. I felt this recently when digging into the scriptures of Hebrews with some wonderful ladies and being in awe of the foreshadowing of Christ’s story as our eternal High Priest who came and completely opened up a new way of relating to us. And again, I felt my heart return to joy recently when a conversation with a friend helped me realize that as I continue to make mistakes and to grow, God is gracious and is making me into a better wife to my husband. It’s not a striving (which I am so very tempted to do), it’s a remembering. It’s noticing Him at work and giving Him permission to shape us in our vulnerability.

5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 

Now we see the true motivation behind this exhortation. Why does Paul bother to bring up this disagreement, even calling people by name? He’s reminding the believers that our lives serve as a constant witness to the Good News and that Jesus’ anticipated return brings urgency to that testimony. In other words, how we go about working things out is part of how we can share the hope we have. 

6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Again, one could read this and mistakenly think Paul is saying “Just don’t be anxious. It’s that simple.” When really, he’s acknowledging that anxious thoughts are a common battle and we have a weapon to diffuse them. When we open up our hearts and thoughts to our Father, when we cast our cares on to him (prayer and petition), and we offer gratitude even in the difficulty and the unknowns, His response is exactly what we need even if it's not always what we want.

Being made in the image of God (the Omniscient), we have an innate desire to know. To know what’s going on. To know what’s next. To know why. And yet, at least in this lifetime, there is a reason why we are kept, protected even, from all that knowing (think Garden of Eden – Tree of Knowledge).

Like so many of Paul’s other letters, he shows us his understanding that many of our greatest battles are not physical (and considering he was likely writing from prison or at least house arrest, that’s saying something) but mental—spiritual. 

For the last, nearly three years, my husband and I have found ourselves in an unexpected battle. We long for a child, for a family. It’s something I now realize that in earlier years I probably took for granted as I thought about the future. Inasmuch as this battle does involve the physical, for me, it has often been the mental and spiritual battles that have been the hardest. The seeds of doubt that creep in when I’m least prepared: “Why can’t we get pregnant?” “Is there something wrong with me?” “Why us?” And as we’ve stepped further and further down this story, I’m learning the daily surrender of presenting my requests to God with thanksgiving and receiving the sweet gift He gives in return.

I’m sure you have your own internal battles raging too. 

7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

When we practice turning our requests over to Christ, he gives us the gift of His peace. This peace doesn’t come when He says yes to our request when He tells us why or gives us any answer at all. Instead, it is to offer us rest from the “whys.” A mysterious peace in the toil that is even better than knowing (transcends understanding).

This peace then serves a powerful role. It becomes our guard—our protector. Verse 7 gives an image of a military sentry standing guard. I love the juxtaposition in this imagery as it presents peace in the context of a battle or wartime. A personal peace soldier that intervenes for us? In the middle of our struggle, our Jehovah Nissi –the protector– stands guard over our hearts and our minds! 

This gift and practice of peace is echoed all throughout scripture and is Christ’s daily desire for us, His children.

Isaiah 26.3 | You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast because they trust in you.

John 14:27 | “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

Colossians 3:15 | Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

We know that this life is full of struggles of all kinds. My prayer is that you are encouraged to step out in trust to your guardian of peace today.

Prayer. Gratitude. Peace. (Repeat)