Ever wish you could have some peace and quiet? Or, if you can’t have the quiet, at least have some peace?
It reminds me of Wugui [“woo-gway”]—that old tortoise/former master in Kung Fu Panda, sitting in the lotus position on top of a rock in the wilderness, hands in the classic Buddhist yoga pose, repeating the mantra—“inner peace… inner peace…”… he’s about to finally attain it when suddenly a fly buzzes by his nose, makes him sneeze, and his peace vanishes!
This happens to us all the time, doesn’t it? Our hard-won peace shatters into pieces as we encounter disappointment, aggressive drivers on the road, bad news, sudden financial insecurity, etc. Just thinking about all this and other peace-breakers can create anxiety. Then what if any of it actually happens?
With all of that stalking our thoughts and lives, is it even possible to experience peace of heart, mind, and soul for more than a minute? Good news—we can! The Lord even provided a “recipe” for peace—the kind that lasts as long as we keep Holy Spirit-“preservative” in it. For He Himself helps us to continually follow the recipe.
Here it is, found in the “Master Chef’s cookbook”—the Bible—in Phil. 4:1-9. Ten step by step ingredients:
- Remain— v.1—“…Stand firm in the Lord…” Don’t let anyone or anything take our heart, minds, or spirits away from Him or make us give up on Him.
- Reunite— restore relationships— v.2-3—“Be in the same mind in the Lord…” Think about all our relationships—if any of them are broken, mend them. That will bring peace between us and others, as well as peace of mind, knowing there’s no “bad blood” between us and someone else. Unity leads to peace, in any group and any relationship.
- Rejoice— v.4—“Rejoice in the Lord always…” Notice, it doesn’t say “be happy about all your troubles”. We focus on the Lord—Who He is, what He’s done, what He’s doing, and what He will do. That gives us joy and gladness—a sense that everything is and will be the way it needs to be— which gives us peace.
- Reason— v.5—“Let your reasonableness (gentleness) be evident to all…” Think of the gentle, reasonable, people we know. They exude peace. Conversely, harsh, angry, people don’t seem peaceful at all. That’s because gentle, reasonable, people aren’t all “hot and bothered” about stuff or getting their own way like harsh, angry, people are. Imagine all the road rage that could disappear if at least half the drivers gained gentleness!
- Relax— v.6 – “do not be anxious about anything,…” Peace and anxiety are mutually exclusive. When anxiety leaves, peace enters. Whole books have been written on how to get rid of anxiety, but here’s one foundational suggestion to get us started: Trust–
- Trust God— He’s perfect, so– He’s got things under control (sovereignty); His control always stems from the best intentions (love), and He never says “oops” (wisdom).
- Trust those who are trustworthy—yes, we can trust many people, who’ve proven themselves both willing and able, as well as faithful. Either we’ve seen this or heard this from others we trust.
- Trust that our trustworthy Lord, Who’s ultimately in charge, can and will overcome bad outcomes resulting from un-trustworthy people.
- Trust ourselves—to the extent of a realistic assessment of our skills and abilities, and knowing we can get His and others’ help where we need it.
- Request respectfully— v.6 – “…but by prayer and supplication…, let your requests be made known to God.” Don’t be afraid to ask for what we need! Do it respectfully, not with a demanding or entitlement attitude, but don’t hold back either, for fear of offending Him. He’s our DAD, not our dictator. Like the best father, He wants to hear what’s on our hearts. This sure beats stewing and worrying over not getting things taken care of because we didn’t ask.
- Recount/Respond— v.6 “…with thanksgiving…” – We pray and ask with a thankful heart for two reasons: 1)We remember all the ways He’s helped us before; and 2)We thank Him ahead of time, trusting He’ll come through again.
Have you ever sent a message to a family member, friend, or colleague, asking them to please do something, and at the end say, “Thanks ahead…”? With people, sometimes we do that to gently motivate them, and other times because we fully trust that they will. With the Lord, we don’t have to motivate Him. We can just thank Him ahead from trust (see above).
- Reap— v.7 – “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard [our] hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Enjoy the harvest of peace, regardless of how much we understand how the Lord worked or works things out!
When we turn on lights, most of us don’t comprehend all the components and processes that cause the switch to work. Yet we don’t stress over how we can see better as a result. Apply this to enjoying the result and/or promised result of how the Lord works in our lives.
- Redeem— our thought-life—v.8—“Whatever is true… honorable… just… pure… lovely… commendable… excellence… worthy of praise, think about these things.” Thoughts produce feelings. Peace comes from the above, not from the opposite (lies, gross stuff, bad news, divisive talk, etc.).
Given the choice, sane people prefer to dine inside a great restaurant with clean and healthy food, especially if someone else is paying the bill! Who among us would say, “No thanks, I’d rather rout around in the dumpster out back and see what I can find still there from last week!”?
Apply this same sanity of preference to what we let affect our thought life and we’ll have a lot more peace!
- Relive/Review—practice and follow Jesus’ model, which Paul did, “…and the God of peace will be with you.” We’ll not only receive peace, we’ll always have the Source of peace right there with us!
Follow these ten steps. Mix, stir, and let simmer in our hearts and minds until ready to serve. Enjoy! Let the peace nourish our souls and offer both the recipe and cuisine to others.
I’d rather follow the Master Chef and His recipes than sit on a rock for hours, trying unsuccessfully to gain inner peace! Wouldn’t you?
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