"The Peace of God Transcends All Understanding"

"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 everything, 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 NIV).

There is so much good in these three verses that I don't know where to start. The focus could be on: rejoicing, gentleness, don't be anxious, thanksgiving, peace of God which transcends all understanding, or guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Any of those ideas would make a good blog topic. I will place the rest in my "idea" folder for the future.

"Peace which transcends all understanding"! Paul wrote these words from a Roman prison cell to encourage the new believers in Philippi. The word Rejoice! is the key verse of the whole book but I want to look at the "Peace which transcends all understanding". What beautiful words Paul chose. I wish I had said that! The word transcends makes me think of God's arms stretching from heaven to earth and beyond!

Webster's New World Thesaurus (2003 version) suggests: rise above, transform, excel or exceed, for the word transcend. God's peace is greater than any conflict on earth. God's peace will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. God's peace is in Christ Jesus ! His peace is beyond our understanding. We can never wrap our minds around God's peace. But, we can feel it. When we put our faith and trust in Christ Jesus, He lives in us, guarding our hearts and minds.

Lord God, we pray for Your Peace today. We feel anxious about the world's troubles, so we lay them down and pick up Your Peace, Lord. May You heal those who suffer, and comfort those who grieve.
May those facing serious illnesses feel Your Peace. We pray in Jesus' Holy Name, Amen.