Peace in Tough Situations

Philippians 1:9-11 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Yesterday was a day that did not go as planned, in so many ways. Our favorite race was canceled, and a trip to the lake for a family reunion turned into a trip to the ER. Our youngest son had become tangled with his brother in a tubing crash behind the boat, and lets just say the cut above his eye looked like Mike Tyson hit him bare fisted. It was incredibly scary for everyone involved, but God supplied all our needs down to the details of the entire ordeal. Even through a tough situation, God was glorified, and we can find contentment in that, peace in the storm, calm in tough situations, through the Peace that lives within us. John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. As I tried to calm my son, my own self was freaked out by what I saw. I was later told of how well I handled the situation, of how I gave peace to him, yet, it wasn’t me, it was God speaking to him through me……(I just came to tears as I typed this in the realization of it.) It was the Holy Ghost speaking to Dalton with the reassurance everything was going to be OK, not his dad. He gave the young man the strength to be calm, with an incredibly large wound and blood running into his eyes….not his dad.

I think this is why the epistle of Philippians speaks to me so much. We must realize the context of every word Paul writes here; Paul is in prison and knows not if he live to see freedom again. Paul is in chains, yet has a freedom in Christ he boldly preaches to the Roman guards. Paul’s heart was to reach Rome, to share the gospel to them, and God opened the door through a way Paul did not see coming. Look at the joy of the next verses: 12 But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, 13 so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; 14 and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Paul was so bold to declare his faith in Jesus, the guards had come to faith, and then become bold declaring their own. Paul was making disciples in prison and the church was growing in Rome now.

Paul’s letter to Philippi was a letter of love, of contentment in any situation, of trusting God’s sovereignty in all of our lives. The most abused passage in the Bible taken out of context is here; 4: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. That passage is one of contentment, not of our own abilities through God. It is one of the understanding of God’s sovereignty, of how we are in every situation by God’s design, and understanding it, brings peace in any and every thing in life.