Seek Ye First | 📣 Peace Amid the Storm

It would be wonderful if life were always filled with sunny days, but the truth is – often it’s not. Often many of God’s children find themselves amid a storm. Of course, it’s easy to rejoice once the storm is over. But what do we do amid the storm? Can we find peace amid a storm?

“Always be filled with joy in the Lord. I will say it again. Be filled with joy. Let everyone see that you are gentle and kind. The Lord is coming soon. Don’t worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks for what you have. And because you belong to Christ Jesus, God’s peace will stand guard over all your thoughts and feelings. His peace can do this far better than our human minds. Brothers and sisters, continue to think about what is good and worthy of praise. Think about what is true and honorable and right and pure and beautiful and respected. And do what you learned and received from me—what I told you and what you saw me do. And the God who gives peace will be with you.” Philippians‬ ‭4:4-9‬ ‭ERV‬‬

Paul begins by encouraging us to find joy ‘in the Lord.’ Our joy is not in our circumstances but in the One who is fully aware of our circumstances and Who is always there to help. Joy is not necessarily gleeful happiness. It doesn’t mean that we have a smile plastered across our faces. Joy is knowing that God is still on the throne and that though He has allowed this storm in our lives, He can use it for something good. (Romans 8:28) James also tells us to view our trials with joy, knowing that difficulties can cause our Christian character to grow. (James 1:2) Our first prayer may be, “Lord, I don’t understand why this is happening, but I trust in You to help me through it and to accomplish something good from it.”

Secondly, Paul encourages us to focus on others. “Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.” It’s unfortunate, but an abundance of good has a way of causing us to become a bit calloused about the needs of others. We have the world by the tail, so why worry about what someone else is going through. But when trouble comes to us, suddenly, there is a calming of our disposition and a sensitivity to how others are hurting. Sometimes the wilder the storm, the tamer we become. Perhaps that is part of the reason for the storm. Maybe the Lord wants to bring us back to the point of focusing more on others.

Thirdly we were told to pray instead of worry. Paul tells us to not worry about anything. Anything includes everything, even the storm we’re currently facing. Nowhere in scripture are we encouraged to fret and to fear. Always we are told to trust in God. Note also that Paul does not say, “Forget about your problems.” Instead, he says – “Tell God what it is that you need.” As I have often said in church, “Prayer is taking the burden off of our shoulders and placing it upon God’s.” Peter tells us to “Cast all of our care upon God because God cares about us.” God does not want you to shoulder this burden alone. He wants you to put the burden upon Him and allow Him to love you.

Fourthly, Paul tells us to fill our minds with thoughts that will build us up instead of ideas that will tear us down. Worry imagines the worst. It dwells amid the trouble. It tries to resolve what it can’t handle. Worry is not only destructive, and it is useless. Worry is a waste of time. But how do we overcome the temptation to worry? Paul tells us to do so by fixing our thoughts on the things of God. Psalm 84:11 had a grand promise for those of us who are tempted to worry – “For the LORD God is our light and protector. He gives us grace and glory. No good thing will the LORD withhold from those who do what is right.”

Currently, many of us are going through storms and writing this devotional has helped me to find peace. We read in Isaiah 26:3, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee.”

Lastly, we are told to continue these four principles repeatedly. “Keep putting into practice all you learned from me and heard from me and saw me doing, and the God of peace will be with you.” This is not a one-shot fix for all kinds of things. Storms often don’t go away quickly, and therefore we need ongoing strength. God has promised us that He will never leave us nor forsake us. (Heb 13:5) He will be with us every step of the way until we are finally at home with Him.

Written by Ama Ghana @seekyefirstjesus

Ama Ghana is a Servant of God and the Founder/C.E.O of Seek Ye First Christian blog.

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