Confusion and Rest
Daily Reading: (1 Corinthians 14:33, Philippians 4:7):
“For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.”
“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Don’t worry about a thing is the song lyrics that should be playing over our lives today. God’s desire for our lives is that we don’t dwell in the land of worry. Paul doesn’t stop with just a nice phrase, he’ll tell us how he has found it possible to be sitting on death row, worry-free. Part of the answer comes in verse five. “Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.” It is easy to forget during difficult and confusing times just how near God is (Philippians 4:5). If God feels far away and we forget He is with us in the trouble that will open the door for us to become troubled. But He is with us, and we can communicate with Him, and pray at any time. You are never alone in your trouble.
Don’t worry (merimnaō)- don’t even take thought of it to the point of allowing it to trouble you. Worry will enter your mind, the key is when it does, to not allow your mind to stay there on that thought. If you do, it will eventually and very quickly trouble you.
Paul is telling us not to let your worry take you to the place where you think about it enough to trouble you and then he takes out his prescription pad and prescribes us the cure to relieve the horrible symptoms of worry.
“I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears” (Psalm 34:4 NLT).
The way that we eliminate worry is to bring those things that would worry us to God in prayer and the result is you will receive the peace of God. What a great exchange, worry for peace. When we have worry, pray and set your eyes on Jesus and let the Holy Spirit fill your hearts with the peace of God and His peace will set a guard over your heart and mind against worry from coming back in (Philippians 4:6-7).
“For God is not a God of disorder but of peace—as in all the congregations of the Lord’s people” (1 Corinthians 14:33). Paul drops this nugget, which we will extrapolate beyond just a chaotic worship service into the chaos of life. God is not a God of disorder or confusion but of (eirene) quietness, rest, tranquility (1 Corinthians 14:33). When things come on our lives that are disorienting and confusing, we can receive from God; rest, quietness in our soul, and tranquility.