Relates an insightful story about a little bird named “Chippy.” His owner had just recently lost her husband and this widow lady greatly loved and adored her songbird.One day she decided that the easiest way to clean Chippy’s cage was to use the vacuum cleaner. All was going as planned as she very meticulously cleaned the bottom of the cage. Suddenly, the telephone rang. When the lady instinctively reached for the phone, the nozzle of the vacuum went straight up and Chippy went down the hose of the sweeper.
The lady was beside herself. She quickly turned the sweeper off and opened the bottom of the vacuum to find Chippy dumbfounded and covered with dirt and grime. All you could see was his little eyes blinking. She knew she had to clean him off, so she rushed him to the bathroom and turned on the water and gave the little bird a power-wash. The ice-cold water from the faucet not only cleaned the dirt off of Chippy, but also nearly sent him into cardiac arrest. Now realizing that Chippy was freezing from the cold water, she decided to dry him off and warm him up. She plugged in her hairdryer and blasted the little bird with 1800 watts of heat and air, feathers flew everywhere. Not to worry, the little bird lived. But Chippy doesn’t sing much anymore.
You see when life sucks you up, washes you out, and blows you over, it is pretty easy to lose your song. I have met a lot of Christians who have lost their song.
That is one reason the words from the Apostle Paul are so interesting. While writing from a Roman jail, Paul is able to say the following in Philippians 4:4-8: Verse 4 – “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” Verse 5 – “Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.” Verse 6 – “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Verse 7 – “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Verse 8 – “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (NIV).
Paul’s prayer for the people is that the peace of God will guard their hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Twice in this section of Philippians he says that he has learned the secret of contentment. Have we as Christians learned the secret of contentment? The secret of contentment is found in verse 8. It has much to do with our thinking and the things we allow to occupy our minds and hearts. If we focus and concentrate on the things that God has told us to fill our minds with, it makes a major difference it how we think and respond to what is happening in our lives.
There are two other things that we can do to experience the peace of God. According to Colossians 3:15-16: “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God” (NIV).
As we allow the peace of Christ to rule in our hearts, we will experience the peace of God. To have the peace of Christ rule our hearts is much like allowing the peace of Christ to be the umpire of our hearts. Christ’s peace decides what is in bounds and what is out of bounds. We will experience the peace of Christ in our life as we allow him to rule in our life. In verse 16 we are admonished to let the word of Christ dwell in us richly. When we allow the word to become at home in our lives, we will begin in new ways to know the peace of God, which transcends understanding. Paul offers us practical help as we seek the peace of God in our lives. May you today, my friend, experience the peace of God in your life.
~Max Lucado
