Evident Gentleness

Philippians 4:5-7
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.

Oh that we would always be aware of the Lord’s proximity. He is always near. Never is there a moment when He is not near. If we could always remain conscious of that fact, how would it change us? How would it affect how we talk, how we treat others, regardless of the circumstances? How would it affect the way we deal with life every day?

When we understand that Jesus is right here with us, dealing with our problems and concerns each moment of every day as we bring them to Him, our anxiety will just melt away. As the anxiety is removed through our prayers, it is replaced with the peace that we cannot understand. Mysterious peace. I’m sure we would like for God to give us the kind of peace that makes sense - the kind that comes to us when all is right with our little world. But if that is what we expect, we won’t have much peace, will we? No. Rather Christ gives us a peace that defies all explanation, and makes those around us take note. Because He gives us peace even when our circumstances would dictate that we be nervous wrecks! Depressed, angry, scared . . . anxious. The difference is we know Who holds the future, so we have nothing to be anxious about.

This peace is what allows our gentleness to "be evident to all." It is one of the things marking us as followers of Christ, setting us apart from everyone else. As they get caught up in the whirlwind of life and end up full of anxiety, we can weather the storm with the One who is the peace in the eye of the storm, right by our side!