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[0:00] Say good morning to all of you and it certainly is a blessing for Freedom May to be with you all here this morning and certainly greet you in the precious name of Jesus.

[0:10] But it's been a real blessing for me to be here and worship with you here this morning.

[0:38] As I was thinking about worship, you know, it's not only as we gather for worship like this that we worship, but I believe it's important that we worship every day.

[0:49] Where we're at, at home, in our private time, wherever, that our hearts be in tune with God. And, you know, may I say, I believe even during the day when we're out on the jobs and like that, we can have a heart of worship, can't we?

[1:07] And I believe that that is important and really believe that that is the heart of God. You know, when we walk in the Spirit, we allow the Spirit of God to guide us and to lead us in our everyday walk of life.

[1:22] And, you know, our journey in life, our daily routine, our daily activities, they happen. It's a part of it. And I don't see work as a curse.

[1:35] I see it as a blessing, really. I believe that God intends for us to enjoy our work. And, by the way, if you're in a work situation that you do not enjoy, maybe you need to seat the heart of God on this.

[1:48] Maybe He has maybe some adjustments for you. I don't know. But I really believe that in our everyday, may I say, routine of life, a heart of worship, a heart of gratitude, a heart of being aware of the presence of God with us.

[2:08] And so, anyways, yes, it is good to be with you all here this morning. And for a text, I invite you to turn with me to Philippians chapter 4.

[2:22] Several verses here that the Lord has been speaking to me about. And I'd like to share several thoughts from this particular passage of Scripture here this morning.

[2:35] And I believe it's a subject. It's an area that we all relate with. And we really, in this, I believe we see the heart of God.

[2:46] In Philippians chapter 4, and I want to read verses 4 through verse 9. And I'll be reading from the New King James here this morning.

[2:58] In verse 4, the Bible tells us, Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.

[3:10] Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication. With thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

[3:27] Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, If there is any virtue, if there is anything praiseworthy, meditate on these things.

[3:50] The things which you have learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.

[4:02] The text for this morning, verse 7, is kind of the focus of it. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

[4:18] I've entitled the message this morning, The Peace of God. Now, I find it also very interesting there in verse 4. It begins by instructing us to rejoice in the Lord.

[4:32] And notice, he doesn't only say it once, but he says it twice. So it must be important. Now, I don't know about you. Do you find it easy to rejoice in the Lord?

[4:45] Is that a part of who you are? Is that a part of what happens in your life? But notice, he says, rejoice in the Lord. When? When things are going well?

[4:57] He says, always. Oh, how are we going to do that? That's a good question. And then he goes on to say, again, I say rejoice. And I believe that that ties in with verse 7 there, where he talks about the peace of God.

[5:15] And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds. How?

[5:26] Through the Lord Jesus Christ. That's a key right there. You know, as I think about the Christian life, there's two words that come to mind that really, to me, describe the Christian life.

[5:39] And it's joy and peace. Think about it. And how, of how, of what great value is that joy and peace to you?

[5:53] I, I mean, I, I, frankly, I wouldn't want to trade it for anything. Would you? Absolutely not. The peace of God, the joy of God. Wow.

[6:04] You know, in Nehemiah, scripture tells us that the joy of the Lord is our strength. And many verses in scripture that talk about rejoicing in the Lord.

[6:17] And, in fact, in Romans 15, verse 13, the Bible says, Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing.

[6:28] And, my friends, this morning, that is, I believe, the key, is our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. And, you know, our text here this morning says that the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding.

[6:43] You know, I can't explain it. But I know what it's like to have it. And I also know what it's like not to have the peace of God, as I'm sure you do as well.

[6:55] And so, the peace of God, yes, will guard our hearts and minds. In other words, the peace of God, I believe that verse is telling us that God protects us from the enemy that would want to steal our peace and our joy that we have here on the inside.

[7:18] Now, obviously, the unregenerate heart cannot experience, cannot, will not experience, and does not have the peace of God. It comes through that relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

[7:33] And Romans 5, 1, the Bible tells us, Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. So, that is how we receive the peace, is by repentance and coming to him, being born again by the Spirit of God, repenting of our sins, and yes, God giving us his forgiveness, extending his forgiveness to us.

[8:02] We receive the peace and the joy on the inside, and yes, the Holy Spirit that guides and leads us into all truth. And, but the unregenerate heart does not have that, cannot experience the peace of God.

[8:18] You know, the Bible tells us that the carnal mind is enmity against God, and it does not know God, is not subject to the law of God. But the spiritual mind, the person that has been born again by the Spirit of God, has life and peace.

[8:36] I like that. Yes, life and peace. And so, you know, living for self, well, no, that does not produce the peace of God in our hearts and in our lives.

[8:52] And, you know, there's many people out there in the world that have not been regenerated, they've not been born again, and they have that emptiness, they have that void.

[9:03] They're looking for that peace. They're not finding it. They're looking, because they're looking in the wrong places. That's really the bottom line. They're looking for fulfillment.

[9:15] They're looking for purpose. And they're trying to find it in the everyday whatever, the natural. You don't find it there. You find it in the Lord Jesus Christ.

[9:27] And through that transforming power of God, that we are born again, and we come into peace with God. When we're born again, we have the peace with God, and we receive His peace.

[9:43] And that is, to me, a wonderful, wonderful peace that He gives us. Now, you know, Jesus said that His peace was different from the peace that the world has.

[10:02] In fact, in John 14, verse 27, Jesus said, The peace of God is totally different from the peace of the world.

[10:29] And that's what Jesus said. Now, what kind of peace does the world offer? What options are there? What does it look like?

[10:40] Well, many times, the world thinks of peace as an absence of conflict.

[10:52] And that's kind of what the world often refers to as peace. Well, the peace of God far supersedes that.

[11:04] It is far beyond that. And it is, in fact, the peace of God is, you know, it's a characteristic of the fruit of the Spirit.

[11:17] It's one of the characteristics, the love, joy, peace, gentleness, faith, meekness, and all that that's listed in Galatians 5. So it's all a part of it. It's, yeah, peace is a part of that.

[11:31] It's one of those characteristics that are mentioned. And, you know, it is given to us by God, from God.

[11:43] Yes. Now, I believe a key is in Isaiah chapter 26, verse 3. The Bible says this, you will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.

[12:04] Now, my friends, this morning, I believe that that is a key to peace right there. In fact, Isaiah 26 is actually a song of praise and of gratitude to God.

[12:18] And we could look at it as a prayer as well. You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is thinking about what? About God.

[12:28] His mind is stayed on him. It's in tune with God. I like that. I like that concept. A mind that is in tune with God. And not only that, because he trusts in who?

[12:43] Trusts in God. We're not trusting in ourselves or in our things around us, but we're trusting in God. So, when our heart is in tune with God, it means that our mind is in tune with him as well.

[13:00] And our mind is thinking on him. And yes, as we worship him, and as we gather and worship with believers, and then on our own, out wherever we're at, we're in tune with him.

[13:17] And as the Bible says, you will keep him in perfect peace. That's the real deal. I like that perfect peace.

[13:30] Yes. It's not the peace of the world that is just simply an absence of conflict, but it's a deep, settled peace on the inside that only God can give us.

[13:44] And by the way, I believe that God intends for us to have that peace. I believe that is the heart of God.

[13:55] He wants each one of you to experience his peace, may I say, to the fullest. That is the heart of God.

[14:07] That is the desire of God, for us to experience his perfect peace, may I say, every day in our lives.

[14:19] Well, you know, and as I look at that verse in Isaiah 26, you know, it's pretty straightforward.

[14:30] You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you because he trusts in you. It's pretty straightforward. And it's fairly easy to understand, isn't it?

[14:42] But it's a little bit of, it can be a little bit different to actually put it in, you know, put it in shoe leather and actually live it out in every day.

[14:52] I mean, that's, and in saying that too, I am not suggesting at all that this is implying the perfect peace that God gives us.

[15:06] I'm not necessarily suggesting that this is implying a life that is totally 100% smooth sailing, no challenges, no difficulties, no troubles.

[15:18] No, that's not what I'm suggesting at all. But in the midst of those challenges, of those difficulties, of those troubles, yes, we can have a peace in our hearts in spite of our circumstances.

[15:37] In fact, the peace of God is not determined by circumstances, is it? No, not at all. We can be in rough waters. We can be in difficulties. We can be in trouble and we can still have the peace of God, can we not?

[15:53] In fact, Jesus said, these things have I spoken to you that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation.

[16:06] But be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. A brother referred to that verse this morning in the children's meeting. And it's so very true. You know, in this world we will have trouble.

[16:18] That's just the way it is. It's a part of life. You know, we live in a fallen world. We live in a broken world. And troubles happen.

[16:29] Difficulties happen. And so what do we make of it? Just the other day, on our way from, we had left, we're from North Carolina.

[16:44] We had, last weekend we were in Ohio. We had a grandson that graduated high school there. And then on Tuesday morning we headed west. And would you believe it, Wednesday, I mean, everything was going well.

[16:57] We were just enjoying the ride. And Wednesday, a beautiful day in South Dakota. Well, it seems like it's Highway 90, Interstate 90.

[17:08] It seems like it almost takes forever to get through South Dakota there. And we were just clicking along and just enjoying it. Hardly any traffic. All of a sudden there was a boom like that.

[17:20] And looked and there was a car had hit us in the back of the RV and flew off to the left there. I was like, what the world?

[17:31] Now what? Well, you know what? In this world, you're going to have trouble. That's just the way it works, isn't it? But you know what? And I give glory to God.

[17:43] In the midst of that, God gave me a peace. I didn't know how the back of our fifth wheeler looked at that point. But God just gave me a peace. It's like, well, this whole thing's in your hand.

[17:58] Yeah, we plan to go to Montana. And then from Montana, we plan to go to Alaska. You know, are we going or aren't we? I don't know. God, this is yours.

[18:10] The peace of God is not determined by circumstances. And I'm sure many of you, you have many stories that you could tell us about, you know, the troubles, the trials, the challenges.

[18:25] But in the midst of that, we can have peace. Now, I know, too, you know, it's easier to get frustrated, to get upset.

[18:42] And I would say it was only the grace of God that enabled man to respond in love and kindness to that fellow that run into the back of us.

[19:01] And it was absolutely, if I can be real honest, it was absolutely ridiculous that he did. I mean, it was absolutely uncalled for. It was out in the middle of nowhere.

[19:13] And it was wide open. The sun was shining. And but I obviously got distracted. This was on a Wednesday. He had got married on a Sunday and they were on a honeymoon.

[19:26] So I didn't ask him if his new wife distracted him or what the world was going on. But, yeah, we kind of read between the lines, don't we? Something distracted him.

[19:37] But he came very quickly. He came up. We were we were just a bit. Well, he when he hit, he went off to the left. And when he hit us, we we slowed down, got off on the right.

[19:50] Very quickly, he come walking up there. And he's like, are you OK? Is everything OK? Are you did you get hurt?

[20:02] And I said, yeah, we're we're fine. And and he apologized. And I said, well, how are you all doing? Oh, we're OK.

[20:13] We're OK. And he's and I asked him about his car, how bad his car was. And he is like, well, I don't really know if I can drive it or not.

[20:23] But I'm not I'm not worried about it. I'm more worried about you. Oh, OK. And and yeah, we weren't put out of commission. We were kind of, yeah, messed up the generator box.

[20:35] But and the back of the RV. But it's OK. It's nothing, nothing too bad. And so just in, you know, in relating with him and like that, the peace of God was in my heart.

[20:55] And it's not it's not something I mustered up. It was God because my natural tendency would be to, you know, get on him, chew him out.

[21:08] What the world were you doing? I mean, this is plumb ridiculous. But I didn't. It was God. You know. That verse in our text there talks about.

[21:23] The peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds. Through Christ Jesus.

[21:33] You know, when you and I are faced with those challenges, those troubles. The peace of God, the Holy Spirit of God within us.

[21:50] Will enable us to respond in a way that is honoring to him. Now we have a choice. We have a choice. Will I respond how the flesh wants to respond?

[22:03] Or will I respond how the Spirit of God wants me to respond? I found in my life the Holy Spirit will not overrule what I want to do.

[22:16] I still have that choice to make. And I can respond how Merv wants to respond in the flesh. Or I can allow the Spirit of God to lead me and to respond in a way that is honoring to him.

[22:34] We have that choice. God has given us that freedom of choice. We choose. Will we honor him? Will we say yes to him? Will we respond in a way that is honoring to him?

[22:47] Or will we, you know, when we respond in anger and frustration, you know, is that bringing honor and glory to God? God's heart, God's desire is for us to bring honor and glory to him.

[23:00] And I believe that as we live out our lives in those times of tribulation, those times of challenge, those times of trouble, those times when things aren't going well, when we respond in a way that demonstrates the peace of God, the joy of God in our hearts, the anointing of God in our hearts, it speaks volumes to the world around us.

[23:30] You know, we are not exempt from challenges, from difficulties, from troubles, from trials. We as believers, we live in a fallen world, a broken world.

[23:42] And that's a part, you know, we experience that with everyone else. But how we respond in that is our choice.

[23:54] And by the grace of God and the Spirit of God, we can respond in a way that is honoring to him. And in so doing, we will speak volumes to a lost and dying world around us of the power of Christ within us.

[24:13] Where people will say, wow, you went through that trouble. You went through that trial. And the calmness that we saw in you.

[24:29] Wow, where did that come from? It's a wide open opportunity to share testimony of the power of God. It's not about me, but it's about God and his power working in and through us.

[24:44] So, yes, Jesus said, I've spoken these things that in me you may have peace. And yes, may I say this morning, my friends, that God's desire is for us to have that peace.

[24:59] And another verse there in John talks about Jesus said, I have I give you the joy, a joy that is far beyond that your joy may be full.

[25:11] So God wants us to have that joy and that peace. And I believe the only way we have it is as we walk in him and as we live our lives in accordance and in tune with him.

[25:26] And there are several verses in Isaiah 43 that I'd like to look at. And that kind of I believe it really gives us a picture of who God is.

[25:38] It helps us to understand the heart of God. While this passage was written in Isaiah 43, it was written specifically to the children of Israel.

[25:48] And in fact, the setting was they were taken into captivity because of their disobedience. They had turned away from God, turned to idols. And as a result of their sin, they were taken into captivity.

[26:02] Isaiah 43. I want to read the first seven verses here. And verse one. But now, thus saith the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, and he who formed you, O Israel, fear not.

[26:14] For I have redeemed you. I have called you by your name. You are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you. And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.

[26:26] When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned. Nor shall the flame scourge you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

[26:38] I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place. Since you were precious in my sight, you have been honored.

[26:49] I have loved you. Therefore, I will give men for you and people for your life. Fear not, for I am with you. I will bring your descendants from the east and gather you from the west.

[27:04] I will say to the north, give them up. And to the south, do not keep them back. Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth. Everyone who is called by my name, whom I have created for my glory, I have formed him.

[27:20] Yes, I have made him. Now, several things that we note in this particular passage of Scripture. First of all, God, creator God, the one who created us, the one who created all of us.

[27:39] Creator God says, fear not. In verse one, he says, fear not, for I know you personally. I know you by name. I know who you are because I created you.

[27:53] We're created in the image of God. Not only that, but you are mine. Yes, I created you. You are mine. And then notice in verse two, he says, when you go through this.

[28:06] He didn't say, if you go through this, but he says, when you go through the troubling waters, or through the rivers that want to sweep you away, or through those fiery trials, it's worse yet.

[28:23] I am with you. I'm there for you. Now, the setting here, Israel was taken into captivity. God was saying, when you go through those troubles, those trials, when you call out to me, I will deliver you, and I'll be with you, and I'll care for you.

[28:42] And notice also in verse four, he says, you are precious in my sight. I have loved you. And again, in verse five, he says, fear not, for I am with you.

[28:55] You know, my friends, this morning, I believe this passage helps us to understand really, truly who God is. Yes, this was written to Israel back in the Old Testament, but I believe the heart of God is the same.

[29:11] You know, when you and I, we falter in life, we slip, we fall, the invitation of God is for us to come back in repentance, come back and get in tune with him again.

[29:24] And when we repent, when we've turned away, we've gone our own way, and we come back to him in repentance, confessing our sins, he will forgive us, and he'll cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

[29:38] John 1.9, that's a verse we can bank on. And he will receive us, and he loves us, he cares for us. Yes, even when we were walking away, he still loved us.

[29:50] And he wants us to come back and be in fellowship with him, and bring us back into fellowship with him. Yes, he is a holy God, and sin cannot stand in his presence.

[30:04] Sin must be judged and dealt with. But the forgiveness of God, the blood of Christ, cleanses us from all unrighteousness. And yes, we see here the promise of God.

[30:18] And I believe that promise is true for us today. We trust him. We come to him. He cares for us. He knows us individually. He knows each one of you by name.

[30:30] I have met many of you this morning. You've told me your name, but you know what? I can't remember all the names. I'm sorry. But God does. God knows you personally by name.

[30:43] He knows exactly who you are. He knows exactly what you're going through. He knows exactly the challenge you had yesterday, the day before the past week.

[30:55] And by the way, he knows exactly what you're going to go through tomorrow. He's already there. He knows it. And guess what? He's already there to carry you through. If you look to him, that's our God.

[31:07] He cares for us. He cares for us on an individual, a personal, in a personal way. You know, as we see the promises of God, it comes back to the question, are we really willing to trust him?

[31:23] Are we willing to trust him with our today, with our life today, tomorrow, our future? Are we willing to do that? I trust we are.

[31:34] Proverbs chapter 3, very familiar verses, 5 and 6. The Bible says, trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

[31:45] In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your path. Those are very precious words of promise.

[31:55] That when we trust him, we look to him. That means we're allowing the Holy Spirit to guide us and to lead us.

[32:05] It means that we're walking in the Spirit. Romans talks about that. We're to walk in the Spirit. And as we walk in the Spirit, we'll not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

[32:18] As we allow the Spirit of God to guide us, to lead us, we're trusting him. We're looking to him. We're trusting him with all of our understanding. We're not leaning on our own understanding.

[32:32] But we're looking to him. And by the way, I find it very interesting. God is very interested in every detail of our lives. Do you believe that?

[32:43] Do you believe he's even interested in your business, in your work, in your social life? And he is. Absolutely. You know, we come to a place and have a decision to make, say, even in a business.

[32:58] Lord, what is the right thing to do? God, give me wisdom. And it's amazing how God leads us and directs us. That's, you know what?

[33:10] The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole world, looking and wanting to show himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are in tune with him.

[33:25] That's the heart of God. Scripture tells us that. He wants to show himself strong on behalf of you as your heart is in tune with him.

[33:37] And yes, when we look to him in all our ways, acknowledge him. And yes, he will give us direction in life.

[33:49] And so that is a beautiful promise, really. Let's think a moment about, okay, we have this peace of God.

[34:01] What is it that steals the peace of God? Well, it's alluded to in our text here in Philippians 4.

[34:14] But, you know, worry, anxiety. Does that promote the peace of God? When I'm worrying about something, do I have the peace of God?

[34:30] It kind of steals my peace, doesn't it? What does our text tell us about worrying? Well, in verses 6 and 7.

[34:42] In fact, I want to read that in the New Living Translation. It just puts it out so clear. Don't worry about anything. Instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all that he has done.

[34:57] Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

[35:12] So, I'm sure we've all heard the words, Why worry when you can pray? Well, that's very true.

[35:25] Why worry when you can pray? And sometimes, you know, people that... You ever met people that it seems like they enjoy worrying?

[35:39] They enjoy figuring out something to worry about. And it almost feels to me like their theory is, Well, why pray when I can worry? That's not good.

[35:52] We don't want to go there, do we? But worry, or maybe another word of putting it is, Well, it's heavy on my mind.

[36:05] A friend of mine, he struggles with this thing of trying to figure everything out. So, he's kind of like, Well, bottom... In my mind, bottom line is, He tries to...

[36:18] Well, he worries about everything. And he admits it. And he knows that he, you know... But he tries to figure everything out. And he tries to think about anything that might go wrong, possibly.

[36:31] And he is mulling it around in his mind. And he's like, So, Murph, what do you think about this? What if that happens? Come on.

[36:41] Come on. We just got to let it go. We just got to let it go. So, you know, A couple weeks ago, In fact, I don't even remember what it was.

[36:57] I remember one of the things it was. It was two things I was thinking about. And hoping that it, you know, It really needed to come together Before we leave home for this trip.

[37:12] And I was like... I mean, it was just on my mind. And... I was like, Well, why am I just thinking about this?

[37:23] I'm worrying about it. And I don't want to worry about it. But why am I worrying about it? You know, the Bible tells us That we're to bring every thought Into captivity To the obedience of Christ.

[37:36] How do we do that? Okay, now I'm thinking about this. I'm trying not to worry. But, man, I... You know what? I don't even remember what the one was.

[37:48] It came together. Whatever it was. Didn't do any good about Worrying about it, did it? The other one I do remember. And that was a card, An insurance card that I was needing.

[38:00] And, yeah, it came together. Bringing every thought Into captivity To the obedience of Christ. Okay.

[38:13] So, how does God want me To think about This scenario? This thing that I'm thinking about?

[38:25] Maybe I'm saying, Well, I'm not worrying about it, But I'm sure thinking about it. Well, I admit, I was on... Well, okay. I just admit, I was worrying about it.

[38:37] Scripture says, Don't worry about anything, But do what? Pray. Pray. And, you know, And that verse in 2 Corinthians 10, 5, Bringing into captivity Every thought to the obedience of Christ.

[38:57] I know that verse. And I've preached that verse Many, many times. And I believe it. But now, here I am, And I'm trying to do it.

[39:11] Okay, how do I bring this thing Into obedience of Christ? I finally said, God, Take this away from my mind. I can't do it. You do it.

[39:23] Guess what? He did it. He did it. And so, You know, As we think about it, You know, Really, The battle, Many battles, Are lost, Or won, In the mind.

[39:41] Are we going to worry about it? Or aren't we? Are we going to commit it to Christ? Or are we going to worry about it? Be anxious about it.

[39:51] You know, It doesn't help a thing, Does it? It doesn't fix anything. To worry about it, Or be anxious about it. It doesn't even help to make it happen.

[40:04] But it affects me. It affects me. It affects my peace. It affects my joy. And my friends this morning, I am convinced, The enemy wants to distract us.

[40:20] He wants us to worry about everything, And be anxious, Because then we don't have the peace and joy, Do we? And it affects us in our everyday walk.

[40:35] And as we relate with others, As we relate with our family, As we relate with our spouse, Our children, And those around us. When we're uptight, And frustrated, And anxious, It affects our attitude, Towards others.

[40:55] Satan's purpose is to kill, To steal, To destroy. But Jesus came, That we may have life, And have it, More abundantly.

[41:09] And in that more abundant life, Is where we have, The peace, And the joy. And that's where God, Wants us to walk.

[41:22] Recently, I read a book, That really, Really challenged me, Encouraged me. Title of the book was, Living Fearlessly.

[41:34] The author was, Jamie Winship. And he, In the book, He mentions, About the fact that, Yes, We as believers, We're on the winning side.

[41:48] We are, We are, Greater is he that is in us, Than he that is in the world. And recognizing, Recognizing the onslaughts, Of the enemy, As he wants to attack, Our thinking, Our mind, He says, Really, The battle, Has already been won, Through the Lord Jesus Christ.

[42:13] And we can overcome, By submitting, To him, And the enemy, Will need to be defeated. The only way, The enemy, Will have victory, In this, Thoughts, Is, If we, Allow him to, We believe, The lies of the enemy, Instead of, Believing, The truth, Of God's word.

[42:41] And that was a challenge, To me. That's what I needed to hear. That's what I needed. And I'm trying to live in that. Yes. The enemy only, The enemy has no power, Over you, Only if you allow it, By believing, His lies.

[43:02] And I believe that is, Very true. Based on, What scripture, Tells us here. Well, Let's look at, Verse 8. That tells us exactly, What we're to think about.

[43:15] Fix your thoughts on what? Things that are true. Things that are honorable, Right, Pure, Lovely. Things of good report. Think about things that are excellent.

[43:29] Things that are worthy of praise. Wow. You know, You listen to the news, Nowadays, What is it? It's a lot of negative, Isn't it?

[43:42] Out in the world, There's a lot of, A lot of negative things. How much do we fill our minds with that? You know, Good thing to think about.

[43:54] Okay, What am I feeding on? Really, What we feed on, Determines our thinking. What we feed on, That's really who we, Become in our hearts, Really.

[44:07] And that's what we, That's what we'll be thinking about. What we feed on, That's what determines. And that is why this scripture, In verse 8, Is so important.

[44:19] Our thinking, What we feed on, What we think about, Is very important. Think about things that are, Noble, That are just, That are pure, That are lovely, Of good report, Anything, Anything praiseworthy, Fill our minds with truth.

[44:42] Fill our minds with the truth, Of God's word. You know, In Romans 12, Talks about being renewed, Being transformed, By the renewing of our minds. So, In order for our minds, To be renewed, And transformed, We need to feed on, May I say, The good stuff.

[45:03] Not the stuff of the world. Not of the trash of the world, May I say, But on truth. And yes, The word of God, Is key, Right there.

[45:14] And then, Beyond that, You know, There's many books out there, That are very encouraging, That help us, In our journey, In life.

[45:25] In conclusion, One more verse, I'd like to share, And that is, Colossians chapter 3, Verse 15, And let the peace of God, Rule in your hearts, To which also, You were called, In one body, And be thankful, Let the peace of God, Rule in your hearts, My friends, This morning, That's my prayer, For each one of us, That we may allow, The peace of God, To rule, In our hearts, To which you were called, In one body, And be thankful, You know, Reflecting on what God, Has done for us, And in fact, Back to our text there, In verse, Verse 6, Where he talks about, In everything, By prayer,

[46:26] Supplication, With thanksgiving, You know, As we reflect, On what God has done, For us, We thank him, For that, And then what is, Heavy on us, Our needs, That we have, We present that, To him, You know, Something happens, On the inside, As we reflect, On, Okay, Really, What God has done, For us, And are thankful, We express that, Thanksgiving to him, For what he has done, And, Then we lay out, Our needs, Our requests to him, And yes, Believing that, God will do, What he, Said he will, Realizing that, You know, He doesn't always answer, The way we think he should, But you know what, He sees a bigger picture, And you and I don't, That's the bottom line, And so, Here in, Colossians 3, Tells us, Let the peace of God, Rule in your hearts,

[47:28] How do we do that? Well, I believe that, One way of doing that, Is to make decisions, Based on what we know, Will promote the peace, Within our hearts, And God has given us, His Holy Spirit, That will guide, And lead us, Into all truth, And guide us, And lead us, Into making decisions, That are right, And good, And honoring to him, Which promotes for peace, As you and I, Make decisions, That are honoring to God, It promotes the peace of God, In our hearts, And God will give us, That wisdom, And yes, With that, We certainly embrace, The promises of God, And we trust him, And that, Promotes the peace of God, In our hearts, Well, The apostle Paul there, In verse 9, Says, You know, It tells us very clearly, You apply these truths, And he, As an example, Said,

[48:28] You know, You follow what, What you've seen in me, And what I've taught you, You do that, And what will happen, The peace of God, Will be with you, As you walk in that, And my friends, This morning, That is my heart's desire, For each one of us, That we may experience, The peace of God, And we may walk in that, In our daily walk of life, Let's pray, Lord, We thank you, For your peace, That you give us, Through the Lord Jesus Christ, We thank you, That we can be at peace, With you, And we can have your peace, In our hearts, And in our lives, And Lord, To be a witness, To be a testimony, Of your transforming power, Your transforming work, And demonstrating, To a lost and dying world, The transforming power, Of the Lord Jesus Christ, Lord, Thank you, For this congregation,

[49:29] Here this morning, Just pray a blessing, On each person, That is here, And Lord, May each one, Experience your peace, The peace of God, That surpasses, All understanding, And Lord, May we all, Walk in, Your peace, And in your joy, Allowing your spirit, To guide us, And to lead us, Pray your blessing, Pray your blessing, On the congregation, Here, On the leadership team, Lord, May you guide, And lead them, In a very special way, Lord, That they can be, The salt and light, In a dark and sinful world, That you've, Right here, Where you've called them, To be in, Lord, We thank you, For their testimony, And we thank you, For the opportunity, To worship you together, Here this morning, Lord, We love you, And we honor you, In the name of Jesus, We pray, Amen, Turn the time back to,

[50:30] Brother, Amen, Thank you.