Philippians 4:7-"And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

We live in a world today that needs to experience peace. Peace which is grounded in a relationship with Christ. A peace which is so real that it goes beyond our ability to understand it. The kind of peace which will sustain us through every problem and difficulty we may face. Where can we have this kind of peace? Paul says in Philippians 4:6 that it comes by prayer and thanksgiving.

I knew a wonderful couple in our church in Chattanooga who were walking through a difficult, life-changing event. The husband was diagnosed with a terminal disease. He only had a few weeks to live and was going to leave behind a wife and child. During this time, I had the opportunity to visit them in the hospital. It was during these visits that I experienced a peace which I could not understand or explain. Instead of fear, anxiety, worry and turmoil there was an atmosphere of peace.

One day while I was visiting this couple, I asked the wife why there was always such peace in their hospital room? She said that I was not the only one that had asked her this question. She said everyone that would visit them would say the same thing. They would say that when they would enter the room there was always a feeling of peace. The wife said she didn't know what they were talking about because she was not feeling it at all. 

On my next visit I felt the same peace and again asked the wife about what I was experiencing in the room. She again said she really didn't feel this peace because she was watching her husband fight to stay alive. She then shared with me that during the last few days the Lord shared with her why there was an atmosphere and feeling of peace around her and that hospital room. She said it was because Jesus was with her and her husband and this was what everyone was experiencing on their visits.

She shared that a few days ago her daughter asked her to share a bible story while she was taking her to school. The story she shared was in Daniel 3. It was the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego when they were thrown into the fiery furnace for not bowing down to King Nebuchadnezzar. The three men did not bow down at the Kings command and was thrown into a blazing furnace. It says that when King Nebuchadnezzar looked into the furnace, he saw not three but four men in the flames. He said the fourth man looked like "a son of the gods." 

It was during this part of the story that the Lord asked the wife a life-changing question. He asked her if Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego saw the fourth man in the furnace? She said she had never thought about the answer to that question. When she got home that day she opened up her bible and searched for the answer. Her conclusion was that the three friends of Daniel did not see the fourth man in the furnace. It was then that the Lord answered the question of why there was so much peace in the hospital room. It was because those of us who visited them in the hospital experienced and saw the fourth man even when the wife and her husband did not. 

Today, let this story encourage you that when life gets hard and difficult, Jesus is right there in the midst of it. We can have the peace of God even when it doesn't make sense. God's presence with drive out anxiety, fear, hopelessness and discouragement. Prayer will unlock the door to God's presence and thanksgiving will open our hearts to receive God's truth. He is with you even when you don't see Him. He is the fourth man in your fiery furnace.

Prayer- Dear Lord Jesus, I praise you for always being with me even when being thrown into the flames of challenging circumstances. Help me be faithful in my walk with you so that others may see you at work in my life. You are my peace and sometimes it is the peace that does transcend my understanding. In your holy name, Amen!