♣ Resolutely Fixed

“You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You because he trusts in You.” – Isaiah 26:3

The well known story of two prisoners in the same dungeon, same cell, both in the same situation but individually with different perspectives: one stared at the mud on the floor, while the other glared at the stars in the sky. Both prisoners had a choice of outlook despite what future may lie ahead. The motto is impressive whether or not the account is fictional.

What is our perspective when we are hemmed in, when we are ‘trapped’ and perceive no way out? How do we react when we feel everything is ‘caving in’, and that God has allowed it to get thus far?

Whatever our scenario, we still have a choice whether to fold under intense pressure or hold on to a faithful God; we can either focus on the stormy sea or resolutely fix our eyes on the One Who controls the wind and the waves. Either outlook will determine our heart rate.

Isaiah 26:3 gives the promise that whoever’s mind is fixed on God, with trust, will encounter perfect peace. Can such a thing be true when it seems your ‘world is falling apart’? Do you have to wait for situations to calm down before you know God’s peace? Absolutely not.

Recall what Paul – under the full guidance of God – wrote in Philippians 4:5-7, “The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Do not be anxious for nothing, acknowledge God, His rule, His sovereignty – that He is in absolute control of your events which leads to worship and thanksgiving, resulting in a soul intoxicated with the peace of God that transcends ‘positive thinking’ (man’s greatest philosophy and ideology that proves futile in chaos). It is supernatural, something we cannot fathom, and we are amazed even at how we have changed in the midst of perplexity. That is what guards and reinforces our hearts and minds.

A little further on in the same chapter, from verse 8 to 9, Paul exhorts us to set [fix] our minds on these things: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” In verse 7, Paul mentions the peace of God will be with you, while in verse 9 he changes it around: the God of peace will be with you. To have God is to know pure peace, and to have peace purely is to know God. Paul was constantly, directly and indirectly, exhorting the churches to set [focus] our minds on things above where Christ is seated, reigning, sovereign over all the cosmos – and it is just as much as applicable to us today, because God in His wisdom spoke in a way that would continue to speak throughout the centuries; everything fades but His word.

Despite our over familiarity with Paul and Silas in prison, consider their situation again (Acts 16:16-40) – wrongly accused by the authorities, severely beaten with rods and thrown into the inner prison with their feet fastened in the stocks. It is midnight, it is pitch black, it is cold, it is silent – just their thoughts racing through their minds of the day’s events, their bodies throbbing with pain, blood congealing from open wounds and wondering what tomorrow may bring; the severity of their treatment no doubt brought them to the inevitability of awaiting death. In the thickest darkness they began to pray, thanking and singing hymns to God – not in order to get out of prison – because of the hope within them; that if they were to die, they knew where they were going. No doubt they were worshipping God for being counted worthy ambassadors to suffer for Christ’s sake. If they were going to leave this world, they wanted to depart with a shout and song of victory – they were ready to go and be with their Lord! They experienced the overwhelming peace of God. I believe that occasion was one of the most staggering times of worship ever recorded in the history of the Church. The Shekinah of God’s presence dimmed the sun’s light! Little did they know God was going to violently shake the foundation of that prison and fling open the doors of each cell, bringing the jailer to his knees before Paul and Silas, trembling with fear and asking what he must do in order to be saved.

You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You because he trusts in You. The following verse states “Trust in the Lord FOREVER, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting Rock.”

We can trust Him at ALL times and we can know joy as a result, a joy that is our strength because we are persuaded that ALL is well! Yes, we can boldly declare – we are to do so – and walk confidently with our heads held up high. It is not a ‘sin’ to know a joy inexpressible in the midst of affliction and adversity – it is inevitable when any one of us have resolutely fixed our minds on God. We do not have to wait for things to ‘iron out’ because the one who trusts knows that He makes level the way of the righteous.