You Amaze Me - God's Love at Work - Week of March 3
You Amaze Me
By Margaret D. Mitchell
Week of March 3, 2024
The morning after learning of a dear friends’ mother passing onto Heaven, Holy Spirit led me to Philippians 4 and highlighted verses 6-9. Philippians happened to be part of my regular sequence of Bible reading for that day. And I marveled at how God so perfectly timed these passages.
It also happened to be the 20-year anniversary of my wedding engagement.
The TPT version of Philippians 4:6-9 say:
Don’t be pulled in different directions or worried about a thing. Be saturated in prayer throughout each day, offering your faith-filled requests before God with overflowing gratitude. Tell him every detail of your life, then God’s wonderful peace that transcends human understanding, will guard your heart and mind through Jesus Christ. Keep your thoughts continually fixed on all that is authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind. And fasten your thoughts on every glorious work of God, praising him always. Put into practice the example of all that you have heard from me or seen in my life and the God of peace will be with you in all things.
For me, this was the perfect solution of Gospel that came at the perfect time.
Here, God clearly lays out the Biblical process for conflict resolution in the soul. If you read the earlier passages in this chapter, you will see a reference to a disagreement between two believers. However, this powerful pattern can be applied to anything that conflicts with God’s life-giving Glory-Presence or His peace as the guard of our souls, including during the passing of a loved one.
He is essentially revealing:
- To be still.
- To pray with gratitude.
- To receive peace and solutions.
- To fix our thoughts on Him, His nature and His ways.
- To praise Him more.
- To receive more of His peace.
We see this demonstrated after Jesus resurrected. Such as when the angels came to minister to the three grieving women at the tomb and set their hearts on high (Luke 24:1-8). And then when Jesus appeared to his grieving disciples to minister to them (Luke 24:29, 36, 53).
We see His Glorified-Presence repeatedly show up to comfort the brokenhearted and offer life-giving evidence of His return and their homecoming—more of His Oneness.
And because of His Holy Spirit, we can know that He is still near.
I marvel at how His Presence makes everything better and the ways in which He does this. And I know He delights in us when we turn to Him and honor Him by trusting and obeying Him as our Beloved in our greatest transitions.
It’s life-giving for ourselves and others.
My friend’s earthly father and my earthly father had passed onto Heaven within a week of each other about six months before her mother’s passing. So, we were able to confer, console and comfort each other much like the early disciples, even though we were states apart at the time.
When life feels like it disagrees with our hearts’ desires, we can intentionally choose to align our hearts with The One who restores life-flow in greater measure. We can remember and experience His peace that protects and is life itself. And we can believe His truth of life-eternal beyond what we fully know now.
Yes, God is amazing. And I believe He delights to deeply-engaged His bride in fellowship with Him, as our Bridegroom, on every occasion.
Paul said in Philippians 4:1 TPT, "My dear and precious friends, whom I deeply love, you have truly become my glorious joy and crown of reward. Now arise in the fullness of your union with our Lord."
So, as we arise in His Spirit through the joy of praise, we are activated in His resurrection life. And in this way, we can know part of what our loved ones know far better—that our amazing God is full of amazing grace.
We can marvel and ponder and always have this connection, no matter what our situations.
So, may we all rise in God’s Presence and be amazed by Him. May we honor His invitations to us to know Him more and become more like Him. And “may every one of you overflow with the grace and favor of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 4:23)!
In His Mighty Name,
Amen.
Margaret D. Mitchell is the Founder of God's Love at Work, a marketplace outreach purposed to share God's greatest power source - the love of Christ.
