“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, 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.”
(Philippians 4:4-7)
OK. So, it’s a totally fictional tale – with many variations – but I like it anyway: “In recent years several countries have begun re-wilding projects. Where wolves had previously been hunted with a bonus paid for every wolf killed, it has become policy to pay the bonus for every live wolf captured for re-release in designated areas. Two former hunters – brothers – heard about the $5,000 for every live wolf captured and decided to go trap a wolf. They purchased a special rifle, a couple of tranquiliser darts and a portable cage from a local vet and set off. They ended up far off the beaten track, deep in a forest, miles from any help, following wolf tracks. They settled down round a fire in a clearing for the night. In the morning, the first brother woke to the sound of growling. He realised they were surrounded by a wolf-pack of fifty of the biggest wolves he’d ever seen. He immediately panicked and shook his brother awake: ‘Help! We’re dead men!’ he shouted. His brother was instantly wide awake, took one look and shouted: ‘Hallelujah! We’re rich men!’”
It’s all in how we look at our situation. Similarly, Philippians 4 offers us two possible responses to any adverse situation we find ourselves in. We can either see it as a problem to resent or as a prayer to present. We can resent the decisions or events or people that put us in the situation. Perhaps we could even express resentment towards God Himself for not preventing it happening in the first place. Or we can turn the problem into prayer and into an exercise of faith. If we can turn our situation into a prayer, then a curious truth unfolds. We discover that the situation, the problem, was a part of God’s good purposes for us all along. And understanding that brings us to a state of peace.
May you find that peace in whatever your current situation. Even if surrounded by a wolf-pack ????