This sermon was preached by George Mueller of Bristol, who said, “A peaceful, happy man I have been these seventy years.” Where and when he preached it is unknown, but we pray you are encouraged by this exhortation as much as we were!
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, NIV)
Instead of “don’t be anxious,” another version says, “Be careful for nothing.” That, as we all know, does not mean to be careless and unconcerned altogether about your family affairs and business matters and work and labor for the Lord, but, as we again and again have heard, it means to be anxious about nothing. It is the great privilege of the child of God not to be anxious. And it is possible to achieve, even in this life. Yes, even in the midst of great difficulties and great trials. It can be obeyed! Not by a handful of God’s children, but by many. And, by the grace of God, I am one of those who, for many a long year, have not been anxious.
For more than seventy years, I have not been anxious. I have given my burdens to the Lord, and He has carried them for me. I have experienced “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,” which has kept my heart and mind. If we are anxious, it brings about a gloomy look, and a gloomy look greatly dishonors God and greatly deters the unconverted from seeking after the Lord, for they say to themselves, “That Christian is just as miserable as I am when I am in trouble.” But when they see we are in heavy trial, in heavy affliction, and yet our countenances are cheerful, what a witness of encouragement to the unconverted! It also gives strength to our fellow believers. Therefore, beloved, do not be anxious! As I stated before, it can be achieved, but not by our own abilities or by our saying to ourselves, “I will go through it bravely.” We must, in our weakness and helplessness, give our burdens to God; only then will we know His peace.
Let me lovingly urge you, my brothers and sisters in Christ, not to carry your trials and burdens on your own. Life becomes miserable when we try to shoulder them ourselves. Even the lightest trials and burdens are too heavy when borne in our own strength. And when we insist on doing so, our heavenly Father allows the weight to grow heavier—so that we might learn the lesson we resist. If we, in foolishness and self-importance, try to carry the burden, we will find that what begins as a small burden soon feels multiplied—ten pounds becoming fifty, fifty becoming a hundred—until we finally realize our weakness and admit that we cannot carry it alone. God permits this to teach us to rely on Him, not ourselves.
The next thing I lovingly urge and commend for the benefit of your souls is the following counsel: “In every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” We’re not to pray merely when the trial is exceedingly great, but we are to pray about little things, the ordinary affairs of life, bringing all before God. The results? “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Though this is a vale of tears, yet we are thus able to go cheerfully through the world. It is my constant practice to bring the little things before God. I never attempt to carry any burdens myself; I give them to God, sharing the burdens of my heart with Him. When a dear friend, Mr. Wright, and I meet in the mornings, the very first thing we do is pray about the affairs of our work, bringing everything before our God. Even what some may consider the most trivial of affairs, we bring before God, turning them over to Him, and never attempting to carry them ourselves.
Let me share some stories of when I’ve brought things before the Lord regarding the orphans. Let me share an example that some of you may not have heard directly from me. Sixty-two years ago, when God first placed on my heart the care of destitute orphans, my very first step was to seek His will. I spent much time in prayer, asking whether this was truly the work He wanted me to do. After much seeking, I became convinced it was indeed His will. I searched my own motives carefully, and time after time I reached the same conclusion: my desire to take up this work was for the glory of God. I began to pray for everything I knew I would need in this work. I asked God for money, for a house, and for helpers to care for the children—and He provided them all. I even prayed about the furniture, because I didn’t consider myself clever or wise enough to make those decisions on my own. Step by step, the Lord guided me until everything was ready.
At last, the home was prepared, and I set aside two hours in the church vestry to receive applications for orphans. I waited the entire time, but not a single person came. As I walked home, the Lord brought to my mind the very verse, “In everything…” Then it struck me: I had prayed for money—and received it. I had prayed for helpers—and they came. I had prayed for a suitable house—and it was given. I had even prayed over every piece of furniture. But one thing I had never asked God for was the orphans themselves.
This was not intentionally left out, for it never came to my mind to ask for orphans. I said to myself, “There are tens of thousands of destitute orphans; there will be no difficulty in getting them,” so I never prayed about it. Now I saw how sinfully I had acted! When I came home, I locked the door of my room and cast myself flat on the floor, confessing my sin—how I had not regarded the Word of God in this particular matter—and I lay on the floor two or three hours in confession and humility before God. At last, after I had once more examined my heart, I said, “Lord, I have begun this work for Your glory. If it would honor You more to bring it all to nothing and allow me to be shamed before others, then let it be so. But if it would bring You glory to continue, then please forgive me—and send the orphans.” I rose cheerfully from the floor, having finished prayer and supplication. The next morning at eleven, the first orphan came; before a month was over, forty-two orphans had come, and since then more than twelve thousand—a plain proof that there were plenty of orphans to be had.
I share this story so that we can understand what it means by “in everything” we are to bring our burdens before God and never attempt to carry them. I cannot tell you what a blessing this has been to me—to give every single one of my burdens to God, never carrying them myself. Before this story, I had; but this little lesson taught me something I have never forgotten or lost sight of since: “By prayer and petition.”
Ordinary prayer, often repeated prayer, is not enough; we must ask in the same way a beggar asks for money, pursuing us, sometimes for fifty yards, refusing to leave us until he gets what he’s asking for. In a way, this is how we should bring our prayers before God to have the blessing! And notice this also: it is to be done “with thanksgiving.” In other words, our prayers should always rest on a foundation of praise and gratitude, then be built up with our requests and petitions. Whatever our situation in life—no matter how many trials, difficulties, or hardships we face—there is always abundant reason to give thanks.
Why is this so? Because our heavenly Father is always with us. Whatever else we may lose, God Himself will never be taken from us—He remains. Our Lord Jesus, our dearest Friend, stays with us too, even if every earthly friend were to leave. No matter the trial or hardship, He remains, and the Holy Spirit has been given to us as well. Our very bodies are “the temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 6:19, NKJV), and the Word of God abides with us.
For these reasons, we always have abundant cause for gratitude. We must not lose sight of these blessings that remain. And what should happen when we remember this? We should be calm and quiet. We can say with confidence, “I will yet be happy. My heavenly Father will not forsake me—He will help me and keep me close to Himself as long as I live.” And, as it has been said, “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
This calm, steady, trusting state of heart—what Scripture calls “the peace of God”—is so wonderful that it cannot be fully described. The greatest speaker could never explain it unless he had experienced it himself. The greatest poet could not capture it in words without knowing it personally. The greatest artist could not paint it on canvas without first tasting it in his own life. And yet, this peace is meant to be known by every believer through the grace of God. For sixty years, I have, by His grace, lived in the joy of it. Because I know it is possible even now, in this life, I earnestly and lovingly plead with you, my brothers and sisters in Christ: make it your aim to seek this peace. It is available—and it is found in the very way the Scriptures have already shown us.
And here is the beautiful conclusion—the fruit of it all: “The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” The word “guard” in the original carries the sense of military power, as though soldiers were stationed to protect us. Spiritually, it means that our hearts and minds are kept safe in Christ Jesus, filled with joy in Him.
This is what true believers especially long for—no matter the circumstance, we might be preserved from falling into sin or dishonoring God, and we might be kept. If our hearts and minds are fixed on Jesus, we will not fall! The original wording is not just through Christ Jesus, but in Christ Jesus—as if garrisoned within Him. Just as an army defends a fortress from attack, so the Holy Spirit, through the peace of God that comes when we obey this exhortation, powerfully keeps us secure in Christ Jesus. Isn’t this an amazing reality? Shouldn’t we make every effort to seek it by following this exhortation? Oh, it is truly worth it!
I can testify that by casting my burdens on the Lord, I have been a peaceful, happy man for seventy years. If you, my brothers and sisters, haven’t had lasting peace, you can have it! That’s why I keep speaking about this peace that surpasses all understanding. It may be experienced not only on occasion but daily, monthly, yearly—just as I have!
Oh, my dear brothers and sisters, may you have a revelation of this blessed gift! And let my dear brothers and sisters in Christ who have not yet received this as a daily gift and blessing from God begin to seek it, for it is theirs to have. I do not doubt that many among us, like myself, already enjoy this peace of God—it is meant for every believer. May God grant that this be the true result of our meditation today, and may He graciously lead us all into the joy of His peace.
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George Müller
