Peace, Which Transcends All Understanding, Including a Yalie's

Oct 24, 2012 | By April Koh TD ‘14

We hear it a lot in the Christian community: "Lord, give us Your peace, which transcends all understanding."

It's almost become cliché -- like, whenever we say "peace," we have to tack on that verse from Philippians 4:7: "And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

But what on earth does "transcend[ing] all understanding" entail? What does that peace even look like?

Here are some practical pictures of that kind of peace for Yalies:

  • Peace even when you have three mid-terms and a paper due tomorrow

  • Peace even when your roommate sexiles you every weekend

  • Peace even when all the members of your a cappella group/YPU party/section begin to annoy you, extremely

  • Peace even when you've realized you've gained fifteen pounds and haven't exercised in three months

  • Peace even when your crush of three years randomly starts dating someone

  • Peace even when a professor at office hours asks you what you want to do with your life, and you fumble to sound intelligent -- or at least, respectable

In a Yalie's understanding, in our understanding, all of the above examples would warrant stressing, emotional froyo-tripping, and anxious grouchiness.

But the peace of Christ, which transcends all understanding, will guard our hearts against those attacks of despair.

Keep on fighting, Yalies.


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