Peace
“You cannot impart what you do not possess.” ~ Charity
Cruz
Never is this more true than with my Jesus. If He was not
Strength, He could not give me strength. If He were not the Savior, He could
not save me. If He is not Peace, He could not overwhelm me with peace.
“Peace I leave
with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.
Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
John 14:27
In the midst of trouble and trial, it is the presence of
God that brings peace in the hearts of His own and strikes terror in the minds
of the evil ones. This is nothing like the superficial, insecure peace of the
world. More often than not though, I find myself exchanging the peace of God
for temporal things.
God gives peace, but He is a gentleman about it. If I don’t
want it, He won’t “force” me to take it. Though it seems He makes like
miserable without Him, that’s just the natural consequence of not having Christ
rule a life. Clearly, God understood that living in His peace is not easy, or He wouldn't have had to repeat Himself so much in the Scripture. I
tend to forget to trust. Troublesome issues at work, an over-abundance of
school work or paper work, family issues, rough circumstances, big conferences,
illness, and you name it… there’s many things that can take up my immediate
attention. I have to consciously take my eyes off of the problem and put them
on the Savior; sometimes several times a… minute.
Peace is the by-product of trust. God is the ONLY one I know who not only knows
the future, but knows EXACTLY how it will play out. Better yet, He can choose
to tell me ahead of my time. He IS the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (not was). He controls each detail; and when
the end of the world comes, He will Judge righteously with Truth. So whether I’m
struggling with planning or worrying over issues at home, God knows. My
fretfulness will not add to the solution at all. I must trust.
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| A small pool catches a tiny waterfall. Taroko Gorge, Hualian, Taiwan |
As I read about the peace that God gives, I also read
verses like, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee.” And, “…Think on these things. Those
things, which ye have both learned, and received, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.” But then,
“And the God of all peace will keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Whew. Keeping my
mind on God is hard. But God will help me if I ask seeking Him. It’s a two-way
street.
I am so grateful that I have a Name above all names,
the Lord of Hosts, to guide me.
“The Lord will
give strength unto his people;
the Lord will bless his people with peace.”
Psalm 29:11
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