Originally published Monday, 09 November 2015.
Let the peace of God rule in your hearts…
-Colossians 3:15
Allowing the peace of God to come in and sweep fear, anxiety, and overactive “what ifs’ from our lives sounds lovely. Unfortunately, more often than not, letting His peace rule seems to make climbing Everest nothing more than enjoying a day on the jungle gym with our children. Would you agree?
Accessing the peace of God can be hard work.
Actually, It’s a constant battle…
I believe when we accept Christ we are given peace. However, it’s learning to find it that proves difficult. I liken it to a gift I need to unwrap but the ribbon and tape aren’t easy to remove. It’s when I finally commit to seeking Him in every situation that I finally break through the tough outer layer and find the reward inside.
Have you ever thought of peace being something you can see? We often think of peace as a feeling, but if we look closely enough, It’s actually visible. I’ve watched peace change and shape my life in ways I couldn’t imagine. I’ve walked through fire, and even though I may have smelled like smoke, because of the gift of peace, I survived with no evident burns.
Peace has a way of showing up in smiles from strangers and sermons on Sunday mornings we didn’t feel like attending in the first place. Peace presents itself when we trust and recognize that God will send us the help we need. Why? Because He said He would, and He is an unchanging God. Once He speaks, it exists.
I will lift up my eyes to the hills—From whence comes my help? 2 My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber.
-Psalm 121:1-3
Last week, I talked about having confidence in Christ. I told you that based on a scripture in Proverbs, He will keep our feet from being caught. Today, in the above passage, we learn that Christ will not allow our feet to be moved.
When we trust in His ability to do what He says, and allow Him to steady our feet, then we will know peace. We will know it like we know an old friend’s voice that is etched in our brain. It will be oddly familiar because it’s been housed deep inside us for so long. Peace is part of our makeup; it’s just that we don’t usually see it that way until we are forced to discover it.
We are all on a journey in this life. Finding the peace of God residing deep, down inside is part of that journey.
But, friend, I have news: You cannot find peace while refusing to trust…
To trust someone, you have to know them. You would never walk up to a stranger on the street and trust them with your whole heart and soul. So why do you expect to hear from God if you haven’t taken the time to get to know Him? How can you experience His peace if you don’t seek Him?
And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.
-Jeremiah 29:13
It’s right there in black and white.
Listen, I often use words like we and me. Very rarely do I use the word you, because we are all fighting a battle and I’m the last one to point a finger. However, God has placed a fire in my heart to point women towards their purpose and the only way for any of us to learn our purpose in this life is to get to know Jesus.
The only true way to learn trust and find peace is to read truth and pray to a God who hears and always has an answer. (You may not like the answer, but that’s another story for another day.)
Over the past three years that I’ve been pouring my heart onto the pages of this blog, I’ve been praying for my readers and asking God to give me words to encourage, inspire, and bring truth to light. I believe God has given me these words today because someone needs to hear them.
To find peace you must trust Him, and the only way to truly trust Him is to get to know Him.
What do you say?
Love,
Jennifer
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