Week 2: PEACE

Doesn’t that sound great? Peace in every circumstance! Sign me up! How do we receive peace in our lives as this tempest of crazy circumstances that we are calling 2020 blows around us? How do we tap into the unflappable, internal, God-breathed peace that reigns when everything seems to go sideways? 

We take a breath. We seek His face. We trust the Prince of Peace, the Lord of Peace Himself. When we learn to trust in His sovereignty, to trust that He truly does cause all things to work for good for those who love Him, peace comes. It can even come when we have not learned to fully trust - because His love and grace for us abound. He really is good all the time, even when we can’t see it. Even when what we are believing for does not come to pass on our timeline, His presence brings us peace.

Peace in every circumstance is not the kind of peace the world gives. Peace as the world gives is circumstantial. The kind of peace that the world gives relies on everything going according to plan. How often does that happen? Peace as the world defines means security and happiness! Everyone is doing great! No one is depressed or struggling. Our free-range, organic kids are well-behaved and doing brilliantly in school! Marriages are intimate and supportive! We all eat, sleep and exercise as we should! Cars, appliances and houses function perfectly and there is extra money in the bank! Everything is under control, nothing to see here...

Seriously, does this kind of peace actually exist? Perhaps occasionally. Peace as the world defines is about an inch deep. This kind of peace cannot withstand any kind of breeze, let alone storms like we are facing now. It is self-sufficient. We strive and exhaust ourselves pursuing this kind of peace by attempting to control our circumstances. We burn ourselves out trying to make sure everything goes right. We lose our peace trying to create peace. What happens when we fail, or there is an accident, illness, disaster or unexpected event that is out of our control? You know, like a world-disrupting pandemic. We live in a fallen world full of sin and brokenness, terrible things can happen. The kind of peace we need is the kind that can withstand that kind of turmoil. The kind of peace we need stands on the Rock, not sand.

What are ways in which we lose our peace?

This seems like a no brainer, but I find that when my blood pressure starts to rise and everything and everyone seems to be getting on my last nerve, I realize that I have not drunk from the well of living water. I have neglected my time with Jesus. I have not spent enough time in the Word- building my faith. I have not spent enough time in thankfulness and worship- reminding myself of His faithfulness and goodness. I have not spent enough time listening and in prayer to know His heart. Jesus is my anchor. If I become unmoored- I get tossed on the waves and fed to the sharks.

We must beware of allowing lies to creep in and drive our thinking and steal our peace. We have an enemy who is actively seeking to destroy us, by any manner possible. All of us can believe lies and be convinced that we will never see change. We become afraid and seek to control our circumstances instead of trust in God. We must guard against letting unbelief seep into our souls. We must not forget who we are in Christ. We belong to Him! We must not forget that God is faithful, and we can trust that He is there for us, looking out for us, with plans to prosper and not to harm us. We need to remember! We need to remind ourselves and one another that we are in Christ and there is absolutely no circumstance that can separate us from His love.

The peace of God is SHALOM. It goes deeper than circumstantial peace, deeper than order, deeper even than “inner peace.” Shalom is the peace that brings healing and restoration into the very core of our being. This peace that passes all understanding comes from the power of the Holy Spirit working within us, because we are in Christ. It comes from Him, because our faith is in Him. Peace is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. Because it is a gift, we can ask for more with prayer and thanksgiving, but we cannot conjure it, or control it or work ourselves into it. We can receive it as we press into our relationship with the Prince of Peace Himself. He is our peace. He is shalom.

The peace of God is not the absence of conflict, it is our awareness that He is with us in the midst of it all. Jesus tells us that we can expect trials and tribulation.

He is the shalom peace that surpasses our understanding, bringing the healing and restoration that we don’t even know how to ask for, above and beyond all we can imagine or expect- even in the crazy.

This Advent, let us seek the Prince of Peace. Emmanuel, God with us. Let us rest in Him as the world rages around us. Let us ask Him to fill us with shalom peace overflowing so that we can calm the storms around us as we carry His peace into every situation and every encounter we have. 

We encourage you to discuss, ponder, and/or journal the following.