Saturday, August 21, 2010

Before You Know Peace...

It's early Saturday morning, and it's peaceful! I'm sitting with my laptop, waiting for the coffee to finish brewing, and the news of the day is still lying in the driveway. Nothing has yet disturbed my peace. Undoubtedly, as the day unfolds, some small tweak to what I consider perfect or the way things ought to go will come along and for a moment, or maybe longer, I will potentially know some dis-ease, a disruption to my serenity. Those daily irritations are normal; how I respond to them, if I am to stay content, is up to me. 

God's plan for our lives is that we know his peace and live in accord with his plan. Psalm 119:165 says this: "Great peace have they who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble." All sorts of things arise that have the potential to keep us from living a life that is steadfastly rooted in the kind of peace that God has promised us. To know the blessing of his promised peace, though, we must be willing to do our part - love his law. This may mean that before we know peace, we need to know God's plan, his direction for how to live life, and then do it (see I Peter 3:11; II Peter 3:18; James 1:22; Proverbs 16:7). 

When we have committed our lives to doing God's will and pleasing him, we are assured the promise of his blessings, one of which is unshakable peace. We can also be certain that our adversary will do everything he can to cause us to doubt that we can trust in the One who promises to never leave, nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:6). We must draw strength and direction from God's Word if we are to remain in his peace.

So, my day has begun; the peace and quiet have been jostled. My prayer is that the Holy Spirit will remind me to do my part in keeping the peace that comes through knowing God and his Word and living it.

"The fruit of righteousness will be peace;
       the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever.
My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes,
       in undisturbed places of rest.
Isaiah 32:17-18


"Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace...." Romans 14:19

Lord, thank you for your peace that goes beyond anything I can manufacture. Thank you for your Word that provides direction for how I can live in your peace. I pray that your Holy Spirit will teach me and lead me so that I might be obedient to your Word and live in the peace that surpasses my understanding. Amen.