It's a Choice: Know God, Know Peace

Yesterday, I came across this verse in Job: "Acquaint now yourself with Him [agree with God and show yourself to be conformed to His will] and be at peace; by that [you shall prosper and great] good shall come to you" (AMP Job 22:21). Another translation says that we should give into God and everything will turn out fine (Job 22:21). This was no coincidence; I believe the Holy Spirit allowed me to find this verse at just this moment in time to drive home a point to me - if I want peace in my life, I must choose to submit my will to God's plans and purposes. As I continued to do some study, I ran across more verses that say peace is a "work of righteousness" (Isaiah 32:17) and righteousness is the fruit of peace (James 3:18; Hebrews 12:11).

Most of us say that we want peace, but I wonder if we are asking for peace according to our standards and on our terms, or are we seeking the peace that Jesus promised (John 14:27). We don't live in a peaceful world. We are daily confronted with situations that create frustration for us. When we have to make decisions - choose one thing or another - that creates tension on some level and can upset our peace. In general, we can find ourselves in conflict with another person, our society, nature (just think 108 degrees temperatures of late), ourselves, or with God. Whether or not we have peace in those situations depends on how we choose.

Satan enjoys seeing us without peace; confusion is a by-product of his influence. Yet, we don't have to live in a state of unrest or strife. Dissension does not have to be the norm of our existence. Jesus called us to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9) and to live in peace with others (II Corinthians 13:11; I Thessalonians 5:13; Hebrews 12:14). God especially wants us to be at peace with him (Ephesians 1:2).

When we choose to walk in peace with our heavenly Father, we can be assured that we will not be overwhelmed by the daily grind and tragedies and injustices of this life (John 16:33b). God didn't say that we would be without trials, but he does promise that in the middle of the raging storms we can have peace that surpasses human understanding (Philippians 4:7). 

In the times when life throws at us what we think we can't handle, we have the opportunity to learn to choose God's way over the world's.This isn't an easy step to take. We're inundated with plenty of influences and fears that encourage us to do otherwise. I am convinced, though, that if we are to know lasting peace - the kind that Daniel knew in the den of hungry lions and his Hebrew buddies knew in the middle of the fiery furnace - then we must determine to know God to know his peace.

"Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. " Romans 14:19

Lord, you are well-aware of all the things that create strife in our lives. You know sometimes we are the cause of that confusion and dissension. We know that your desire is for us to live in your peace and produce righteousness. Heavenly Father, I pray that we will seek to know you and as a result know peace within and extend peace to others. Amen.