A Peace Beyond Understanding

At every checkout in every grocery store in every town in America we find the tabloids on display.  The covers are full of the grizzly accounts and horrific stories of the "rich and famous" whose personal lives are a train wreck.  From their weight loss (or weight gain), to their broken marriages, to their bizarre religious beliefs, to their financial disasters and beyond... every moment of their lives is splashed across the pages with sickening detail so that our morbid curiosity might be satisfied.  I cannot count the number of times I have stated emphatically, "I am so glad that I don't live in the middle of a soap opera every day of my life."  And yet, I can remember a time when that is exactly how I lived.  My mind and my life were in constant turmoil.  Every day seemed to hold yet another drama that would keep my emotions stirred up and my spirit in a state of perpetual unrest.  When I look back on those days I can adamantly declare that my life now is so much better than it was then.  Peace is preferable to turmoil.  Silence is more blessed than bedlam. Rest is greater than disorder.  Living in the comfort of God and the perfect peace of the indwelling Holy Spirit is a joy I almost missed in this life.

The constant state of unrest and turmoil in life is characterized by the medical community as "stress."  Everywhere we turn we read of and hear of the negative, harmful effects that stress has on the human body.  Not only does stress affect our mental health, but it also definitely affects our physical health, our spiritual health, and our relational health.  Mankind is created in the image of God to possess three distinct characteristics of body, soul, and spirit and they cannot be separated into neat little compartments where one does not affect the others.

I really don't remember when I began to earnestly pray for God's peace to flood my life, but over the past few years I have come to realize that my prayers have surely been answered.  Oh, I occasionally experience some unrest in my thinking or some situation that does not reflect His peace, but overall my life is quiet, calm, and satisfying.  I rejoice in the peace that God has granted to me.  I am healthier and happier than I have ever been, and I am eternally grateful for His precious gift of peace.

When the Enemy (Satan himself) speaks to us, he does not bring a message of peace into our hearts.  His goal is to keep us frustrated and confused.  He seeks to befuddle our minds with thoughts of questioning and uncertainty because he knows that in doing so he will gain access into all areas of our lives.  As our thoughts go, so goes the rest of our life.  We may try to reason our way through the lies of Satan, but our efforts will be in vain unless we lay claim to the "...peace that passes all understanding through Christ Jesus, our Lord." (Philippians 4:7)  If we are not experiencing peace in our life it is because we are not in the will of God.  It's just that simple.

In order to live in peace and fulfillment, we must understand the critical need to rid our lives of those things and those people who would constantly introduce confusion, upheaval, turbulence, agitation, and chaos into our days.  In I Corinthians 15:33 we read, "Do not be so deceived and misled!  Evil companionships (communion, associations) corrupt and deprave good manners and morals and character."  We must stay on guard against evil influences in our lives which would seek to rob us of the peace that the Father wills for us.

"For those who are according to the flesh and are controlled by its unholy desires set their minds on and pursue those things which gratify the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit and are controlled by the desires of the Spirit set their minds on and seek those things which gratify the [Holy] Spirit."  (Romans 8:5)

Be assured that people who live in constant tumult and who bring unending turmoil into the lives of others are living in the flesh... that is, they do not have the nature of Jesus Christ and the presence of the Holy Spirit living in them.  That mind of the flesh will never yield anything but death and destruction.  It is in constant opposition to the mind of Christ and the Law of God.

"[That is] because the mind of the flesh [with its carnal thoughts and purposes] is hostile to God, for it does not submit itself to God's Law; indeed it cannot.  So then those who are living the life of the flesh [catering to the appetites and impulses of their carnal nature] cannot please or satisfy God, or be acceptable to Him."

(Romans 8:7-8)

Did you catch that truth?  If we are not living in submission to God's Law we are totally incapable of knowing peace and satisfying our Heavenly Father.  Our life will be nothing less than a daily soap opera, filled with drama and unrest.  It is a miserable way to live!  I've been there and I know it from personal experience.  

I know some people who would say I live a boring life.  My home is a quiet place and there is seldom conflict between my husband and myself.  (We have learned to address differences of opinion in ways that do not include shouting, name calling, or emotional outbursts.)  Whole days and even weeks may go by without any significant conflict with which I must deal.  Praise God for the peace He has granted in my life!  It may seem boring to those who are addicted to drama (and believe me, they do exist), but it is glorious to me.

Having lived in the world and been a part of that kind of turbulence and disorder, I can now say that life in Christ is so much better.  

“The Lord gives [unyielding and impenetrable] strength to His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace.”  

(Psalm 29:11, Amplified Bible)