John 14:23-27
Verse 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
There aren’t many people in the world who don’t desire peace. In fact, if we came across someone who despised peace we would question their rightness of mind. But as we mentioned yesterday, most people only think about peace in the sense of world peace, lack of war. There is so much more to peace than that.
When the angels came to the shepherds to announce the birth of the Messiah, they said, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace in men on whom He is pleased.” This peace they were talking about was the same peace Jesus was talking about in our key verse for today. The peace that we should desire is the peace Jesus and the angels were talking about. It is a peace of mind and heart. This should be our desire.
We all tend to be fighting the stress of day to day life and dream of having peace of mind in our lives. Yet, while there is a major issue with stress in our lives we don’t seem to know how to manage it or find the peace that we desire. We are told to picture the place we can relax for a few moments so we can deal with the stress we are living. We may even try to physically escape to that place hoping to revitalize our spirits to deal with the stress of the rest of the year. But what if we could find that peace on a regular basis?
We can only find lasting peace in our lives through a relationship with the Lord. Because true peace of mind comes from having peace of heart and that can only come from Christ. Instead of going to our special place to find the peace we need, let’s try going to the Lord. Maybe we should take those quiet moments to pray or maybe read some Psalms which could help us to worship instead of fret. Let’s desire Him and His peace instead of trying to find peace any other place.
Making It Personal
What do you think about when you need to find peace? Have you ever sought the Lord for peace? How can you best seek Him for peace?
Making It Personal Kids
What helps calm you down? Have you ever tried to talk to Jesus to calm down? How could talking to Jesus calm you?
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for the peace You bring us. Give us the wisdom we need to seek You for peace. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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