Peace In the Midst of Chaos

“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.” (John 14:27 NIV)

I recently read that “peace is a state of assurance, lack of fear and sense of contentment” and I thought of you, Lord. Your word reminds me that the peace I feel comes from You. It comes to me naturally when I remember to trust you….when I am not afraid. The world can be a scary place sometimes and that is why Your peace is “not as the world gives.” It’s not conditioned on what’s going on around me. I can feel Your peace in the midst of chaos.

“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast because he trusts in you.” (Isaiah 26:3 NIV)

When I first started my walk with You, I didn’t have peace in my life. As a child, I was taught that You were a vengeful, angry God, not the loving God I have come to know now. And it took a while through reading and studying Your word to get to know You. And when I did, the flood gates opened!

"But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." (Jeremiah 17:7-8 NIV)

Very slowly I started to trust You. It was hard at first, but You were patient with me. I learned about Your living water and how I could strengthen my faith by believing, trusting, worshiping, and witnessing. I learned that even in the difficult times of my life, You were still there, still teaching me, still guiding me. You taught me how to bear fruit for your Kingdom.

Lord, I remember the day I first realized that You love me. That the Maker of Heaven and Earth, the Almighty God could love this sinner brought tears to my eyes. I felt so humbled, so unworthy, but so grateful. And that’s the day I started to trust You. That’s the day I knew what true peace was.

Thank you, Lord.