The Gift of Peace
Are you good at accepting things that are freely given to you?
Verse of the Day
“Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful.”
Today’s Devotional
Do you have anything that’s precious in your life, simply because of the person from whom you received it? We have a beautifully framed fiddle that belonged to my husband’s late grandfather. He was not especially gifted in fiddle playing, but when he died, my husband got to keep the fiddle. We had it mounted and framed and now it hangs in our dining room. People often ask about it when they visit our home. It holds memories for my husband of good times with a man that he loved. Do you have anything like that?
If your answer was no, then you might be mistaken. Right before this verse, Jesus says “All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (vv. 25-26) God sent you a gift when you declared your allegiance to Jesus Christ. That gift is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. There is no more precious gift giver than the Father God. And God gave us Jesus on this earth to die for our sins. Then, because God knew we would need constant reminding, teaching and guidance, he gave us the Holy Spirit. I think it’s interesting that right after Jesus mentions that God will send the Holy Spirit He says that He is leaving us with His peace. Maybe the peace of Jesus is in the “form” of the Holy Spirit. Notice that Jesus even says that He does not give the way the world gives. To me, that means that the answers to my prayers generally don’t look the way I think they will (or should) look. So, when He says that He is giving us HIS peace, maybe that’s what the Holy Spirit offers us.
So how do I tap into this Jesus-peace? My primary answer is, “I have no idea.” But in truth, I think I do have some idea. I have to spend time with Him, and keep my thoughts focused on Him, and remind myself that God is in control. I need to accept and intentionally remind myself that Jesus says He has given me HIS peace. I think we worry about so many things over which we have no control. How often do you hear a 5 year old child worrying about how the mortgage or rent will be paid? They don’t, because it’s not their job. It’s above their pay grade. But I worry all the time about things over which I have zero control. Like, “What is going to happen in with our economy? How bad are is our world going to get?” Yet I have absolutely no control over any of that. However, in the middle of the chaos, I can trust God. I can be a beacon of God’s love and hope and peace and joy, instead of commiserating in the fear. I can choose to accept the gift of peace that Jesus has given me,
Sometimes I think we have gifts from the hand of God that we never enjoy. Peace might just be one of those. Jesus says He left His peace with us. He gave it to us. Are we accepting His gift?
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
How are you worrying today about things over which you have no control? What are those things? How can you declare your trust in God despite anything that might be troubling you?
How can you accept and embrace that peace that Jesus left for you today?
How can you be a beacon of Jesus’s peace today?
What would it look like for you to challenge your thoughts with a declaration that Jesus has given you His peace?