Peace

Finding Peace

/ pastorpete51 / 6 Comments

As many of you know our Daughter-in-Law, Melinda passed away on Sunday and this morning we are leaving to drive up to be with our son and grandson. So I will not be posting much over this next week. Here is one last thought.

Years ago, our pastor began his sermon by taking a 20 dollar bill from his wallet, asking, “Who wants to come up and take this?” We adults all wondered what kind of trick he was trying to pull, but a 12 year old boy, never hesitated. He ran right to the front, snatched it and stuck it in his pocket, pausing only long enough to say thanks!

The message that day was on how God wants us to receive His gift. In the same way, when Jesus knew, His disciples would soon be witnessing his arrest, torture and  brutal execution He wanted to prepare them. So instead of saying, “Cheer-up, everything is going to be okay.” (though that was true),  He offered them a gift: His peace. That peace was what had enabled Him to let go of His exalted place in the Heavens, and humbly come to a manger in Bethlehem. It had guided Him step by step as He grew up in the poor village of Nazareth and along the path of His ministty. Jesus never hurried, strove for power or accumulated worldly possesions, because He was always at peace. Knowing His Father was with Him, allowed Him to even sleep on the boat in the storm. Now He offers that same peace to us. It is not something we can earn. It is His gift for anyone who will race to the front, put it in their heart and say thank you!

A Need For Quietness

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

I truly appreciate the fellowship I have come to share here on Word Press with a small circle of folks, but I am impressed with the sense that I am overstretched and trying to do too many things. So for a while, I may sometimes check in on Saturdays, but will otherwise take a sabbatical from both reading and posting. Nothing terrible is happening here, I simply have a longing to focus more on less, and spend more time listening to what God has to say. Since I have accumulated a number of interesting scripture/photo combinations, I leave them as a small gift and will see everybody back here when the time is right. Blessings to all!

The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. 
Isaiah 32:17 NKJV

Finding God’s Peace

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 ESV

Sometimes it may feel as if God is playing a game, by putting the peace that we need under one of three shells, and leaving it up to us to guess where He has it hidden. But, Jesus makes it clear that the peace we need so much can be found in Him, and He didn’t leave our finding it to chance. I like the way that the King James renders this verse, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might find peace.” When Jesus says, “These things,” He means, all of His teachings, from loving our enemies, to forgiving our brothers and sisters, or trusting in Him alone for salvation, were spoken, not to make us miserable. Instead everything Jesus ever taught was so that in Him we could have peace. God already knows about our problem, and He is not asking for us to guess where to find the answer as we face it. He has promised that in troubles of every kind, we can find peace in Him, because He has already overcome them. He endured the terrible agony of the cross, still remaining faithful until death to His Father’s will, so that we could have His amazing and miraculous peace. In what area of your life do you desperately need God’s peace today? Bring it to Him in prayer, trusting that He already knows and has already overcome and He longs for you and I to have His peace in every situation because He loved us more than His own life.

Photo by Chavdar Lungov on Pexels.com