People love to talk about peace. Everybody wants it. And who
can argue with that?
But what are we really asking for?
- an absence of all aches
- an assurance of ease
- a break in the battle
- a cessation of scorn
- a conclusion to all concerns
- a cutoff of all crises
- a downtime for all disappointments
- a finish to frustrations
- a freedom from all frays
- a halt to hostility
- a hiatus from hate
- a pause of pain
- a remission of rivalries
- a stop to all storms
- a time-out from troubles
- a waning of worries
- or just a good night’s sleep?
What do we mean by peace?
It
seems as if crowds flashing peace signs and crowing for peace may not have a
sturdy handle on what they’re even asking. Have we missed the mark? Dictators
and demagogues may point to momentary lulls as badges of honor, as if they’ve
achieved peace. Others claim they can offer us peace, if we will follow their
leads, vote in their favor, or buy into whatever they’re selling. But if we
look closer, we are likely to find certain crises still prevailing and troubling
concerns continuing.
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“They dress the wound of my people as
though it were not serious. 'Peace, peace,' they say, when there is no peace.”
(Jeremiah 6:14, NIV)
Is peace even possible?
The
storms continue to rage. Maybe it will ever be so, at least until the Lord’s
Kingdom comes into full view. And yet God promises peace to His people.
We
know He can do it. We can quote chapter and verse on instances where He calmed
the waves, healed the sick, cast out demons, and worked many other miracles to
bring His answer of peace to those who sorely needed it.
What about us, Lord?
Perhaps
the peace the Lord offers is unlike anything we may have imagined. Maybe He’ll stand
and still the storm around us, but maybe He won’t. Perhaps He’ll offer us His
strikingly supernatural peace right in the middle of the maelstrom.
We
may still have to slog through rivers, wade through rough waters, swim
upstream, and flail through fires – either proverbially or literally. Flames of
angry words and unfair attacks, wild storms of medical crises, wild waves of
career upsets, hurricanes of hurt feelings and upsetting emotions, and
smoldering embers of broken relationships may persist.
But
the One who can calm the harshest gale with a single word is willing to walk
through all of these perils with us.
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“Do not fear,
for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you
pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through
the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you
will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.” (Isaiah 43:1b-3a, NIV)
God,
give us a glimpse of Your peace, even in the middle of the storms in which we
live.
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