Thursday, October 25, 2012

In Christ - I am at peace with God

I am at peace with God...

Romans 5:1,2 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Psalms 29:11 The LORD gives strength to His people; the LORD blesses His people with peace. 

Psalms 85:8 I will listen to what God the LORD will say; He promises peace to His people, His saints--but let them not return to folly. 

Psalms 119:165 Great peace have they who love Your law, and nothing can make them stumble. 

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You. 

Isaiah 54:10 "Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet My unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor My covenant of peace be removed," says the LORD, Who has compassion on you. 

August 31, 2010
KPRZ – Girlfriends in God
May She Rest in Peace
Mary Southerland

Today's Truth  

Friend to Friend

“We often associate the phrase ‘rest in peace’ with death and the loss of a loved one. In fact, these words of comfort are often spoken at some point in most funerals I attend or are included in the inscription on many headstones.

“Today, I want us to associate the words ‘rest in peace’ with life instead of death.

“Yes, God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sin so that we can rest in peace when we die, but God also gave His one and only Son so that we can rest in peace every minute of every day. Does that sound like your life? Would the people who know you best describe you as a peaceful person? As I ask myself that question, the words ‘not so much’ come to mind.

“The Mayo Clinic once stated that the illnesses in 80 to 85% of their caseload were caused by stress. An article in a leading medical journal entitled ‘Is Stress the Cause of All Disease?’ It said that at the beginning of the century, bacteria were the leading cause of illness but today stress has replaced bacteria.

“We all long for an inner calm - especially in the valleys of life. We all want, pray for and pursue peace. At the point of desperation, some people pursue peace by numbing their pain with alcohol, drugs, sex ... food ... success ... the list is endless. Remember the old country song that says we look for love in all the wrong places and on the wrong faces? The same can be said about peace.

“Some people tend to believe that peace is simply the absence of problems, valleys and trials. Not so! Peace is a calm confidence that the Lord of the mountains is still on the throne - no matter how deep the valley may be. Peace recognizes Jesus walking on the water as He calms the crashing waves and stills the howling winds in your life. Trials become opportunities to trust God when peace reigns in a heart. That kind of peace can only be found in God.

“Notice that I did not say we can find peace in church membership, in doing good things, in giving large sums of money to a charity or ministry, or even in being a really good person. Peace is a gift. When we enter into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we enter into true peace.

“Romans 5:1 (NCV) ‘Since we have been made right with God by our faith, we have peace with God. This happened through our Lord Jesus Christ.’

“We cannot bargain for or earn peace, girlfriends, but we will experience peace when we are willing to move away from our sin toward the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ, in a personal relationship. Then, and only then, will His peace become our peace.

“When John Paton was translating the Bible for a South Seas Island tribe, he discovered that they had no word for peace. One day, a native who had been running very hard for several miles came to the missionary's house, flopped down into a large chair and tried to catch his breath. ‘It's good to rest my whole weight on this chair’ the runner said. Paton thought for a minute before replying, ‘I'll translate peace as the result of resting one's whole weight on God.’ Exactly!

“We hear from so many women around the world who would give everything they have for just one minute of peace. I know the list of trials and storms is long. I honestly do not know how some people get out of bed each morning to face the trials and hard times in their life. I understand that the problems we deal with every single day can weigh us down; but I also know that every problem can be given to God. When we surrender the weight of our trials and pain to Him, we will experience peace. As we allow God to carry the weight of worry, the burden of anxiety and the penalty of every sin in our life, peace will reign and leave no room for the deadly trap of stress. Today, girlfriend, I pray that you will rest in Peace.”

The Bible says that Jesus is our peace (Ephesians 2:14 - For He Himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility”) – so Believers can now find their peace in a person – the Person of Jesus, God the Son.  Our Peace isn’t in our circumstance – they can change daily and randomly – and it’s not dictated by our feelings – because these, too, can and do change.  Since our Peace is in the Person of Jesus, we can rest knowing that since He never changes we can never lose our peace with God!  The challenge is choosing to line up what we know intellectually with what’s going on in and around us – and that requires effort and discipline.  But – dear sister – it’s worth the effort!  You don’t have to be tossed to and fro by your circumstances – YOU CAN KNOW and EXPERIENCE the peace of God that surpasses knowledge if you choose to!  Don’t give up trying – keep pressing in to your Savior, even when everything around you is falling apart, and His peace is yours!