Every journey has a purpose. As we look back on our journey with the Lord we see the lessons He has taught us from the paths we have trodden. At the onset of our journey we may think we know the purpose, but as we proceed there are times when we may have to change our understanding of what we initially thought the purpose was. When the Lord began with us spiritually we were babes in Christ and had much to learn. On the journey we take with Him, the Lord wants to show us that the peace He endues us with has purpose. Initially He gives us a baptism of His peace which amazes us, even if we cannot find words to define what we feel, or have an understanding of it. At this stage it is easy to mistakenly think this feeling, or awareness, is permanent, but it is only an earnest, a deposit of the Son in me.
The availability of this peace is our birthright in Christ Jesus, but we have then to learn how to maintain it in our lives. At this stage the lessons begin. The Holy Spirit is our teacher and guide. Our choices result in either us being quick learners as we embrace the truths He shows us and walk in humility, or slow learners as we exercise the stubborn right to ourselves in independence, resulting in a loss of the awareness of that precious gift of peace within.
When I react negatively to a person, or situation, I forfeit that precious gift of God’s peace. The Lord’s desire is to teach us to learn to identify, and deal with, the first ripple that comes to disturb His peace within me. If we deal with the ripple, we won’t have a storm! How do I deal with the first ripple, the warning? Choice! We can learn much from experience if we invite the Lord into every situation. In our early walk maybe our recovery time from our wrong reactions would be quite lengthy, days in some cases! Maybe pretending on the outside that no offense was taken, maybe sulking, blaming others, even blaming God! However, on the inside a crisis was evident by the lack of God’s peace.
We can be slow to learn that God permits in His wisdom, that which He could prevent in His power. He permits the circumstances to teach us something. Only as we walk in humility will we “learn of Him”, (Matthew 11: 28-29)
The author and pastor, Alan Redpath, wrote that as we mature in the Lord, the journey from a wrong reaction to recovery of God’s peace within should get shorter and shorter as we learn to respond to the Holy Spirit’s prompts. Let us settle it in our hearts that nothing is going to happen to us unless God permits it, the grid of God. He may not necessarily have sent it, but as we push into Him we will find a sufficiency of His grace as promised for our journey. 2 Corinthians 12:9 “….My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness…” If I am finding an insufficiency of His grace for my situation, I am at fault and in need of asking the Lord to show me where I went wrong. Only as I embrace the truth He shows me, and humble myself, will I get back on track and find a return of His peace. In a nutshell, that is the journey from reaction to recovery.
The whole world is being shaken by events in the Middle East at present. If our hearts are becoming fearful as we observe the tragedies of war, we are no different to the people of the world. Our only place of safety is to stay in the Shaker. Hebrews 12: 26-28 declares that in end times God will shake everything that can be shaken, but not His kingdom which cannot be removed.
1 Peter 3:14-15 “….Do not be afraid of their terror, neither be troubled. But sanctify the Lord in your hearts, and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you for a reason of the hope that is in you…” A sanctified heart is a prepared heart. Every day with the Lord is always a time of learning and preparation as we fellowship with Him in all we do. Learning to live daily in His presence and be peace controlled is our birthright in Christ, and the desire of God’s heart for each of us. Our journey to being peace controlled begins with Jesus welcoming us: John 14:1 “Do not let your heart be troubled….” If I am troubled, I am of no use to others who are fearful.
As our journey progresses we learn the truth of Philippians 4:7 “And the peace of God which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus”. A place of safety.
We discover another dimension of God’s peace, great peace. Psalm 119: 165 declares “Great peace have they who love Thy law, and nothing shall offend them”. How many of us can say we have learnt in the school of hard knocks that there is a place in God, where we choose not to take offense as a permanent state, because we have come to understand the grid of God, and its purpose.
Finally, we come to the goal of perfect peace. Isaiah 26:3 “You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You”.
May we continue our journey together with Jesus, our Pattern Man, and may the beauty of His peace grow in stature as we share our lives freely with others. Enjoy the journey!