Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

The road along life’s highway takes many twists and turns. As we journey on we encounter the joys and sorrows of mountain top, valley, and sometimes, wilderness, experiences. In my darkest hour, in the depths of despair, is where I prove God is right by my side and I can walk with Him. The wilderness is not a place to set up home, to stay and live there, it is a place to travel THROUGH, on my journey to the Promised Land. It is, however, the place where I prove God. In the midst of all the turmoil, (not the absence of it), I can enter into God’s rest and find “….the peace which passes all understanding,” a proven reality in my life.

Daniel proved God IN the Lion’s Den. God delivered Daniel IN it, not FROM it. Surrender to God AMIDST the conflict is the answer.

God permits in His wisdom that which he could prevent in His power………I bow to God, surrender my limited understanding to His omniscient one. He is the all knowing One, not I. At the burning bush the Lord told Moses to remove his shoes for he was standing on holy ground. How often do I tread roughshod on holy ground? God bade Moses to remove the shoes of his “UNDER STANDING.”

Psalm 103:7 God “made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the children of Israel.”

Isaiah 55:8 – 9 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, says the Lord…………As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways……”

God can bring forth something beautiful in the lives of His children from the most heart rending conflicts. If I recognise God’s ways, my prayer life is radically changed. I cannot always understand, but I can enter into God’s peace and rest and trust amidst the turmoil. This is where I prove God. Isaiah 26:3 “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusts in Thee.”

It is my responsibility not to listen to the voices,(other than God’s), that would seek to control my life. When my heart is not Christ ruled, (peace ruled), it has an ungodly voice, so does the devil! Learn to recognise and disregard these voices for only what God says is true. James 3: 17 “But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle….” This scripture bears testimony to God’s character when He speaks to me. His voice speaks with heavenly wisdom that does not bring confusion and the purity of His words bathe me in His peace – infallible proof as to whose voice I am listening to.

A hallmark of Tabernacles is peace, rest and trust in God’s TOTAL control.

Revelation 21:3 “The tabernacle of God is with MEN, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them and be their God.”

The Psalms testify to God “inhabiting the praises of His people,” but there is something greater. Will I surrender my will and my life to the Living God, that He would inhabit me and dwell there comfortably?

As the indwelling Christ within me progresses to full stature, He will be evidenced by the overflow of my heart and mouth with His praises to His glory.