“My peace I give you . . do not let your hearts be troubled and . . afraid.” John 14:27 NIV
“Peace is the presence of God, not the absence of any and all trouble.”
My thoughts today are about “acceptance, not resignation.”
Peace! Who doesn’t want it? But there is so much worry and fear. Hearts troubled, with people worrying about what happened yesterday and fearing what might happen tomorrow. But God says don’t worry; don’t be afraid. And God’s answer is so simple: have His peace.
Everyone desperately wants to experience peace of mind, peace of heart, and peace in life. But all of that and more begins through peace with God. “Peace is what I leave with you. It is My own peace that I give you. I do not give it as the world does. Do not be worried and upset; do not be afraid.” John 14:27 TEV. This is more than a peaceful feeling; it is God’s own peace that replaces worry and fear. This inner calmness and confidence is beyond peace from God; this is the very peace of God, the peace that God Himself enjoys.
Yet everyday there is something that has the power to threaten your peace. It is inevitable; just as you are at rest, something or someone disturbing interrupts. Here’s the apostle James advice, “When all kinds of troubles crowd into your life, don’t resent them as intruders; welcome them as friends.” James 1:2 Philips Paraphrase. Can you still have peace when troubles crowd into your schedule, threatening your tranquility?
Here is what peace is not: peace is not the absence of any and all trouble. If that were true, peace would be elusive for many, because such moments are rare. The peace you receive from Jesus does not depend on conditions or circumstances. The Hebrew “shalom” means “the presence of everything necessary for peace“ – even when everything you would expect to produce peace is absent, except God. God’s peace is a quiet assurance in one’s heart that whatever happens, God is still in charge of your well being
Elisabeth Elliot, who ministered to the Auca Indians after they cruelly killed her husband, wrote, “Only in acceptance lies peace . . not in resignation.” Have you considered the difference between acceptance and resignation? You will be tempted to simply resign yourself to what you cannot change anyway, but resignation gives you emptiness devoid of hope, not peace. Ah, but there will be circumstances and things you cannot change, and people whose actions you did not expect, cannot explain or control. See Proverbs 16:7 NIV. What can you do and still have peace?
That’s when and where you discover the liberating peace of acceptance. There are moments when you fight against something in life that you do not like and cannot understand, only to find later that you needlessly struggled against God. Acceptance embraces the will of God fully.
Resignation surrenders to circumstance; acceptance submits to God. “I will lie down and sleep in peace, for You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.” Psalm 4:8 NIV. Resignation says, “I can’t;” acceptance confesses, “God can!” Resignation says it’s no use, there’s nothing else; Acceptance anticipates God and asks, “What’s next, Lord?” “There is a future for the man of peace.” Psalm 37:37 NIV. Resignation feels completely alone; acceptance feels completely safe in God. “Now may the God of peace Himself give you peace at all times and in very way.” 2 Thessalonians 3:16 NIV.
My prayer for you today is to experience a sense of sovereign, undisturbable peace.