The Peace Out There
The following article originally appeared in Thann’s “The Equipped” Weekly Newsletter. For more information on Thann’s weekly email, click here.
Peace is a complex concept. It is something all of us naturally desire on at least some level, but our definitions of peace vary drastically. Scripture tells us plainly that peace should be desired and pursued (1 Pet. 3:11). You and I, as Jesus followers, are instructed to be peacemakers (Matt. 5:9), and are even described by Isaiah as ambassadors of peace (Is. 33:7).
So, if we all desire peace, and if so many of us are rightly pursuing it, why is it so elusive? Why, if we are engaging in a God-affirmed pursuit of peace, would so many of us acknowledge being in a state that is less than the “perfect peace” described in Isaiah 26:3?
The answer lies almost exclusively in the fact that you and I too often pursue a peace out there.
You want peace in your relationships.
I want peace in my circumstances.
We want peace in our world, and in the growing wars and conflicts we see around us.
When we think about where we want to see or have peace, we think about what is out there.
It is certainly true: God can and does move mightily to deliver us from hostile circumstances and to inject peace into chaotic environments. The Psalms are full of declarations—many of them by David as he fled from his enemies—of God’s provision of peace through deliverance from what is out there.
Even so, the most consistent characteristic of a true and lasting God-given peace has nothing to do with what does or does not change out there.
True, lasting, God-given and sustained peace is entirely about being in Him.
Don’t take my word for it:
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (Jn. 16:33).
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (Jn. 14:27).
“You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you” (Is. 26:3).
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts” (Col. 3:15).
There are plenty more, but you get the idea. We serve a God who can and does deliver, but that really has nothing to do with the peace He offers us. The peace He has invited you to possess and walk in is available at all times and in all circumstances. It is available in that abundant fashion because it is not found in anything out there, but rather found wholly in Him.
Friends, I know this is a very familiar concept. But it is not one we readily embrace, and one that needs to take firm hold in our minds and hearts.
When was the last time your peace was shaken because of something out there? A relationship? A financial strain? A broken dream? A troubling headline?
The last time for me was . . . a few minutes ago!
We simply decline to rest in the abundance of peace freely offered under the shadow of the Almighty’s wing (Ps. 17:8, Ps. 57:1, Ps. 91:4). We are looking for it out there when it is only truly found in Him.
What a gift you have, my friend! You are tasked with pursuing peace, and you will find it wholly within the One who already infills you! Your peace—a promised and lasting peace—isn’t out there somewhere. It is in Him, and it is in you and intended to be spread to others through you!