Living in Peace

John 14:27 (NKJV)

²⁷ Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Because of the instability of the fallen nature of the world in which we live, it is often hard to stay in the peace Jesus left for us. A minister of the gospel recently shared a message in which she suggested several ways in which we can enter into the peace Jesus gave us and stay there. She started by sharing that we must have revelation knowledge that Jesus’ peace is already resident within us. Revelation knowledge has been referred to as “working knowledge.” For instance, we all know that a plane can fly. But knowing how to fly it (as a pilot does) is quite another thing. So it is with the peace of God within us. We must know more than that it is resident within us. The first step in accessing His peace is by acknowledging that peace resides within us every day. Then by GRACE (God’s responsibility) through faith (our responsibility to trust Him) the door is open to live peace every day.

While the door is open, we must step over the threshold into His peace. Every time we choose to walk through that door we are “practicing peace.” This brings us to the practical suggestions this minister made that will help us walk through that open door. There are three points and each one of them helps us “reign in” the mind, which is the first area attacked when peace is the issue:

• Set your expectation: Expect peace every day – in the good days and the bad, doing the things that are enjoyable and the things which are not so enjoyable. The key to success in this area is found by setting our expectation on the right thing. We should not set our expectation on a particular outcome; rather we set our expectation on our Source – Jesus. Leave the details to Him. Doing this creates a focus that never fails, and also, it will keep us from becoming rattled when something does not happen the way we “expected” it to happen.
• Live in denial: The world’s idea of denial is… “you are not facing the facts of your situation – it’s bad.” From a spiritual perspective, “denial” means not accepting the fact that your situation is hopeless. Living in spiritual denial allows us to see things in a completely different light from what the world sees. The facts don’t get the final word. God’s Word does. When we refuse to accept the “hopelessness” of our situation, we are staying on the God-side of the situation and that is where His peace is found.
• Live in Thanks: Giving/living thanks supports the first two points. It helps us keep our focus on the answer rather than on the circumstances of our situation. And, it stops the devil in his tracks. As kryptonite was to Superman, so thanksgiving is to the devil. He loses his grip over you. How do you defeat someone who is thankful in all things???

What do these three points which help us “practice peace” have in common? Each one causes us to turn our minds to the goodness of God and His intentionality toward us. When we use our minds to focus on what we have in our relationship with the Lord, peace will always be the outcome. The world says, “practice makes perfect.” In the spiritual world, “practice makes permanent.”  Perfect points to never messing up; permanent points to never giving up until the peace Jesus gave us becomes a lifestyle we walk in every day!

12/21