The Lord laid it in on my heart to share this story with two groups yesterday: our Moms' Group and the Young Adult Group: During one of the most tumultuous weeks of my life, in August 2013, I had just received the fourth set of tragic news over the phone, about someone I loved. For half an hour, I felt like the floor was falling out of my sanity. I asked Doug to watch Cara, I grabbed my Bible, and I went to be alone outside. As I sat alone, I asked the Lord for ONE thing. As utter chaos swirled around my life, I didn't ask for answers, I knew I couldn't have control, and I knew I couldn't know the future outcomes. Before cracking open my Bible ALL I asked the Lord for, begged Him for, was PEACE. Peace... at that moment, I literally couldn't think of a definition of it...or even how to attain it, I could not even recall one single verse about it at that moment, but the word "PEACE" and my desire for it was all-consuming. I had been reading through Ephesians with a friend and had my bookmark in Ephesians 2. I had read that week up to Ephesians 2:13. Since I couldn't think of another place to read, I opened to my bookmark and read the next verse in my reading for the week: Ephesians 2:14. Read it: "For He Himself is our peace." HE-- Christ Jesus-- is our peace... He reconciled us to God. And the chapter is crystal clear in how He did it: "Remember that at that time you were separate from Christ... without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ." (Ephesians 2:12-13). His death, His sacrifice, granted us reconciliation with God, hope, a future, a relationship with God, our Maker.
Peace isn't just a hippie, serene, drum-beating, chill state of mind. Life is sometimes chaotic, crazy, and even tragic. Feeling serene, feeling like everything is just fine, isn't always possible. Peace is something beyond that. PEACE for the Christian was already bought for us at a HUGE price--- on the cross. In Christ, we have peace with God, and we have His Presence always. "For HE HIMSELF is our peace". We have access to an audience with the Almighty, who has perfect and infinite strength to shoulder whatever burden you are bearing. Bring it to Him.
