The Fruit and Your Relationships: Peace (It's not just for hippies and doves)
Posted Oct 04 2009 10:01pm
Peace, as intangible as it is, can be had by everyone. Not just a passing peaceful feeling, induced by sedatives or some other external method, but a deep, lasting peace that, like joy, transcends the circumstances of your relationship or situation.
The word peace means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. If American culture is to be believed, then peace is all about an anti-war movement in the 60's or a symbol of a dove. According to Wikipedia, there are many symbols for peace, in a myriad of cultures. What does peace mean for us personally though? What does peace look like in a relationship?
It is interesting to me, the seeming illusive nature of peace. It's not just something you can go get or build up or put on. It would appear that peace actually comes as a result of letting go.
I love the Strong's reference definition of peace for Galatians 5:22: of Christianity, the tranquil state of a soul
assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from
God and content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is. This does not depict a peace that is strived for, on the contrary, it is a result of a realization that, as one of my friends so aptly puts it, "God's got this".
The fact that peace is challenged to us as fruit of His Spirit would indicate that some action is required on our part to actually bear it. However, it is also encouraging to realize that, through the Spirit, we can have it. The difficulty comes in realizing that we can't acquire it, it has to be cultivated through His Spirit working in us.
Being content and tranquil is hard work! It is so much easier to get down and dirty with blood, sweat and tears and by golly, make something happen! What we're facing here with the subject of His peace, however, is exactly the opposite of that concept; it is here that we must trust and have confidence in Him.
One of my favorite 'God Things' of all times is the day I was praying at my kitchen sink and He answered in a moment. My daughter had just started kindergarten and I had a 4 hour commute each day in order to complete my degree as a physical therapist assistant, so the duties of getting the kids up, dressed and off to school and daycare fell to my husband. We had been discussing the morning struggles involved with mom not being present and specifically the turmoil involved in fixing my daughter's hair. Daddy did the best he could, but every day was tears and agony and I had just found out the depth and height of it all. So that Saturday morning, as the kids played outside and I washed dishes at the sink, I prayed. I cried and prayed. I asked the Lord what I should do. I said I was willing to quit school and be home with them if that was what I needed to do. I cried, "Lord, please give Taylor peace about her hair!" I told Him I needed to know what to do.
It was not more than five minutes later when little Taylor, who had been riding her bike back and forth down the driveway, came running in to me saying, "Mom! Mom! I have a new song!" She sang:
Peace, Peace, Peace in my soul Peace, Peace, Peace in my hair Peace, Peace, Peace in my hands Peace by me
Peace, Peace, Peace in my heart Peace, Peace, Peace in my feet Peace, Peace, All over me Peace by me
Peace, Peace, He gives me Peace Peace, Peace, He gives me Peace Peace, Peace, He gives me Peace He gives Peace by me
You cannot change my mind about the fact that God cares about us having peace in our relationships! God answered my prayer one Saturday morning fifteen years ago and the situation was transformed from that moment forward. Did my darling husband suddenly become able to turn out perfectly coiffed curls on his daughter's head? No, but the turmoil and tears were gone and there was peace in the situation and in my heart as I left them each morning to fulfill the place I was called to at the moment.
If God cares enough to give my five year old peace in her hair, he cares enough about your relationship to give you peace in whatever part of it you need peace for! His word promises us that if we ask Him and are thankful and not anxious, He will guard our hearts and minds with peace that transcends our understanding! (Philippians 4:7 NIV) What a beautiful promise we have to hold on to!
Paul goes on to say a few verses later that if we do the things we hear and read about and receive from him, the God of Peace will be with us. (Philippians 4:9 KJV) He wrote that letter to the church at Philippi, while himself in a jail cell no less, but it is still for us today. Doesn't it follow then, that the key to true peace is found in the Word of the one Paul repeatedly refers to as The God of Peace?
We cannot always change our circumstances. We cannot always find exemption from the result of the mistakes we make along life's way. We can, however, find an inner peace that transcends our own understanding when we center ourselves on Him through His word and let His Spirit bear fruit in our lives.
In any situation, in any circumstance, in any relationship, true and lasting peace comes only from God and has nothing to do with hippies or doves.
Peace, as intangible as it is, can be had by everyone. Not just a passing peaceful feeling, induced by sedatives or some other external method, but a deep, lasting peace that, like joy, transcends the circumstances of your relationship or situation.
The word peace means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. If American culture is to be believed, then peace is all about an anti-war movement in the 60's or a symbol of a dove.According to Wikipedia, there are many symbols for peace, in a myriad of cultures. What does peace mean for us personally though? What does peace look like in a relationship?
It is interesting to me, the seeming illusive nature of peace. It's not just something you can go get or build up or put on. It would appear that peace actually comes as a result of letting go.
I love the Strong's reference definition of peace for Galatians 5:22: of Christianity, the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is. This does not depict a peace that is strived for, on the contrary, it is a result of a realization that, as one of my friends so aptly puts it, "God's got this".
The fact that peace is challenged to us as fruit of His Spirit would indicate that some action is required on our part to actually bear it. However, it is also encouraging to realize that, through the Spirit, we can have it. The difficulty comes in realizing that we can't acquire it, it has to be cultivated through His Spirit working in us.
Being content and tranquil is hard work! It is so much easier to get down and dirty with blood, sweat and tears and by golly, make something happen! What we're facing here with the subject of His peace, however, is exactly the opposite of that concept; it is here that we must trust and have confidence in Him.
One of my favorite 'God Things' of all times is the day I was praying at my kitchen sink and He answered in a moment. My daughter had just started kindergarten and I had a 4 hour commute each day in order to complete my degree as a physical therapist assistant, so the duties of getting the kids up, dressed and off to school and daycare fell to my husband. We had been discussing the morning struggles involved with mom not being present and specifically the turmoil involved in fixing my daughter's hair. Daddy did the best he could, but every day was tears and agony and I had just found out the depth and height of it all. So that Saturday morning, as the kids played outside and I washed dishes at the sink, I prayed. I cried and prayed. I asked the Lord what I should do. I said I was willing to quit school and be home with them if that was what I needed to do. I cried, "Lord, please give Taylor peace about her hair!" I told Him I needed to know what to do.
It was not more than five minutes later when little Taylor, who had been riding her bike back and forth down the driveway, came running in to me saying, "Mom! Mom! I have a new song!" She sang:
Peace, Peace, Peace in my soul
Peace, Peace, Peace in my hair
Peace, Peace, Peace in my hands
Peace by me
Peace, Peace, Peace in my heart
Peace, Peace, Peace in my feet
Peace, Peace, All over me
Peace by me
Peace, Peace, He gives me Peace
Peace, Peace, He gives me Peace
Peace, Peace, He gives me Peace
He gives Peace by me
You cannot change my mind about the fact that God cares about us having peace in our relationships! God answered my prayer one Saturday morning fifteen years ago and the situation was transformed from that moment forward. Did my darling husband suddenly become able to turn out perfectly coiffed curls on his daughter's head? No, but the turmoil and tears were gone and there was peace in the situation and in my heart as I left them each morning to fulfill the place I was called to at the moment.
If God cares enough to give my five year old peace in her hair, he cares enough about your relationship to give you peace in whatever part of it you need peace for! His word promises us that if we ask Him and are thankful and not anxious, He will guard our hearts and minds with peace that transcends our understanding! (Philippians 4:7 NIV) What a beautiful promise we have to hold on to!
Paul goes on to say a few verses later that if we do the things we hear and read about and receive from him, the God of Peace will be with us. (Philippians 4:9 KJV) He wrote that letter to the church at Philippi, while himself in a jail cell no less, but it is still for us today. Doesn't it follow then, that the key to true peace is found in the Word of the one Paul repeatedly refers to as The God of Peace?
We cannot always change our circumstances. We cannot always find exemption from the result of the mistakes we make along life's way. We can, however, find an inner peace that transcends our own understanding when we center ourselves on Him through His word and let His Spirit bear fruit in our lives.
In any situation, in any circumstance, in any relationship, true and lasting peace comes only from God and has nothing to do with hippies or doves.