My Peace I give you! - ARTICLE

My Peace I give you!

Living in God’s design.

One of the greatest gifts on earth is the gift of peace!

So many desire it, and yet so few find it. But what is peace in reality, and how do we know when we live in God’s kind of peace.

“Shalom”, the Hebrew word used as a greeting of peace tells us that peace is much more than not being at war, or not being the victim of some kind of turmoil, it tells u that true peace is something far more comprehensive. That true peace speaks to the essence of every part of our lives.

When we look at the deeper meaning of the word it speaks to our well being, our health, our safety, our every day prosperity in our personal capacity, in what we do and in our lives as a whole – God’s kind of peace involves His overflowing Goodness flooding every part of our lives and every part of our being - to be at total p-e-a-c-e!

Isn’t that wonderful! Just imagine for a moment not having a care in this world. Not in the sense of trying to avoid thinking about your cares, but really and genuinely having none at all that you need to think about, because there will be none to think about!

Is this at all possible? Oh yes! Jesus promises this to those who will devote their lives to follow Him! He promises them that He will give them His peace, such as the world could never give them, and not ever be able to take away from them! He emphasises that the peace He will give them will be a peace unlike the world could ever give them, it will be the very Peace that comes as a result of His Own Presence and Person flooding their lives!

“In the world you will suffer persecution, but be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world!

“I will give you My peace!”

This old world we live in is an unfriendly place towards the child of God, to say the least! But although all of the world may be against us, and try to make life impossible for us by placing every kind of obstacle in the way, it will never be able to overcome the man or the woman in whom God’s peace is perfected and have found as His home! And even more so, it will never be able to undo what God has chosen and purposed for our lives! We live by Divine Providence, never at the will or the mercy of this world.

When you and I live in complete harmony with God, there is no part of our lives that will not be under His control, and because He is in total control, we will be at perfect peace!

When we are in control of our lives we have much to contemplate and to think about, Jesus calls these concerns “the cares of this world”, such as, where we will live, how we will live, where our next day’s meals will come from, whether we will be able to sustain a roof over our heads, and so on. He warns us never to live for “the cares of this world”, but to focus our lives on living in harmony with His Kingdom and will in our lives. In other words, He wants us to be so consumed with Him, that we will never have the time to give any thought to the cares of the world in our lives!

He wants us to live in His peace, and at peace with the world. In peace with Him, by living our lives single-mindedly focussed on Him and on serving Him on earth, and as a result, living at peace with the world, knowing that we place no demand upon it to provide for us, or to be our source of supply.

When we live in peace and harmony with God, there is nothing we longer need from the world. Our Source of supply has changed. Rather than looking to the world, expecting it to yield and to provide for us in what we need, we now have obtained a new Source to Whom we look to supply in all our needs.  When we are servants of this world, the world is responsible to provide for our wellbeing. We spent our time and our energy in it and invest our lives to make it “a better world”, in the process we are rewarded for our efforts by the world providing in our needs fulfilling our desires.

When we however turn our focus to Christ and to the Kingdom of God, we no longer are ‘employees’ of this world (irrespective of whether we may still be employed in some capacity or not), but we become servants of God and of His Kingdom, and we begin to live and do what we do, with the focus of serving His Kingdom, and not the world we live in. We no longer rely on a “salary” to sustain us, but begin to learn that God is our Source and that He is the One taking care of us and giving us His peace!

Life takes on new meaning and we begin to experience that the more we are willing to follow Him, the more He begins to use us in the most unusual and extraordinary ways, and the more we become less dependant upon the world to care for us or to sustain us. We begin to experience His miracle provision working in the world on our behalf. We begin to discover that God channels blessings which He has predestined for us, toward us, and that He directs our feet and guides our hand in ways He alone can, to find hidden blessings and treasures that He has prepared for us to be partakers of. We find great Favour working on our behalf, and we discover that God is causing the world to work in our favour and on our behalf.

As we continue along this Heavenly journey on earth, we find that there is nothing in this world that God does not bend and curve to fit in with His Divinely ordained plan for our lives. Absolutely every situation is ordered by the Hand of the LORD to work together in His Divinely appointed plan for our lives, and at the end, works together for our good.

We find out that God keeps us in perfect peace – His peace – His “Shalom”, the totality of His Presence and every attribute thereof, that surrounds and floods our lives with His Goodness and Anointed Presence! And that, because “our minds are *stayed upon Him” (*bolted, and set as an immovable foundation, secured upon His Presence!)

When we welcome the Holy Spirit into our lives, just as those did whom received the disciples of Jesus that He had sent John chapter ten, we invite the peace of God to come and to dwell in our homes and in our lives! We receive Him and all He is, and everything that is a part of His very Person and Being – We receive His Peace, the very fragrance accompanying His resident Person and Presence in our lives.

God is Peace, God is Love, God is Protection, God is Provision, God Abundance, God is Life, God is Healing, God is Prosperity, God is Blessing, God is Power, God is a Rock and a Fortress, God is Goodness, God is Mercy, God is Grace, God is …

… Can you see that He Himself becomes our Peace when we welcome Him into our lives and give Him the position of becoming the LORD of our lives?

Is that not wonderful thought?

Then what is hindering you from welcoming Him into your life and into your home today? Possibly the “cares of the world”? Maybe the uncertainty of what would happen if you did, or what you may lose by doing so?

Perhaps the worry of where you will stay, what you will wear eat, or where the money will come from to pay your bills?

Trust me, He has already provided for more than you will ever need in your entire lifetime on earth, if you will only allow Him to steer and to direct you, He will lead you to a secret treasury that He has prepared just for you! In addition, He will lead you to experience the green pastures and waters of rest, where you will discover His peace and His Presence, presently and continually residing in your soul!

“I will give you My peace!”

What is it like to have His peace? It is indescribable! It is joy unspeakable and full of Glory! It is a life totally and completely filled with Christ! It is a vessel brimming over with His Spirit-Life! It is being wrapped into the blanket of His Love! It is being nursed from His very Own breast, while safely dwelling in His everlasting arms!

El Shaddai, one of God’s many Names, means (‘El’ - The All Sufficient (and Powerful One), and ‘Shaddai’ – The ‘Many Breasted’, God – He nourishes His children as a mother does her suckling babe, and from His breasts we drink and are fully satisfied!

He is still God Who adds blessing without any sorrow, Who gives His children what they need, while they sleep, while others work their fingers to the bone, to attempt at gaining some “blessings” in this world!

Trust Him. Believe Him. And follow Him when His Spirit leads you to go!

- Johann van der Hoven