Peace In Turmoil and Suffering

People often ask how is it possible to have peace in turmoils, trials, and sufferings. For certain it isn't in our own strength and ability. It is only through the peace the Jesus gives. Hours before his death, Jesus knew the upheaval his disciples were getting ready to face. So Jesus tells his disciples "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."

“Peace I leave with you” – Wow, what a statement and affirmation! How could they possibly have peace in the midst of this upcoming turmoil? The answer is simple. First of all this peace isn't a man made pact. Peace agreements made by man are consistently broken and violated. That's the world peace. It is temporal, God's is eternal.

5 Reasons we can have peace and a sense of rest and contentment in turmoil:

1. We serve a God who is the God of Peace: "Whatsoever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me -- put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. (Phil. 4:9)
2. We worship a Savior who is the Prince of Peace: "...And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Isa. 9:6)
3. We are indwelled with the Holy Spirit, which is the Fruit of Peace: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace...." (Gal. 5:22)
4. We follow a Gospel that is the Gospel of Peace: "and your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace." (Eph 6:15)
5. We belong to a Kingdom that is a Kingdom of Peace: "For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." (Rom. 14:17)

Allow God's peace to rule your heart. It is a peace that passes all understanding and it will keep you heart and mind. (Col. 3:15; Rom. 14:19; Phil. 4:7). God desires to give us peace in our lives, not turmoil and trouble, but a calm and a peace. Receive God's peace today.

"Your Faith May Not Fail"

I find it interesting that Jesus told his close friend and disciple, Peter, that Satan had asked to "sift you as wheat." (Luke 22:31-32) That's just like the enemy to do everything he can to ruin us. But Jesus said, I have prayed for you Peter "that your faith may not fail." Jesus knew what Peter was going to do. He knew Peter was going to deny and disown him, yet he still prayed that Peter's "faith may not fail." He didn't pray that Peter would not deny Him, He prayed that Peter's "faith may not fail." And then he prayed that when Peter had "turned back, strengthen your brethern."

When we make a mistake, don't buy into Satan's lie that it is the end. Use it as a tool to "strengthen your brethern." Just because we fail at some point, doesn't mean that our "faith has failed." When you sin, keep your faith, repent, turn back to God, and strengthen your brothers. Use your mistake to help another. This is what Jesus prayed for with Peter, and that is what Peter did. Jesus does the same for you...can you do the same as Peter?

Build An Ark

I recently attended a forum at LifeChurch called Church 2.0. The purpose of the forum was to discuss how the church can tap into the various social media that is currently sweeping our culture and society. Much of the discussion focused on innovation and was led by Greg Atkinson. Greg asked us to think of "innovators" in the Bible and then shared with us who he thought was the greatest innovator (other than Jesus of course) and that was Noah. Think about it, Noah had an unbelievable and daunting task that God asked him to do and that was --"Build An Ark". OK...and exactly how was he suppose to do it? The Lord had an answer for that too. Noah had to be a pretty incredible individual to build this fascinating ark.

Back in the early 60's Bill Cosby had a hilarious bit about the "pretend" conversation that Noah and the Lord may have had regarding "building an ark". Those old enough to remember, recall how Bill Cosby portrayed Noah's hesitancy to follow the Lord's instruction to "build an ark". Everything the Lord told Noah to do, was followed with Noah replying "right!" as if Noah was saying "do you really expect me to do that?" And the Lord would simply tell him the next step, to which Noah would again reply "right!" Where the Bible and Bill Cosby differ, is Noah didn't question God. He just "did according to all that God commanded him." I've embedded a YouTube video at the end of this article for your enjoyment.

So how do you "build an ark". Well the obvious answer is a little at a time. This was an enormous task. One man building this huge boat, seems impossible. So often, the Lord gives us an innovative idea. He wants us to "Build An Ark". It is birthed in prayer and inspired by the Holy Spirit, but too often, we are saying, "right"..."I can't do that, it's too big." And all the while we are forgetting that our God is big. He will not give us a task too daunting nor too large for us to accomplish. He will not call you to a ministry where He won't equip you and give you the ability to complete it. God's calling you to "Build An Ark".

But this is what Noah had going for him and you can have going for you:

• He found grace in the eyes of the Lord (Gen. 6:8)
• He was a just man (Gen. 6:9)
• He was perfect in his generation (Gen. 6:9)
• He walked with God (Gen. 6:9)
• He did what God asked (Gen. 6:22)

How about you? What is God calling you to do? He is calling you to build an ark, and only you and God, know what that ark is. The exciting thing is He won't leave you without instructions or a plan. Just as He instructed Noah and gave him the plan, God will give you instructions and plans through His Word, the Holy Spirit, other people, and circumstances. In order for Noah to "Build An Ark" he had to listen to God. Listen to the Holy Spirit and see what He is saying to you. Allow God to innovate and inspire areas of your life. It's not always the safe thing to do. Sometimes the greatest innovations come out of the greatest risks. But you have to trust God that He is working and be willing to take the risk. Step out in faith and "Build An Ark!"