Peace seems to be the desire of all people. One of my favourite scenes in Kung Fu Panda 2 is Shifu’s explanation to Po on finding inner peace. He tells Po while redirecting the flow of a rain droplet, that inner peace can be found in various ways depending on the person. He says one way is to meditate in a cave for fifty years without eating or drinking. Another is to endure pain and suffering like Shifu did in the first film. Either way Shifu tells him that “Anything is possible when you have inner peace.”
I am grateful that we as believers can experience peace as our personal possession as God’s children. First, Jesus brings us in a position of peace with God (Peace is Mine), then Holy Spirit brings us into an experience of peace in our day to day lives, ultimately producing the fruit of peace in our lives. Peace is to rule in our hearts and minds on a daily basis.
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” (Col 3:15)
Zechariah, father of John the Baptist, when his mouth was opened at his son’s birth, prophesized that the Messiah would enable us to walk in peace:
“And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.’ “(Luke 1:76-79)
This walking in peace on a day to day basis is a peace that will bring life and refreshment to us. Psalm 23 describes it as the Good Shepherd who will lead us in a life of green pastures and still waters.
I want peace in my life
You may say to me: “But Michelle, I do not have peace.”
The Devil has a plan for your life: Most of us forget that we have an enemy who wants nothing good for our lives, he intends to ruin everything he can get his hands on because that is his nature. As long as we live in this world, he operates in our hearts, minds and environment. How does this happen?
He will steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10) whatever is good, beautiful and brings you joy and peace. He will steal everything that belongs to you and is precious to you and even steal your inheritance of peace from you.
In that Greek word used in scripture, Steal describes a thief that is so good at his job that his actions are almost undetectable as he steals. He is cunning in how he steals. (If he outright stole from you, you would know it.) So, he steals from you in such a way that you don’t know it is being stolen until it is already lost to you.
The number one thing he steals from us is our peace.
Killing, we think this is to take someone’s life from them. But this word has nothing to do with murder; the original Greek word is to sacrifice, as in surrendering something dear on an altar. This thief wants to walk away with everything that is precious and dear to you and THEN what he cannot steal; he will convince you to sacrifice it or give it up
He cannot bear that you possess anything or any kind of blessing, including the peace that God gives you. So, if he cannot steal it, he will convince you to give it up to him, give up your peace, simply because he does not want you to have it. He will even create stressful situations that will convince you that the only solution is to sacrifice peace. . You make “peace” in your heart that what you desire will never happen, so you sacrifice the desire.
In the Greek, Destroy carries the idea of something that is ruined, wasted, trashed, devastated, and destroyed. He is a thief that will wiggle his way into your personal affairs so that he can walk away with your peace. Then when he has taken everything he can, he will rob you of your peace to the next level. He will create conditions and situations so horrible that you will so no other way to solve the problem except to learn to live with no peace. In the process, he has wasted and destroyed your life.
Do you understand how desperately the enemy wants to take away the peace that God has given you?
We need to tell him: “Peace is MINE.”
C S Lewis
Let the Peace of God RULE
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” (Col 3:15)
If the rule (as in rulership) of peace in your life is in any way challenged, open the eyes and ears of your heart and look around to see where the enemy of our lives is operating and working to steal your peace.
- Where in your life have you given up on a relationship, situation or belief in yourself because you believe that you can never have peace in that situation? (Divide and Conquer)
- Which areas of your life are no longer ruled by peace? Here take careful consideration of your intimate relationships, spouse, children, extended family and see where you no longer have peace in your heart about that relationship. As we saw last week, God desires us to have peace in your relationships, so ask yourself, where is the enemy operating in your relationships? My personal experience is that the enemy will break down peace in your closest relationships first to isolate you and take you down. (Separate, Isolate, Annihilate)
- As you have identified the areas, start praying about establishing peace in those areas of your life. Here again, be reminded that it is God’s will for peace to rule in your relationships, and prayer in line with God’s will immediately bring God’s power to work in the situation. So stop now, and pray.
Lord, help me be watchful over my life and immediately recognize when peace in my life is being destroyed, stolen, or sacrificed. Please help me to see the strategies the enemy is using. As I commit each situation to You in prayer, I work with You Lord to re-establish the rule of peace in my life. Please help me be obedient to the direction of Holy Spirit and do the work necessary to take back what has been stolen from me. I declare that peace rules in my heart and mind on a daily basis.
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