Always In Every Way

To be at one with God is to be at Peace .

Peace is to be found only within,
and unless one finds it there
he will never find it at all.
Peace lies not in the external world.
It lies within one's own soul.
– Ralph Waldo Trine

Remember when I was feeling creative and inspired (and oh so clean)?

Well, I still am, but at the current time, I feel the need to discuss something. And it might get kinda sad. So if you don’t feel like reading anything sad right now – and if not, I completely understand, I really do - please be sure to go here.

[Because her place is bright and shiny and never sad.]

However, if you do stick around and read this, I promise not to end on a sad note.

Deal?

Today has been a real day. Not only have I heard about some heartbreaking things an acquaintance of ours is going through, but I talked with a precious friend of mine who is currently in a holding pattern with God – waiting and trusting and hoping against disappointment. And then there’s this guy I have a crush on who’s got some big stuff coming up next week that feels a little bit overwhelming and uncertain and – ok, more than a little bit scary.

And I find myself feeling tired and spent and sad.

And – if I can be honest here – wondering a little bit what on earth God is doing.

Because I know that His ways are not mine (Isaiah 55:8), I know that He works all things together for good (Romans 8:28), and I know that He has a future and a hope for each of us (Jeremiah 29:11).

I know, I know.

I know.

But today I’m sitting here, looking at the heartbreak and sorrow and grief and shattered dreams surrounding me and wondering why.

Without any lack of faith or any disbelief – and in no arrogance – I really just want to know why.

But I’m not going to know. At least not right now. And neither are the people around me who are struggling. That’s just not the way He designed it.

When I was a little girl, in the downstairs bathroom of my parents’ home was a picture of a serene lake with a beautiful white swan in the foreground. There was a portion of a scripture in the bottom right corner, and I memorized my first Bible verse through the use of those facilities (way to go, Mom & Dad):

Peace I leave with you,
My Peace I give to you;
not as the world gives do I give to you.
Let not your heart be troubled,
neither let it be afraid.
(John 14:27)

It’s a tricky thing, Peace. When your life is inundated with it, you tend (if you’re like me) to take it for granted. Without realizing it, you can exist in a state of it for long stretches of time. And then things get messy. And you find yourself on your knees – sometimes flat on your face – begging for it.

Because Peace, Peace comes when you stubbornly will yourself to believe that in the midst of utter tragedy, God is still good. Peace is what you find with the assurance that deferred hope is still living and breathing and is worth believing in. Peace is what meets your feet as they touch solid floor when you are fighting against the feeling that you can’t even muster the strength to get out of bed.

Webster calls Peace many things – one of them is “a state of tranquility or quiet.” No grand enlightenment there. But when Peace comes from the heart of God our Father, it’s more than just that. It’s a tranquility that trusts that despite the raging storm that’s blowing all around you and flooding your heart, the One Who commands the wind and the waves sees you, loves you, and is in control. That’s your tranquility. It’s a quiet that hears the screams and cries of chaos and pain and defeat swirling around you, and allows His Still Small Voice to drown out the noise. That’s your quiet.

Never before entering this time of trial and heartbreak this past year have I known such Peace. I don’t think I realized that it could take this form. Not a delusional thought that everything is going to be turning into rainbows and roses in just a minute. Not a false calm that simply masks the upheaval throbbing below the surface. But a real Peace. One my words aren’t correctly defining, but that my heart is experiencing and feeling and knowing.

And while I can’t put into words this Peace that is flushing out my battered heart today, I hope that wherever you are, whatever you are facing – it spills into your own heart, and brings its spirit of tranquility, of quiet.

Right Now.

Now may the Lord of Peace Himself give you Peace
always in every way.
The Lord be with you all.
-2 Thessalonians 3:16