Hurt. Uncertainty. Loss. Discouragement. Confusion. Fear. Weariness.

There are many different troubles in life that make our hearts feel weighed down. Peace on earth can seem far away. 

What a comfort it is then to remember that there is a God of all peace who can be known and loved. Through faith in Jesus Christ, His perfect peace can be experienced in every way at all times regardless of how many burdens are being carried.The Lord gives His people strength. He blesses us with peace that guards and rules our heart.

Jesus gives us a different kind of peace than the world offers. The world’s peace is fleeting and shallow. No trouble equals peace. Yet in this dark world, how often does that happen?  Biblical peace brings wholeness and completeness. Jesus has reconciled us to God through His life, death and resurrection. When we believe in Him, through grace, the dividing wall of our sin is destroyed.

Luke 2:10-11 says: “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

The birth of our Savior was announced by an angel of the Lord to shepherds tending to their flock at night. The message that was spoken to them all those years ago is still true for us today. We can know full and lasting peace when Christ is our Savior and Lord. Our sin is defeated; and He comforts us in all of our hurts as our heart is filled with eternal hope. Jesus is now our rest. He is our peace no matter how chaotic life is. He is now our firm foundation in all the storms of life. One day, only by God’s grace, we will experience the perfections of heaven. 

I have been convicted lately by how often I long for a trouble-free life more than Jesus who is the God of all peace. So often I despise the very things that God uses to draw my heart closer to Him in dependence.

As it has been said before, anything that draws us to prayer is a blessing. 

Because the more we pray, the more we grow to know Jesus. 

The more we grow to know Jesus, the more we will trust Him. 

The more we trust Him, the more we will know the perfect peace of our Savior. 

In this world we will know trouble, but we can also know the God of all peace. When our heart is heavy with many burdens, let us look to our God who has entered into the darkness of this world to show us that we can know the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding.