Jesus Christ told his followers in John 14:1(NLT), “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.” The beauty of his words in this verse are overwhelming, particularly when we consider the reality that the depth of his unspeakable suffering was very near. In the preceding chapter, he talked about one of his disciples betraying him, and they were all baffled when he spoke of this. Being so close to him, walking and talking with him and being taught the Word of God by him, it must have been hard to swallow that one of their band of brothers had betrayal in his heart. But we know from the scriptures that it was true. Nonetheless, when they heard it from the lips of Jesus, and when he told them that he would soon be leaving them, this was almost too much to process. They looked concerned and anxious. He noticed, because of course he knows our pain inward and outward. Their souls were troubled, and he told them not to let this happen. How tremendously comforting his words are, but we must not forget that the words of our Master are not meant to be a suggestion. They are meant to stabilize us during times of stress so that we will not be overtaken by the enemy’s distractions and his attempts to steal our joy.
Heavenly Father has designed life in such a way that it demands we constantly respond to it. There are only two responses, faith and fear. That’s it. Everything else is an offshoot of those two. They are both powerful realities because they have the power to transport us to totally different territories. One is the territory of God’s love, light, liberty and life. The other is the devil’s territory of doubt, darkness, bondage, and death. Somehow, many have convinced themselves that this is just a way of looking at things and it isn’t real. Many people look at the things in this three-dimensional world to be the reality of all there is. This isn’t representative of the truth. The spiritual realm existed long before anything else, and the spiritual things of God are more real than the things we see with our physical eyes every day. 2Corinthians 4:18(NLT) tells us, “So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”
God tells us in Psalm 91:1(NLT), “Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” This is where you and I should want to be. We should want to forever remain in the territory of God’s shelter, where we will continually find rest in Him. To do this, He tells us that our minds must be renewed, and our hearts must be changed. He tells us in Philippians 4:6-7(NLT), “6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”
Here again, God tells us how to respond and how not to respond. We are not to respond to the issues of life with anxiety and worry. Now, some of us know this but privately we might think to ourselves, “How can I not worry about the things that are going on. The world is a very dangerous and crazy place. None of us know how we’re going to make it from one day to the next.” If you contemplate the origin of this kind of mindset, you will see that we’ve been programmed to think the opposite of faith. Our Heavenly Father is a Great Big Wonderful God who has all power in His hands. He is loving through and through, and He can do anything, yet some of us will not believe in His goodness or His willingness and ability to help us.
Heavenly Father isn’t telling us not to be concerned for others, but He wants us to remember that all help comes from Him. If there is a problem to be solved, He is the One to solve it. Our worrying has no impact or effect on the solution, it simply adds to the negative energy of fear, and this is exactly what the enemy wants. The arrogance of the world tricks many people into believing that their institutions and the people that run them can solve the incredible issues of our day. We need only look around to see that ain’t so.
We shouldn’t feel condemned for worrying, but we should absolutely ask Heavenly Father to arrest our worries with His peace. He tells us to open our mouths and communicate whatever is on our hearts. To get it out and turn it over to Him totally and completely. As we do this, the Holy Spirit that indwells us will flood our hearts with God’s peace. We must always understand that this is a choice, and we are the ones to make it. We decide if we will trust God or if we will be tricked out of the mind of Christ and sink into the depths of despair, anxiety, doubt, and worry.
Jesus Christ gave his life on the cross for our sins. He took our place, because we should have been the ones on that cross. God paid the ultimate price by giving the life of His only begotten Son. The way that you and I demonstrate our gratitude for all He’s done for us through Jesus Christ is through our faith. This is how we partner with God. You and I don’t know the true magnitude of how the power of our faith pleases Him, but we know that something from heaven is released in the earth when we trust God to back His Word.
Isaiah 26:3 tells us that God will keep in perfect peace all those who trust Him and all whose thoughts are fixed on Him. Fixing our thoughts on God’s willingness and ability to solve all problems is the recipe for His peace. He is the One with the solutions, not us. So, let’s not bow to fear, especially during times of uncertainty. There is nothing going on today that our Father does not know. He knew about it for a span of time so long that you and I cannot quantify it. His plan is still moving forward, and nothing will prevent it from doing so. Let’s continue instant in prayer and let the peace of God flood our hearts. There’s not a better thing to do in times like these than to trust Him, and to take comfort and remain in the perfect peace that He offers. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Remain in God’s Perfect Peace” written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times, for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2020. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! Sundie Morning Sistas is dedicated to spiritual inspiration and encouragement through the Word of God.