John 16:33 ESV
Romans 12, I Corinthians 12, I Corinthians 14, Ephesians 4, I Timothy 4, and I Peter 4 (Mention of the Gifts of the Spirit)
Galatians 5:22-23 ESV
From the Jar
When I was a teenager my dad used to talk about how important peace is to him personally.
I wasn’t thinking about peace.
I was thinking about fun and laughter. While I did get my homework done when I was in high school, that wasn’t my main focus. I was all about student government and student reform. In 1969 girls still had serious dress codes at school. As I recall, when I was in high school we did get the dress code changed so that girls could wear slacks to school.
I was looking forward to college so I could wear jeans to class.
Now, that sounds like a silly goal, but to me it seemed unfair that boys could wear slacks so why couldn’t girls wear slacks?
I entered high school in 1969 so it was a sign of the times.
Looking back I think my dad’s reminders about peace were intentional.
John 16:33 says, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Years later when I had young children I remembered every day what my dad told me about having peace. I remembered him saying it was important.
Of course he was right.
As I grow older I desire God’s peace more and more with each passing day.
I remember my dad telling me that we can have God’s peace even when the world around us is in chaos.
At some point in my mid to late 30’s I asked God to teach me how to experience His peace in the midst of chaos. At the time my children were teenagers. ‘Nuff said.
When I first started practicing peace I needed quiet and solitude.
I discovered that when I asked God to give me peace I could feel the Spirit of God gently touch me. Then a feeling of deep calm would come over me and settle in my core.
My dad was right. There’s nothing on earth quite like God’s peace.
As I said at first I needed to sit in a quiet spot when I asked God to give me peace. Thirty years later (after I’ve practiced a lot) I can experience God’s peace in a crowded subway or in a room full of screaming children.
I’ve noticed that when I experience God’s peace when I’m with children they often instantly recognize it and come sit with me.
Children are incredibly aware and often possess great emotional intelligence. They know when someone around them is mad or sad.
I love that about children.
I found that when I’ve taught children in Sunday School or in Vacation Bible School that if I am experiencing moments of peace they recognize it and come to me. They want to touch me.
They want God’s peace.
If you’ve not experienced or practiced God’s Peace, I would highly recommend it. It’s one way we can experience the gifts of the Spirit in our everyday lives.
The Apostle Paul wrote about the gifts of the Spirit in Romans 12, I Corinthians 12, I Corinthians 14, Ephesians 4, I Timothy 4, and I Peter 4 to name a few.
Specifically in Galatians 5:22-23 he wrote about the fruit of the Spirit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
I think Paul wrote about the gifts of the Spirit a lot in order to give us the tools we would need. When the world around us is in chaos, we can still have God’s peace.
Today’s Spiritual Practice is: Peace
Receive God’s Peace today. Either find a quiet place or sit in a crowded room and ask God to give you His peace. Wait for it and it WILL come.
In God, Deborah
Comments