John 14:27 " Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."
Today's blog is about having personal peace within ourselves despite the chaos and circumstances around us. Each of us have either come out of a hard valley or are in the midst of one or are about to face one and don't know it yet. Life has it's moments of mountain tops, but we don't live there continuously. The steep climb or descent is not an easy journey for any of us. God sent the Holy Spirit to live within us, as believers, and be our guide during these difficult times. John 14:16-17 " And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you."
In the verse above John 14:27, "He wasn’t saying that all their conditions would be serene, easy, and comfortable. On the contrary, He was telling them they would have peace of mind and heart even though their circumstances were painful, difficult, and uncertain. And this is the same kind of peace Jesus promises to all of us who belong to Him." [intouch.org] As believers, we can have peace by knowing and trusting in God's control and that He is working things out for our good.
True peace comes from having a relationship with Jesus, a togetherness or oneness with him. Any other source of peace is faulty, fraudulent, counterfeit and not everlasting. If you don't have Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you will never have peace. You will have fear, doubt, anxiety, needless worry, and uncertainty. We are called to be followers of the Prince of Peace, Jesus. As followers, we are not to just enjoy the gift of peace but to be peacemakers in the world around us.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me” (Psalm 23:4 NIV). That verse resonates the kind of peace God wants to give to us. Even tho, we may be in the worst situation of our life, we trust God to carry us through it, even death. These valleys of life are often a metaphor for difficult times, times of darkness, despair, defeat, or discouragement.
3 Things to Remember About the Valleys of Life [R.Warren]
1] Valleys are a part of life. The Bible says in Deuteronomy 11:11, “The land
you will soon take over is a land of hills and valleys” (NLT).
Valleys are inevitable. You can’t avoid valleys. Instead, you can count on them.
2] Valleys happen to everybody. They’re impartial. Good things happen to bad people, and bad things happen to good people. We’re in a fallen and broken world, so we have problems. Nobody’s immune. Nobody’s insulated from pain. Nobody sails through life problem free.
“The good man does not escape all troubles—he has them too. But the Lord helps him in each and every one” (Psalm 34:19 TLB).
3] Valleys are unpredictable. You can’t plan them. You can’t time them. Problems typically catch you off guard. In fact, your valleys and your problems come usually at the worst time—when you don’t have time, when you’re unprepared, and when it’s inconvenient.
Proverbs 27:1 says, “Don’t brag about tomorrow, since you don’t know what the day will bring forth” (NLT).
As for myself, I am on the upward climb out of my valley and headed to the mountaintop. I can tell you the view gets better everyday as I make progress. My recent valley, my fall, made me only look up to the heavens. The Bible talks of being pulled up out of the miry pit and I definitely was. The valley is not a place to dwell with your negative thoughts or your weakened body, but a place to draw close to God and gain strength from Him. Valleys are a place to strengthen your faith and trust in Him, not yourself.
Chronicles 20:9 ‘If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.’
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