During my nightly meditation, I reflected on peace—what it is and how to experience it—and God clarified this for me.
Whenever you do any of the following and trust in God’s Word—not simply say them but believe them—you will be at peace.
When you forgive, you are at peace.
When you give from your heart, you are at peace.
When you look at you day with no regrets of what could have been or what you lost, you are at peace.
When your prognosis is not what you wanted and you give the condition to God, no holding back, you are at peace.
When you wake up in the morning and praise God for another day, you are at peace.
When you listen to the news and rebuke the chaos, relying on God instead of succumbing to evil, you are at peace.
Prayers about peace.
Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Job 22:21 Agree with God and be at peace; thereby good will come to you.
John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
Jude 1:2 May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.
Luke 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
Connectusfund.org. 50 Inspiring Bible Scriptures on Peace
Our morning devotional is written to lighten your concerns, anxiety, and fears.
The Amplified Version of Aaron’s Benediction reads:
“¶The Lord bless you, and keep you [protect you, sustain you, and guard you]; ¶The Lord make His face shine upon you [with favor], And be gracious to you [surrounding you with lovingkindness]; ¶The Lord lift up His countenance (face) upon you [with divine approval], And give you peace [a tranquil heart and life].’”
Numbers 6:24-26 AMP
As long as we belong to God, our Father, we can survive any challenges that lie before us. We reside in His refuge, and He gives us peace in whatever storm tries to overwhelm us.
He protects us, sustains us, and gives us new mercies every morning. He gives us divine approval and peace greater than any peace we can expect or imagine.
This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice in our hearts and not be dismayed by the trappings of this world. Though chaos surrounds us, it cannot influence who we are in Christ.
In Hebrew the phrase Shalom-Shalom, means perfect peace. It is yours if you keep your mind on the Lord.~ Lisa Blair
“You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever, For in YAH, the Lord, is everlasting strength.” Isaiah 26:3-4 NKJV (bible.com)
Note: I extracted the following commentary from EnduringTruth.com commentary on verses 3-4.
My prayer is that each of us will experience Shalom Shalom, the perfect peace of God.
I also encourage you to pray before reading Isaiah 26:3-4, followed by reading the extract (and the full commentary). Taking the time to pray and prepare your heart can deepen your understanding and connection to the scriptures. Inviting God into your reading makes you more likely to gain insights and peace.
A good method to gain understanding is to:
Always pray and ask the Holy Spirit to speak to you through the passages
Read the Passage(s) in the Bible
Read the commentary(s) with more understanding
Let God speak to your mind. Don’t just skim over the text to read a devotion.
Shalom Shalom is yours when you put God first.
Partial Commentary explaining verses three and four.
(3-4) The LORD is our source of strength. You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. Trust in the LORD forever, For in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength.
a. You will keep him in perfect peace: This is a wonderful promise: perfect peace. God promises that we can have perfect peace, and even be kept in a place of perfect peace.
i. In Hebrew, the term perfect peace is actually shalom shalom. This shows how repetition communicates intensity in Hebrew. It is not just shalom; it is shalom shalom, perfect peace.
ii. “Understand, dear soul, that it is thy privilege to live inside the double doors of God’s loving care. He says to thee, ‘Peace, peace.’ If one assurance is not enough, He will follow it with a second and a third.” (Meyer)
iii. Some can have this perfect peace, but it is fleeting, and they are never kept there. Others can be kept in peace, but it is not a perfect peace, it is the peace of the wicked, the peace of spiritual sleep and ultimate destruction. But there is a perfect peace that the LORD will keep us in.
b. Whose mind is stayed on You: This is the place of perfect peace and the source of it. When we keep our minds stayed – settled upon, established upon – the LORD Himself, then we can be kept in this perfect peace.
i. To be kept in this perfect peace is a matter of our mind. This isn’t so much a matter of our spirit or of our soul or of our heart. It is a matter of our mind. We are to love the LORD our God with all of our mind(Matthew 22:37). We are transformed by the renewing of your mind (Romans 12:2). We can have the mind of Christ(1 Corinthians 2:16, Philippians 2:5). We are not to set our mind on earthly things(Philippians 3:19), but to set our mind on things above (Colossians 3:2). The Christian life is not an unthinking life of just doing, or experiencing, but it is also about thinking, and where we set our mind is essential in our walk before the LORD.
ii. To be kept in this perfect peace, our mind must be stayed. According to Strong’s Dictionary, the Hebrew word sawmak comes from the root “to prop,” and has the idea “to lean upon or take hold of…bear up, establish, uphold, lay, lean, lie hard, put, rest self, set self, stand fast, stay (self), sustain.” In other places the same word is translated sustained(Genesis 27:37, Psalm 3:5), or when the priest would put their hands on the head of a sacrificial animal (Exodus 29:10, 15, 19), or of the laying on of hands in other circumstances (Numbers 27:18), of being upheld (Psalm 71:6), to stand fast upon (Psalm 111:8), of being established(Psalm 112:8), of leaning upon (Isaiah 36:6, 48:2). It is fair to ask the disciples of Jesus Christ: What sustains your mind? What do you lay your mind upon? What upholdsyour mind? What does your mind stand fast upon? What is your mind establishedupon? What does your mind lean upon? To have this perfect peace, your mind cannot occasionally come to and lean upon the LORD; it has to be stayed on Him.
iii. To be kept in this perfect peace, our mind must be stayed on the LORD. If our mind is stayed on ourselves, or our problems, or the problem people in our lives, or on anything else, we can’t have this perfect peace. This is the heart that says with the Apostle Paul, that I may know Him (Philippians 3:10). In his spiritual attacks against us, Satan loves to get our minds set on anything except the LORD.
c. Because he trusts in You: This is another way of expressing the idea of keeping our minds stayed on Him. Almost always, you keep your mind stayed on whatever you are trusting. When we trust the LORD, we keep our mind stayed on Him.
i. Proverbs 3:5 expresses this same idea: Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. The word for lean in Proverbs 3:5 comes from the same root as the word stayed in Isaiah 26:3. When we trust in the LORD, we do not lean on our own understanding. To lean on the LORD is to trust Him. To be sustained by the LORD is to trust Him. To be established by the LORD is to trust Him. To be upheld by the LORD is to trust Him.
ii. The battle for trust in our lives begins in our minds. If we trust the LORD, it will show in our actions, but it will begin in our mind.
d. Trust in the LORD forever: Because of the promise of Isaiah 26:3, we are encouraged to trust in the LORD forever – and therefore to receive the blessing of the promise, perfect peace.
e. For in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength: If the LORD calls us to rely on Him completely with our mind, He appeals to our mind with a rational reason why we should trust the LORD – because He is everlasting strength. It isn’t that the LORD has everlasting strength, He is everlasting strength.
i. Clarke’s comment on Isaiah 12:2 applies here also: “The word Yah read here is probably a mistake; and arose originally from the custom of the Jewish scribes, who, when they found a line too short for the word, wrote as many letters as filled it, and then began the next line with the whole word.”
What does‘if only‘ pondering mean? When we pray, we often pray for an outcome. If only I had a house, if only I had a raise if only, I was married, well, wealthy… The prayers are doubtful asks. We are not praying to God because He is God. We are praying to God asking Him to prove He is the God of the way, the truth, and the life.
Our relationship with God is not founded on what He can do for us. It is founded on the fact that He sent His only begotten son to die for our sin. It is through faith that our relationship is real and solid. I believe that we do not often focus on the phrase, ‘only begotten son’ as demonstrating the depth and breath of His love for us. My question is, what if God had not sacrificed His Son for us, would we be crying ‘only if’? A statement that decries a state of darkness.
Like many in the Bible, we learn that once they ceased crying for things that they felt would improve their lives and coexist on the planet, the very same moment their circumstances changed. Their belief in our Almighty, Sovereign God took away the sting of their circumstances. As the sting dissipated, their vision cleared, and avenues illuminated alternatives that previously were not viewed. It is difficult to see in the dark, and in the blackness of night, you are blind. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. Through Him, there is light that leads the way. Our ‘only ifs’ seemingly rear their faces as selfless requests.
God is the I AM, not a God who must jump through hoops to prove Himself to us. ‘Only if’ we could understand the vastness of His love for us and enter prayer with the intention to deepen our relationship with Him and not to offer up a Christmas list at every turn.
Helpful Scriptures
Jesus is the Light
John 8:12. Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me, will never walk in darkness, but have the light of life.“
Psalm 27:1. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Ephesians 5:8. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of the light.
1 John 1:5. This is the message which we have heard from him, and declared to you, that God is light, and him there is no darkness at all.
Faith and Doubt.
Proverbs 3:4,6. Trust in the Lord, with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways, submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
Mark 9: 22-23. But if you can do anything, take pity on us, and help us. “If you can?“ Said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.”
Matthew 28:16,17. “Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee to the mountain, where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.”
Hebrews 11:6. “And without faith, it is impossible to please, God, because anyone who comes to Him, must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.”
James 1:2-7. “Considerate, pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave in the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.
Where doubt reigns, faith cannot abide. (Billy Graham) When we utter the ‘if only’s’ we are in essence doubting our maker, and faith cannot abide. When we doubt the ‘if only’s’ weaken our faith, in fact it renders it void. Our faith resides in the truth that Jesus is our Savior, who cares for us, directs us, and provides for us. Praise, and Thanksgiving should replace our ‘if only’s’.
Images: Hebrews 11:6, Highland Park Baptist Church; John 8:12, wiirocku.tumbler.com; Ephesians 5:8,9 Pinterest, Laura Huntington; @studentdevos
Scriptures: Jesus is the Light. Bible Verses About Jesus Christ, Light of the World. ccg.org; 10 Bible. Erases About Faith and Doubt. Jesus film.org; Biblegateway.org
You pray and pray and pray, and God blessed you within His Will. Did He bestow a blessing that mirrored your prayer?
My husband and I lived in the Midwest for ten years. I wanted to move back to the West Coast, meaning Los Angeles. I prayed without ceasing, with self as the center point. I wanted to move back to L.A..
My pray was not one that reflected dependence upon God. I did not ask what His Will was for me, instead I told Him what I wanted, not thinking about His big picture for my life and where I was best suited to accomplish His work.
Image – Linda Moore Curry, Pinterest
The place I would accomplish His work was not Los Angeles, as I desired. It was Oakland, a place I refused to move to earlier in life. I did not care for the Bay Area. My husband had been offered a job in the Bay 10 years earlier. He was also offered an opportunity in Kansas where we moved. I would do anything to avoid the Bay.
Looking back, God planted me in Kansas to prepare me for the position as administrator at a charter school in, of all places, Oakland, Ca. Life was not easy in Kansas. We were in a recession and our jobs did not materialize as planned and offered. The state froze government jobs, i.e., the University of Kansas. I scrambled for employment and ended up taking two part time positions and a quarter coordinator position, yes that is equal to a full time plus job. We were also raising three sons who needed our attention. The jobs kept me going, made ends meet even though I was a college graduate and felt under paid with little to do with my degrees. Crazy right? Amazingly to the untrained eye, these experiences did not mount up to the reality. It turned out to be my training time in the desert. Each position offered experience in some component needed to succeed in my next task God was preparing me to undertake.This season was actually a blessing and also served to advance my husbands career.
All to often we can not see the forest for the trees. The trees are in our line of scope. Similarly, our prayers are in our line of scope. The forest is where God chooses to plant us to acquire the skills and knowledge to accomplish His work. The next time you feel you are in the wrong place, take time to recognize God has you where He wants you for that period in time. We are His apprentices. Apprenticeships often feel demeaning, without purpose or cause. But, within the context of doing things you feel require little of your abilities are the nuggets, the diamonds, that once connected prepare you for your next step.
I like the NLT version of Isaiah 55:8-9 because the message is clear –
“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” https://bible.com/bible/116/isa.55.8-9.NLT
The Living, Tumblr
God chooses us and prepares us to do His work, His Will. In the case of Paul, (I am not implying any of us are Paul’s in the truest sense), we are God’s ambassadors on earth, sent here to accomplish His Will.
In the article, The Preparation of Paul, the writer shares: “Paul said that when Christ called him, he did not go to Jerusalem to receive instruction from the apostles. Rather, he retired into Arabia for a time and not until three years later did he go to Jerusalem… It has often been remarked that Paul clearly implied that he spent three years being taught by Jesus Himself (1:12), either directly or (perhaps more likely) through the study of the Word. Thus, like the other apostles, Paul studied with Christ for three years before beginning his ministry (compare Acts 1:21). Ligonier.org. March 19, 1992.
Paul spent three years preparing for his mission, career if you will, before God placed him in the role.
David is also a good example of how God applies His Will.
David did not become King over night. David was the youngest, least hardy and not handsome like his brothers. His father taught him a skill because there was little hope of him becoming anything more. But it was precisely the skill, being a good sheppard, that was needed for him to become a man of God and a great king.
Did you know that God sent Samuel to tell David that he would be king when he was just 15 years old? At that time, David was just a shepherd boy who was always overlooked by his older brothers. But God had a plan for David’s life, it just took a while for it to happen. David had to be patient and trust that God would do what he promised. David had to run away from King Saul who hated David. When King Saul died, David was finally made king. In total, David had to wait 22 years to be the king of all of Israel! Have you ever had to wait for something that you really wanted? If you have, you know how hard it is to be patient. But, maybe you’ve only had to wait a few days or a week…maybe a month. David had to wait a lot longer than that. So kids, here’s the lesson. Sometimes God will make us wait. He may not answer every prayer just how we want or he might take longer to answer than we like. But, we can trust God’s timing because he’s God and he knows what he’s doing. His timing is always perfect. Be patient! (David Becomes King. Pursuegodkids.org)
When David was a teenager, he was anointed as the next king of Israel. It was then that he faced Goliath, was banished by Saul, hid in the desert, lived on the run, forced out of the nation, and fought many battles. It was nearly 15 years between the time that he was anointed king and actually became king. He was tested, just like Joseph, so that God could convert him from a shepherd into a king. (Quota.org Gert Britz)
Paul and David are great examples of how God prepares us to accomplish His Will. The Bible is our manual, our guidebook. If God trained them, placed them in desperate situations, sent them places he would not have chosen on their own, why would it be any different for us today?
God also chose women to accomplish His Will, in a time when women were second class citizens if you will. He chooses the unlikely so the world will know it is not our doing. In fact, the vast majority of the hero’s and heroines throughout history were ordinary individuals who God planted a seed in before they were born. What is the proof, read Jeremiah 1:5 where he penned God’s words, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you.”
We should always dig deeper when we are in situations that feel leads no where, or in a direction not of our choosing. There are hidden gems, lessons, skills, knowledge and wisdom that is being imparted in those moments, times, seasons, and years.
Again, our time is not His time, nor our thoughts His. We are His and He has plans for our future. Jeremiah 29:11 poignantly states:
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” https://jeremiah.bible/jeremiah-29-11
Peaceful Home
I wrote this post days ago and my Pastor’s Daily Devotional focuses on this topic. Amazingly, we both spiritually matured in, that’s right, Oakland, Ca.
Lisa’s Daily Inspirations 