The Hebrew word for peace is shalom. And apart from God it will always remain a pipe dream, a philosophical fantasy, or a tantalising fish that is just beyond your bait and hook. Marriages go awry and fall apart because we look to an imperfect mate to give us the perfect peace we’re searching for, and we discover they can’t.
The story’s told of a woman at a cocktail party who was trying her best to look happy. Noticing the gargantuan sparkling rock on her finger, a guest exclaimed, ‘Wow! What a beautiful stone!’ She replied, ‘Thank you. It’s the Callahan diamond.’ The onlooker said, ‘I wish I had one!’ The woman replied, ‘No, you don’t.’ ‘Why not?’ he asked. ‘Because it comes with the Callahan curse,’ she replied. ‘The Callahan curse – what’s that?’ asked the questioner. She sighed and said, ‘Mr Callahan!’
Perfect peace can only come from a perfect peace-giver, and the only one who meets that qualification is God. Peace isn’t the absence of problems; it’s the presence of God in the midst of your problems. What’s more, nobody ever finds peace by looking for it. Peace isn’t something you find; it finds you when you surrender your life to the One who said, ‘My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.’ Note the words ‘My Presence’. Only God’s presence can bring peace. The assurance of God’s love, God’s help, and God’s presence is what takes the stress out of living. Are you longing for peace today? When you surrender your life to Christ, you’ll ‘experience…peace…far more wonderful than the human mind can understand’ (Philippians 4:7 TLB).
1 Chron 19-21, Acts 17:16-34
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