Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.John 14:27
Peace does not come to the fore when our lives are running smoothly, and we feel on top of the world. One of my favourite pictures that symbolises peace shows a bird taking shelter under a rock while the rain, wind and storms raged around him. But he was at peace. This tiny creature knew that when the weather became fierce, he needed to find somewhere safe to shelter.
This is wonderful inspiration for us. When we feel tossed about by the storms in our lives, the best place to find peace is right in the arms of our Saviour. A few years ago, we had a robbery at our house and a few things were taken including our laptops, all while my daughter and friends were upstairs. Just after this happened, my daughter and I were both impacted by John 14 v 27. Even though we were still upset by the robbery, we felt an over-arching peace. A few days later, the police called us to let us know that they had recovered all our stolen goods. We were amazed! But then, a few weeks later, we were invited to take part in an intervention meeting with the young man, aged 15, who had taken our stuff. We sat around the table with police, counsellors, and education specialists. We got to find out more about this poor young man whose life was filled with tremendous hopelessness and desperation. In the meeting we got the opportunity to talk to him face to face and show him grace and forgiveness. This was a profound experience for our family. And very unexpected. What an amazing manifestation of Peace!
