‘I am leaving you with a gift–peace of mind…’ John 14:27 NLT
Life comes with surprises. Some of them you welcome, and some of them you don’t. One summer you take a trip to the beach, next summer the beach is covered with oil. One month your stocks are soaring and your investments are growing, then suddenly it all comes crashing down. And the ‘brains’ you thought were running the system sit at session of parliament and say, ‘We just never anticipated this.’ And in those rare seasons when you think the world has settled down, watch out! A malignant cell shows up in a colon, or a cyclone rips through a neighbourhood flattening a house. So what are you going to do? When Jesus told His disciples He was leaving them, they were in panic mode, so He said to them, ‘…When the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—He will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you. I’m leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.’ (John 14:26–27 NLT) You need to recognise the presence of the Holy Spirit who lives within you, and build a relationship with Him. He’s not an ‘it’ or a ‘thing’ or an ethereal spirit that’s beyond your reach. He is Christ’s ‘representative’. He’s willing to teach you what you don’t know, and to remind you of the things you so easily forget. And best of all, He will give you ‘peace of mind and heart’, regardless of what life throws at you.
SoulFood: Jer 4-6, Luke 21:1-24, Ps 38:1-12, Prov 8:22-23
The Word for Today is authored by Bob and Debby Gass and published under licence from UCB International Copyright 2015
