Peace Peace

Can anyone out there relate to the word “crazy”? And not just to describe yourself, but your life? Yeah. Me too. And where I get in trouble is allowing myself to believe that life will slow down; if I can just make it to next week, I’ll be okay, I’ll play catch-up, I’ll be able to take a breath.

Then next week comes.

And it’s even crazier

Problem is, I'm looking at all the wrong things. So here’s where God’s Word comes into play. In the midst of craziness, it speaks. Read this:

You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast [on you], because they trust in you. (Isaiah 26:3)

On one of my particularly crazy days—one of those days where I got crazier than the day around me—God blew that verse right over me. Go on and read it again. I had to. In fact, I went and got my Bible out and looked it up.

I love the beginning. It settles us immediately, doesn’t it? God will keep us in perfect peace. Ahhh...like a cool drink on a hot day...perfect peace...it sounds wonderful, right? Even better, the Hebrew word used here for “keep” is “natsar”, which means to guard; to watch; to keep in a safe place. We all want to feel guarded and safe, so right off, our hearts connect with what this verse is saying.

But we need to look a bit closer. This verse makes no mention of our circumstances. Nope. Life breeds craziness...especially with children. (I love them, but these are not slow, easy-going years...) Thing is, our God knows this! And while the world is a crazy place, He doesn't want us to be. I mean, remember the parable of the two builders? One erects his house on the rock, one builds on sand (Matt. 7:24-29)...the storms come for both, but only the house on the rock remains. Well, the same is true here. This verse isn’t talking about making our circumstances peaceful, but making US peaceful.

And before we talk about how we get that peace, let's talk about what type of peace He's giving us. The Hebrew text says, “shalom shalom” or “peace peace”…(repeating a word for emphasis...that’s some really good peace!) Here, the NIV translated it to “perfect peace”. Merriam-Webster defines the word ‘perfect’ as "being entirely without fault or defect; faithfully reproducing the original". Huh. Well then. “Peace, peace” or peace that reproduces the Original? Either way you slice it, that is something I would take!

But there’s a catch; that whole how thing? Yep. He doesn't just keep anyone in PEACE PEACE...look at that verse again: “Those whose minds are steadfast [on you]…”

Well what exactly does that mean? Let's go back to Merriam-Webster and look at the word ‘steadfast’. It's defined as "firmly fixed in place; not subject to change; firm in belief, determination, or adherence". See, we cannot expect to receive this peace if we don’t have our minds (feelings, perceptions, will) set (firmly fixed) on Him. Just like Peter walked on the water until he took his eyes off of Jesus--then he sank like a rock (Matt. 14:28-30)--our perfect peace dissipates the moment we don’t keep our eyes adhered to Christ.

So what does this all boil down to? Read the very last portion; it's all about trust. Life is crazy—it is the world we live in. The storms will rage. The waves will roll. But where are our eyes? Do we begin to tremble by the sight of life around us? Or do we remain fixed in place, focused on Christ, trusting in Him to handle what we cannot? Because in that trust, we will find PEACE PEACE.

The kind of peace that is reproduced from its Original source.

The kind of peace that cannot be shaken.

No matter how crazy things around us get.

Perfect peace.

How about you? Do you have a favorite verse for when things get crazy? I'd love to hear it!