Lara d’Entremont
“I just want peace!” I cried, as my little boy had yet another tantrum after being told not to stand on the kitchen table. I was surrounded by water running in the sink, messy counters, and a bowl of raw dough still needing to be cooked.
Maybe as a mom you exclaimed those same words as you threw your hands in the air while your children bickered over a toy for the tenth time that day. Maybe as a friend caught in a dispute you cried, “Can we just be at peace with one another?” Perhaps at work you wished for a peaceful day without any hitches. Perhaps you said it one weary day of scrolling through social media passing by bad news after more bad news.
We want peace. While some of us enjoy the ups and downs of a roller coaster, most of us don’t want that reflected in our daily lives. We like our calendars to be filled in an orderly fashion so we can flip to the future weeks and see how life will play out. We want our relationships to be predictable. But in a world cursed with thorns and thistles—or perhaps in better words, pandemics and paranoia—that’s not always the case
How do we tuck peace away in our hearts when we live in a sin-struck world? Where do we find “peace that surpasses all understanding” (Phil. 4:6–7) when our world feels like anything but at peace?
THE SOURCE OF OUR PEACE
When our world is disordered, we often run for comfort and distractions. Something to block out the noise so we can pretend for a moment that it vanished. A day off. A vacation. Scrolling through Instagram or Facebook. Binge-watching Netflix. Playing video games. An overflowing bowl of ice cream. Extra sleep. A run on the trail. And sometimes we do need that. Stress doesn’t just make us emotional—we also feel it in our bodies. Headaches, nausea, achy bones, stomach problems. When we’re in a stressful season, caring for our bodies is necessary.
But caring for our bodies won’t take away the stressful situation. Sleeping in won’t make our toddlers stop bickering in the afternoon. Getting more exercise won’t stop sickness from entering our homes. A vacation won’t heal our fraying relationship. Watching another season of our favorite TV show won’t make the bad news go away.
We have a better hope than the world does (John 14:27). As believers, Christ gives us perfect peace that surpasses all understanding (Phil. 4:7) because he’s the Lord of peace (2 Thess. 3:16).
The source of our abounding peace begins with the gospel. When we were alienated from God, we had no source of everlasting peace. No hope of a future where all tears would be wiped away. We had no hope that our suffering held eternal purposes. We had no hope that if everyone abandoned us, we still had a perfect Heavenly Father who loved us. But now, in Christ, by grace through faith, we’re given this abounding peace. By Christ’s blood, we have this peace with the Father (Eph. 2:11–13).
REMEMBERING OUR PEACE
We often cry, “I just want peace!” forgetting that we already have access to it. It’s not something we have to conjure up or go searching for. Christ has given us this peace by his grace. It’s already ours because we’re secured in him. When we feel restless and overwhelmed, it’s not about climbing and grasping, but about remembering what we already have.
How do we remember this peace we have been given? Here’s how God has instructed us:
Meditate on His Word
John Calvin wrote in his commentary that our peace “does not bend itself to the various shiftings of the world, but is founded on the firm and immutable word of God.”[1] When we set our minds on God’s Word, we can be encouraged and reminded of our eternal peace. As Calvin notes, God’s Word is firm and doesn’t shift and change like our lives and culture. It’s firm. By this unwavering Word, we’re reminded of God’s everlasting goodness, his unwavering love for his children, his abundant grace, and his kind sovereignty. We’re reminded of our secure place in God’s house.
Psalm 19 tells us that God’s Word revives our souls and rejoices our hearts (vv. 7–8). Scripture has this kind of power because it’s alive. “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart,” (Heb. 4:12). No other book holds this kind of living power. This book has the words to save souls and bring courage to the weariest of pilgrims. Make room for God’s Word in your daily life and see it renew your fretful heart.
Look to the Church
Despite how isolating our suffering and stress may feel, God has not left us alone. After giving his disciples the Great Commission, Jesus declared, “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age,” (Matt. 2:20b). One of those ways he is always with us is through the local body of believers. He knitted us into a family of children belonging to him. In this family, we’re to encourage and build one another up in our faith (Heb. 10:24–25). When stress fogs our eyes, we can look to other believers to clear the haze and remind us of our peace in Christ.
Sometimes this may mean remembering reasons to celebrate—other times it may mean crying together (Rom. 12:15). Sometimes it may mean being drawn shoulder-to-shoulder with a fellow believer so they can help carry our loads—other times it may mean being shown how to carry the burden better (Gal. 6:1–5). Whatever it may be, we can be reminded of our peace from our siblings in Christ. Stop suffering under fear’s crushing weight alone. Look to your local body of believers, lean on them, and learn how you can one day do the same for others.
Worship by Singing
We not only instruct and encourage one another with our words, but also by our singing. Paul wrote to the Colossians, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God,” (Col. 3:16).
By God’s grace and creativity, the church is gifted with beautiful voices to sing truth. Let’s take advantage of this gift and use it to remind ourselves of our reasons to be peaceful beyond understanding.
Call on Our Heavenly Father
Not when all else fails, but at all times, let’s call out to God with our anxious, restless hearts. As Paul penned to the church in Philippi, “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus,” (Phil. 4:6–7).
Because of Christ, we can step before God’s throne and cry to him. We can follow the example of the psalmists and weep before God with truthful words. We can tell him our sorrow, our fears, our shame, and our anger. Maybe by our prayers we will find courage and end in praising our faithful Father. Or maybe it will simply be the act of bringing our grief and stress before God that we will find comfort. Whatever it is, call on your heavenly Father. Through Christ, he is always near and ready to listen to what his children have to say.
PEACE FROM GOD
If we’re at peace with God by the gospel—our wretched sins are forgiven by trusting in Christ—we will have peace from God. When all other ground is as sinking sand, as the hymn writer wrote, our feet can stand firmly on Christ, our Solid Rock:
When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand.[2]
Perhaps you want peace amidst your flaming suffering. Or perhaps you’re simply looking for peace within a hectic day with a toddler and housework like myself. Whatever our lot God draws for us, we can find peace by resting on his unchanging grace.
[1] https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/cal/philippians-4.html
[2] Edward Mote (1797-1874), My hope is built on nothing less.
Lara d’Entremont is a biblical counselor in training, and her desire in writing is to teach women to turn to God’s word in the midst of their daily lives and suffering to find the answers they need. She wants to teach women to love God with both their minds and hearts. Lara is married to Daniel and they live in Nova Scotia, Canada. See more of her writing on her website, Twitter, or Facebook.
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