As we journey together into a bit of “uncertainty” in the future, there is for many of us a temptation to fret about what is going to become of not only our nation, but also our individual, family, and community welfare. There are significant “pressures” to deal with in the political, economic, and physical arenas that can cause concern, or worry, or anxiety, or even outright panic. How can we “hang on” to our peace in the midst of these pressures?
The answer lies, as you know well, in our focus. The encouragements in Scripture are many, and they are powerful and effective. But it is one thing to acknowledge where the answer can be found, and another thing to discover how to implement those (perhaps freshly remembered) truths and strategies laid before us through the divine inspiration from the Holy Spirit. How do we “bridge the gap” from knowledge of the promise of peace (even perfect peace) from God to actually experience that peace that we long for deep inside our innermost being, whether we realize that longing or not?
There are different levels of understanding of how to build such a “bridge” into the “settled-ness” of peace, but let’s keep it simple as we venture forward. What are some of the promises we have from God in His Word? Here are a few:
“Perfect, absolute peace surrounds those whose imaginations are consumed with you; they confidently trust in you.” [Isaiah 26:3 (TPT)]
“I leave the gift of peace with you—my peace. Not the kind of fragile peace given by the world, but my perfect peace. Don’t yield to fear or be troubled in your hearts—instead, be courageous!” [John 14:27]
“6Don’t be pulled in different directions or worried about a thing. Be saturated in prayer throughout each day, offering your faith-filled requests before God with overflowing gratitude. Tell him every detail of your life, 7then God’s wonderful peace that transcends human understanding, will make the answers known to you through Jesus Christ. 8So keep your thoughts continually fixed on all that is authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind. And fasten your thoughts on every glorious work of God, praising him always. 9Follow the example of all that we have imparted to you and the God of peace will be with you in all things.” [Phil 4:6-9 (TPT)]
There are many more verses along these same lines, but let’s focus on the common theme: confidence in the ability of God our Father to keep us in perfect peace when we completely and utterly focus our thoughts (or imaginations) on Him! Another way to phrase this theme is that our trust in God helps us decide to believe that He will keep us in perfect peace, and this framing of our imaginations that are focused on His nature as a perfect Father is the key to building confidence.
There is an exquisite “weaving” of these inter-related threads of faith, trust, belief, and confidence. All of these are strengthened and matured in the most beneficial place in the universe to “hang out,” your place in the Father’s heart! More simply stated, your relationship with Abba as his child is the source and sustenance of your utter trust in Him. This in turn fosters the ability for you to “trade in” your inability for His ability. Once you have chosen to believe in His ability to keep you in perfect peace and stop relying on your own understanding, then you have not only built the bridge to “settled-ness” I mentioned above, but you have crossed it!
Now you can live in a place where your confidence is extreme, like what Jesus demonstrated when he walked the earth with his disciples.
Jesus walked the earth with extreme confidence,
And so can YOU!
This is the thesis of a powerful online course that I have made available in our resource hub called “Father’s Workshop.” This 8-session course is called “The Belief Advantage” and comes with study guides for each of the sessions. If you registered for this course in the past, you still have access to repeat all or some of it at any time. If you have not yet availed yourself of this empowering “road-map” to Jesus-level confidence, please do so at your earliest convenience. If you are a “Father’s Friend” (Financial Supporter, Core Team Intercessor, Volunteer) please take advantage of your Father’s Friend discount at “check-out” during the registration process. Contact us for a Father’s Friends discount (coupon) code. Email us at friends@fatherstouch.org.
Get focused on your loving Abba, gain the confidence that you need to trust him completely, and you will experience (and remain in!) his perfect peace! You will have the kind of boldness that shrinks to nothing the temptations to worry or fret. It’s your (re-)birthright as the “apple of his eye.”
P.S. You may also enjoy my mp3 message entitled “A Cake of Peace!” which is available for download at https://fatherstouch.org/product/a-cake-of-peace/. This is a timeless message containing a “recipe” for peace that combines ingredients such as knowing that God wants you to have peace, believing that you can have it, and trusting God to answer prayer. God’s Word contains an old-testament example of the “peace that surpasses all understanding” promised by Paul in Phil 4:7; you may be surprised by the lesson it contains!