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Glory Seed Devotional’s, 2017: Anticipating and Experiencing Jehovah-Jireh...
Peace and Rest...
Shalom!
“Then they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, with all their heart and soul... All in Judah were happy about this covenant, for they had entered into it with all their heart. They earnestly sought after God, and they found him. And the Lord gave them rest from their enemies on every side.” (2 Chronicles 15:12, 15, NLT)
The “fruit” of entering into a covenant with God is Peace. The “fruit” of Peace is Rest. (I use capital letters to distinguish God initiated Peace and Rest, from the peace and rest of an emotional nature.) It wasn’t until yesterday morning during my early morning time with God that I became aware of the relationship of Peace to Rest. Then suddenly I discovered why Peace seems so illusive at times.
Another way of looking at the relationship of Peace to Rest is to see Peace as “Stored Energy” or “Potential Energy” and Rest as “Kinetic Energy” or “Energy in action”. We initially experience (Spiritual) Peace much like we do emotional peace as a feeling of calmness, a feeling of no longer being alone, but when we release our “feelings” into the fabric of our life the danger or anxiety is suddenly pushed aside replaced by the Peace that passes all understanding.
The Psalmist describes the Fruit of Peace or the sudden release of Potential Energy we know as Peace like this. “Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.” (Psalm 23:4–6, NLT)
One of my favorite pictures is the one that shows Jesus knocking on a door. When trying to understand Peace and Rest we can instead of seeing Jesus standing at a door picture us standing at a the front door of the House of the LORD. Like all front doors it is locked from the inside but when we accept God’s invitation to make a covenant with us suddenly from inside we hear, “I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close. You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me.” (Revelation 3:8, NLT). And then as we take that first fateful step across the threshold the Peace’s Stored Energy suddenly envelopes us.
“Faith isn’t hoping for the best life has to offer, Faith is anchoring oneself to the Best God has to offer!”
Grace and PEACE,
Gary
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“Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.”