"the God of peace"

Saturday, January 20, 2018 (4:31 a.m.)

Holy God,

I love You. Where do we go from here?

I need You. Yes. Oh, how I need You!

There are some huge changes coming up. I thought I was ready for them. Last week was spent so effortlessly. Effectively. Accomplishing much. And yesterday I began feeling dazed. Cut off. Detached. Alone. Afraid.

Ah. There it is! Fear.

Forgive me Father. Your Word tells us repeatedly to “fear not”, “do not be afraid”. Yet here I am. Cowering. Pulling back.

So… God of peace, I come to You. Asking. Seeking. Knocking (Matthew 7:7). Expecting. Yes. Father.

Because I DO trust You, Jesus I fully expect You to take all of the pieces of myself I am offering You and fashion them into something You find acceptable. These are all things I cannot do on my own. YOU can. I’ve experienced Your peace in the past. I’m seeking it again.

Mm, yes! God of peace I seek You. Reading Your Word (Philippians 4:4-9) I am again filled with hope. I choose to trust and believe that as I “don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything” (v. 6) You, "the God of peace", WILL be with me (v. 9).

Yes. Yes. Yes. Your Word speaks Truth. Promises. Hope. I need You Jesus. I thank You. I choose You, over fear!

Reading The Life Recovery Bible’s comment for this section and Illustrated Bible Handbook’s “A Plea for Perspective; 4:2-9” I am reminded that true happiness and joy are found when we trust and depend that You are working and are always in control. Always.

Not just often. Nor sometimes. ALWAYS!

I read Your Word. My heart settles. My soul smiles. I breath deeply. And hope.

“Paul speaks of joys that are found through relationship with the Lord (4). In Christ we have release from anxiety, for we can express every need to God and experience peace (5-7). In Christ we can concentrate our attention on the true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, and praiseworthy (8). In Christ we can put godly living into practice, and have the assurance that the God whose presence means inner peace will be with us (9)” (Chapter 4. Joy in the Lord Illustrated Bible Handbook).

Jesus, I love You. I need You. I choose You. I ask You. Do all You must in, with, by, through and for me that I would truly come to trust and depend solely on You.

Mm. Trust. Hope. Thank. Praise.

“4:4-9 True happiness can be found in every situation of life when we recognize that God is at work and always in control. Because Christ is with us and His return is certain, we can act calmly in pain and difficulty. Peace and joy come when we focus on those things that provide lasting value to our life. The more we commit ourself to knowing God’s will through prayer and study of His Word, the better prepared we are to help ourself and others in the process of recovery” (The Life Recovery Bible).

Looking to You, hoping in You, trusting and depending on You again I ask, “Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20b).

Thank You. I love You. I need You. I choose You. Amen.

(546 words ~ 6:19 a.m.)