Do not be afraid: God’s peace (Keith Nurse)

By
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
John 14:27 (NIV)
I never tire of watching - and photographing! - sunsets. The one here came on the final evening of a particularly wet and chilly summer holiday. There’s a copy of it on my dining room wall, for me a compelling visual reminder that God is a God of peace.
Today’s verse contains both a promise and a command. God longs for us to know His peace. And it’s a remarkable peace, something that St Paul said transcends all understanding. It’s a peace that can come irrespective of circumstances and even in the darkest of days. But to know it we are told not to let our hearts be troubled. So how do we do this?
I think it has a lot to do with what, or who, we focus on. However difficult life feels, we have a God who loves us deeply, who has gone to huge lengths to show this by sacrificing His only Son so that we can be friends with Him, who walks with us and lives in us moment by moment, and who has given us hope for eternity. Let’s take to heart what the writer to the Hebrews said and fix our eyes on Jesus.
A prayer - Thank you, Lord, that you encourage us to share all our anxieties with you, and that even in the most difficult times you bless us with your wonderful gift of peace. Please help us keep our eyes fixed on you, and to continually understand more of the depth of your love for us. Amen
Keith Nurse

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Be Alert (Liz Morris)

By
Image
" And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people." Ephesians 6:18 I love the inference that to pray is to be alert. As Paul draws to the end of his letter to the Ephesians, he reminds them of the importance to keep on praying at all times, in many different ways in the Spirit. Prayer is such an integral part of growing in our faith and seeing His kingdom come in our lives, our community and our world. It helps our earthly minds come to know our Heavenly Father and see His plans and purposes unfold. I love the fact that Paul goes on to put in a personal prayer request in the next verse and I am sure that the church in Ephesus often prayed for him along with many of the Christians from the other churches. I am sure too, that the alertness of all the early Christians to pray was essential in the success of the ministry of all the Apostles and the advancement of the g
Read more

Jesus and the strong man (Nico Marais)

By
Image
As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis[a] how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed. Mark 5:18-20 What precedes today’s passage is the well-known story of Jesus sending the demons from this man into a herd (or litter, depending on who you ask) of pigs that ultimately drown themselves.  The Bible says this man was so strong that chains could not hold him.  When he is set free from his demonic bondage he begs Jesus to come with Him.  Jesus says no and sends him back to his family, friends and his own people to share what Jesus has done for him. This is exactly what Jesus asks each of us to do as well.  We can’t really share Christ’s peace, mercy, hope, power and love via proxy.  We have to encounter it for oursel
Read more

Breakfast On The Beach (Penny Cox)

By
Image
"When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread” John 21:9(NLT) I don’t know about you, but when I’m confused or stressed, I often revert to doing something familiar. It comforts me, and makes me feel secure. Perhaps that is why the disciples decide to go fishing at this time. Maybe they were feeling stressed and want the comfort of familiarity. Or maybe they were hungry, or needed the money. Or simply didn’t know what to do with themselves without Jesus’ physical presence. Whatever the reason, despite their best efforts, the fishing trip was unsuccessful until Jesus appeared on the shore, and intervened with a miracle that saw the disciples’ nets filled to capacity. The part of this account that I find so encouraging is that Jesus not only turned up to help the disciples when they had failed to catch any fish, but that he also made breakfast for them. Jesus shows us that he knew exactly what his friends needed; they needed his reas
Read more