Waiting on Peace

Waiting on Peace

I waited patiently for the Lord;
    he turned to me and heard my cry.

Psalm 40:1 (NIV)

A while back I made a horrible mistake and I ended up causing some dear friends an incredible amount of pain. I took responsibility for my actions and apologized quickly, but I was still wracked with guilt and shame over the hurt I caused them.

As I struggled to forgive myself, I came across this verse from John’s Gospel:

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)

It’s easy enough to read “don’t let your heart be troubled,” but it’s another thing all together to put it into practice. I had confessed my mistake and asked for forgiveness, I’d done everything I could think of to find peace. So why was my heart still troubled?

I had to remind myself to surrender, to trust that Jesus would give me peace and wait for Him to provide it. As I waited, I began to see how God was using people around me to comfort and restore me. It’s amazing to me that every time I seem to struggle with something, God introduces someone in my life to love me and help me find peace.

God, you know how I struggle with waiting, so thank you for always giving me someone or something to help draw me back to your Peace! 

Many of us experience peace during Christmas when we are with loved ones – those who love us unconditionally and can see past our faults and failures. But even if being with family or friends is difficult during this season, we can put our hope in Jesus to help us find peace. He is the Prince of Peace, graciously and generously calming our troubled hearts, just not always on our schedule.