HOLIDAY OVERLOAD
Sarah Sloan
Weekly Memory Verse: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” John 14:27, ESV
Theme: This Christmas, remember God's peace is an otherworldly gift.
NOT AT ALL HALLMARK
Peace, both in the world and in our hearts, can be an elusive concept. It is especially hard to find peace in our culture of divisiveness and discord -- and it’s especially hard to find peace at Christmastime. The holiday season seems to be filled with traps, designed to steal our peace: money seems to magically disappear from our bank accounts, shopping congestion in stores and on the roads, or the need to find the perfect present. There is the constant pressure for our lives to live up to a Hallmark movie and a social media highlight reel. These stresses make my insides feel like a pot ready to boil. In fact, writing about all these stressors right now, during the holidays, is actually stressing me out! So, instead of having joy and peace during the season, I am short with everyone. I am exasperated, exhausted, and just plain over it.
ANOTHER OPTION?
But what if there was a different way? What if we truly believed and took a hold of the gift and promise Jesus gave us when He left earth and ascended to heaven? Jesus promised us that when He left, the Holy Spirit would come, and He would teach us and remind us of all things. Jesus then said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27, ESV).
The Holy Spirit and peace weren’t given to us at a time when we had earned them. They aren’t given to us in portions. The Holy Spirit is a Person and cannot be doled out in chunks. As Christ followers, we have complete access to the power of the Holy Spirit, the fruit of the Spirit, and to this other-worldly peace right now. It is ours to grasp hold of. The question is “How?” How do we tap into this peace, and how can the Holy Spirit help us break the patterns of sin in our lives?
PREPARING OUR HEARTS
The answer to finding peace is in preparing our hearts, turning our heart towards God. Philippians 4:6 speaks directly to the issue of lack of peace. The verse tells us, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (ESV). We need to start with a heart willing to talk to God about everything. We need to be in constant conversations with Him. We need to talk to Him about the traffic, about that gift we are looking for, about our struggles with our family members, and about that unpleasant phone call we received. We need to walk with and talk to the Holy Spirit, moment by moment, as we go about our days. He will teach us and bring all the things God wants us to know back to our remembrance.
AND BE THANKFUL
We also need to get our hearts ready for peace by being thankful. We need to talk to God about the beauty we see around us, about the joy of that promotion, about the healing that finally came, about that improvement in our marriage, about that good grade or winning goal, and about the cute dimples on our baby’s knees.
HEAVENLY EYES
Having true peace starts with putting things in perspective. It starts with training our eyes, our minds, and our hearts on the things above. As that old hymn so wisely states, it is then that “the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace” (Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus, music and lyrics by Helen Howarth Lemmel, 1863-1961).
Make It Personal: Have you tapped into the power of the Holy Spirit in your life? Are you experiencing the fruit of being a believer, namely God’s peace? If not, I challenge you to stop right now and share with God all the things that you’re worried and worked up about. I challenge you to make a list, every day, of at least five things you are thankful for. I challenge you to spend some time getting right with God. Talk to Him about all the things going on in your life, making right whatever is out of place, and asking God to begin moving in power through your life today.
Pray: Dear Father, Prince of Peace, Holy Comforter: Help me to spend time in Your presence, getting right with You, accessing Your power. Help me turn my eyes only on You and enjoy this Christmas season in light of Your great gift of peace. Amen.
Read: Isaiah 9:2, 6-7; James 1:17; John 14:15-18, 25-27
Weekly Memory Verse: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” John 14:27, ESV