OWN It!

You can't own it until you experience it!

Owning Peace

There is a kind of peace that surpasses understanding. We quote the Philippians’ passage often to ward off anxiety, often in others more than in ourselves. I fear that I have read that verse much like I read the label on a bottle of painkillers. While the medicine is in the bottle and not in my system, I do not own it. I merely have it. I haven’t appropriated it for its intended use. Everyone wants peace of some kind. We have idealized idea of what it would be like to be at peace, but rarely do we experience it. I had a friend whose favorite verse was Isaiah 26:3: “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast because they trust you.” I want to believe that he owned peace because of following this admonition. I have an acquaintance who is seeking peace through ancient Stoic philosophy. I have my doubts that he will own authentic peace by applying these principles.

It seems to me that we must seek to own peace on three levels: With God, with others, and within ourselves. That is a tall order. Can I really expect to own all that peace? I think God expects that we can or he would not have made a way for us to do so. This Sabbath-rest kind of peace may not be truly owned until heaven, but I sure want more of it now. I want to be able to look God in the eye and say, “I am at peace with you. I have stopped fighting you. I submit to your will completely.” I want to look others in the eye and say, “I am at peace with you. I don’t want to fight. I merely want to live in a way to encourage a relationship based on our peace with God.” I want to look at myself in the mirror and say, “I accept myself by the grace of God based on the cross of Jesus, who is my peace. I no longer fear tomorrow because He holds it in his hands. My worry is gone because His kingdom and His righteousness has replaced that place where anxiety dwelt.” I own peace. YOU DON’T OWN IT UNTIL YOU EXPERIENCE IT.