“You will grant us peace.”
“Don’t drink your own Kool-Aid!” the interviewee, Annie F. Downs replied.
Her response was a warning to all new podcasters for if and when sudden success might happen. We often dream of success defined through money, followers, subscribers, productivity, achievements, or how well others like us. Our dreams only hit the highlights of success, leaving out the heartache and hardship along the way.
We only dream of what we want and then become discouraged by the headache and hassle associated with the climb to the top. The mountaintop is where “it” is, and we want “it”.
What is “it”?
“It” is off the beaten path rather than a climb to the top of fame and fortune. We tell ourselves that our happiness will be attached to the accolades and perks found with success, but secretly, most of us know this is not true.
True peace and contentment will accompany us up the mountain, reside at the top, join us down the other side, and dwell with us in the valley. True peace and contentment are obtained by an unlikely road, the one less traveled. Should we choose to take this improbable road, how can we stay on the road with so many distractions and convincing temptations to choose another way?
The Road To Peace
The road to peace has two guardrails to help keep us in the right direction. Jump over, crash into, or ignore one of these rails, and we are off the road of peace.
If we even glance in the direction of one of these guardrails, we are in danger of twisting an ankle or tripping over a bump that could send us sailing over the rail onto the hard ground of anxiousness, stress, self-doubt, and self-sufficiency.
“LORD, You will establish peace for us. For all that we have accomplished, You have done for us” Isaiah 26:12, NIV.
First Guardrail
The Lord is the one who establishes our peace.
We can deep breathe, take time off, exercise, and eat healthily, but still be anxious in our path to “it”. True peace of mind and heart comes from God. He will work with our stress-reducing methods, but God is the source of lasting peace.
When we allow the first guardrail to do its work, the evidence will be demonstrated by our walking forward in faith and trust in God. Our belief will manifest in actions that convey He can lead, guide, and handle anything and everything that lies ahead.
What might seem like an immovable obstacle in God’s hands becomes a launching pad. What might seem like an impenetrable wall with God, we can climb the wall or maybe leap right over it! (Psalm 18:29)
The “God establishes our peace” guardrail reminds us that our hearts need to be emptied of our anxiousness, stress, self-doubt, and self-sufficiency, along with anything else taking up space so our faith can soar and God’s peace can take over.
We surrender our efforts, and God establishes our peace.
Second Guardrail
Knowing our accomplishments were powered by God.
The CEV translates Isaiah 26:12 this way, “You will give us peace, Lord, because everything we have done was by your power.”
When we begin to see the sales increase, client satisfaction rating is at an all-time high, the video goes viral, and people take notice, will we drink our Kool-aid?
The second guardrail begins to keep us on the road to peace by reminding us of who we are. Who are we that God should be mindful of us, human beings that in a population of 8 billion, God should care about each of us? (Psalm 8:4)
What might seem to be the result of all our hard work and effort was God fueling our strength, strategies, and synergy to make the accomplishments possible. Humility results from the second guardrail as we continually take a posture of gratitude and dependence upon God for all we do. “Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness” (Psalm 115:1, NRSVUE).
The “God powered our accomplishments” guardrail keeps our pride in check, another space hog in our hearts taking up valuable real estate where peace could live. Even on the worst days when what we set out to do seems to be crashing, those days deserve a mindset of looking for God at work on our behalf.
We surrender our accomplishments as being God-empowered.
Isaiah reminded us that God will “keep in perfect peace all who trust in Him, all whose thoughts are fixed on Him! Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock” (12:3-4, NLT). Our trust in Him and eyes fixed ahead on Christ will keep us moving straight and help us avoid jumping the guardrails.
The road to peace needs to be traveled before our journey toward whatever “it” is, and when we take the road to peace first, we will discover God will take us right where we need to go.
I pray you will lay your burdens down and entrust them to Christ on the cross. That you will create space in your heart for the peace that passes all understanding to flood into every crack and corner. May you remember at the end of each day that all that was accomplished was from God. In Jesus’ name, so be it.
Meditate: My peace is from you, God.
Reflect: What crowds your heart from receiving God’s peace? Take time to release each item and invite God to give you peace. Where are you operating out of your self-sufficiency? What could you do to remind yourself each day to honor God and be grateful to Him for all that you accomplished?
Deeper: Psalm 8:1-9, 18: 28-33; Isaiah 26:1-13
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(Bible References: NRSVUE – New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition, NLT – New Living Translation, NIV – New International Version)
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