Peace

In Just a few days, a new year will be upon us. This year has laid into it an expectation not unlike others in the past for many believe that the end of the world will come in 2012. I remember back to the turn of the century how many thought similarly yet little happened.

I am certain that this years resolutions will at least be given greater thought. I am hopeful that people will take their decisions with more weight and spend more of their lives on what really matters rather than what rusts or gets outdated. I know there will be many prayers and thoughts for peace.

Silence, tranquility, harmony is usually the utopian thought that comes to mind when we think of the word peace. And as nice as that is and those moments are, the peace God promises to give us is much more significant.

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

Jesus tells us that the peace He offers is not like anything we have experienced here on earth. It is not as the world gives. See what the world has to offer only lasts for a short time. It is circumstantial and only stays as long as people are committed to it. I guess that is why Jesus being called the “Prince of Peace” is so fitting.

A prince is a prince not by choice or by circumstance, but by birth. It is who he is not who he wants to be or hopes to become. No amount of money can buy the title and no amount of mistakes can take it away. He will never lose that status for the rest of his life. By virtue of being born into royalty he is a prince.

Jesus is the royal eternal prince of peace. So by just being around Jesus means His peace will never leave you. It may feel like harmony, silence or tranquility but it is so much more than that! The peace Jesus gives is an eternal peace that will always lift you out of the worst of situations and give you passion in the middle of the storm. His peace breeds a spiritual and emotional confidence that is unmatched and provides hope and possibility that transcends the limitations of this earth.

It never goes away, it never changes and just like royalty no amount of mistakes in your life can take it away. As long as Jesus is with you, you will have His peace He gives you. That’s pretty awesome and so I say bring on 2012!