Daily Prayer Guide - April 2 - God Promises Us Peace

Isaiah 26: 3-4

 You will keep in perfect peace

those whose minds are steadfast,

because they trust in you.

Trust in the Lord forever,

for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal

Colossians 3:15

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

Mark 4:37-39

And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. ³⁸ But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” ³⁹ And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

Jesus was with his disciples in the midst of a turbulent storm, and these experienced fishermen who had grown up on the sea were rattled, they were afraid, things looked very treacherous.  Jesus was sleeping and they woke him.  He spoke into the storm and by his word brought peace; he said ‘be quiet, be still’, and it was, the waves became dead calm. 

Peace is this sense of harmony, well-being that things are safe, well and as they should be.  In the Old Testament, the Jews had a word shalom – the engaging sense of wholeness or wellness, completeness. 

We long for the sense of peace, shalom, where things are quiet and still again, where things are as they should be.  However, our world is not at peace.  This pandemic is like the perfect storm that came out of nowhere and has ravaged nations and economies and impacted communities down to individual lives.  Nearly a million people have become ill, scores of people dying.  Millions of people have lost their jobs; things are not well, and we long for peace, where things are ‘as they should be’.  We listen to the news, we look to the models and projections, but they bring more waves of questions instead of the calm of peace. 

Peace is not gained by ignoring the storm.  You cannot out-run the storm by just paddling harder to get through it.  The truth is there is only one who holds the power of peace in the midst of the great storms of life and his name is Jesus.

The disciples woke him up because they thought he could do something about the storm, and he did – he told it to be still – and peace came.  We can experience the peace of Christ by trusting him to bring us to the calm.  Only he can calm our hearts with strength to face days of storm.  The storm may ravage the world but the peace of Christ can rule our hearts.  Peace is one of the promises God has made to us and he wants to make certain that especially his children have the ability to experience and draw strength from his presence with us.  He did this by giving us his Spirit that produces the fruit of peace within us.

Like the disciples we can be easily captivated by the storm that can capsize our hearts and minds but the Spirit of Christ can stem the swell and bring us peace. 

As we pray, begin by placing your trust in Jesus again today to hold your heart, rule your mind and bring you peace.

Pray:

·      Thank God that he has the power over every storm we will face in life and only he can calm your heart.

·      Thank him for his Spirit that he has placed in you that produces peace for your soul.

·      Ask that the leaders, doctors and first responders who belong to him would experience his peace today and conduct their work demonstrating that peace.

·      Ask in faith, that Jesus would speak ‘peace, be still’ to this pandemic.

Father, we know that only you have the power to bring peace in the midst of the storm.  Thank you that you care for your creation and have power over all that is created.  Father, we want to trust in the peace that only you can bring, please may our hearts be quiet today.   We pray in the power and name of Jesus.  Amen