Thus it says in verse 12, “LORD, you establish peace for us.” For us, plural, not just for me, singular. Rather, it is shared by God’s people who live in a “strong city” (26:1). In Isaiah 26 peace isn’t something experienced by isolated individuals. The more we allow the truth of God to permeate our souls, the less we’ll be troubled by earthly woes, and the more we’ll be ready to receive the gift of perfect peace. When our lives are filled with peril, we remember God’s promises. When we face trial or temptation, we turn our thoughts to the Lord, claiming his goodness and grace. We meditate upon God’s written word, letting it percolate from our minds to our hearts. We allow the Scripture to reveal God to us in truth. Moreover, we open our hearts to God’s peace by fixing our thoughts upon him. Even in hard times, even when it seems as if God is absent, we can nevertheless lean back into God’s strong arms. Yet we can put ourselves in a position to receive God’s peace by trusting in him. Though retreats, silence, meditation, deep breathing, and mindfulness can help us to experience peace, perfect peace is not something we create, but something we receive. How do we experience perfect peace? First, we recognize that it is a gift from God, not something we produce merely by our human efforts. I can still hear echoes of my Sunday School teacher quoting Isaiah 26:3 in the classic language of the King James Version: “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” What an amazing, alluring promise! “Perfect peace” accurately renders the Hebrew original, which reads literally, shalom shalom, “peace peace.” As we do this, we will come to know peace, not only in our spirits, but also in our relationships, our communities, and our world. Thus Isaiah urges us to “Trust in the LORD forever” (26:4).
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |