What We Want
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.” Romans 5:1-2
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
Insight
There are a lot of things in life that raise our blood pressure, cause concern, and produce anxiety. You know what I’m talking about. As we walk through life, we often feel an angst about the way things are going versus the way we think they should be, and our stress level rises. We feel such a weight as we evaluate all that is going on in our life and we seek to make things better. Some seasons of life seem to particularly heighten our awareness of our current status. Every twelve months, we finish a year and step into a new one. As we do that, we look back and we evaluate where we’ve been, we look ahead to where we are going, and we attempt to discern what we want to be different as we move forward.
Wanting to step into a new season in a new way can be a good thing. It gives us an opportunity to reset, refocus, and course correct. If we’re not careful, this evaluation process can also contribute to the overall anxiety we feel about life. The pressure to “do better” mounts and the list of changes we feel like we need to make can paralyze us. In our attempt to be a better person, grow in our faith, or make significant changes, we actually slide back into familiar patterns that lead us right back to where we were.
Instead of stepping into a new year with a list of things “to do” or a set of rules to follow, what if we stepped into a sew season of life with a new lens? Taking this approach over the past number of years has given me a sense of peace. Stepping away from building a list of resolutions that I will never keep and picking a word for the year has helped me step into a new season with a sense of hope and direction. Instead of being anxious about whether I will be able to live up to a standard of behavior, I have been able to submit my hopes and dreams to God and ask Him to take them and do with them what He pleases. In essence, it takes the pressure off. If there are no goals, resolutions, or marks to hit, I can better focus on becoming the person God wants me to be, even when I fall short.
It’s not my word for this year, but the word peace is at the center of all of this for me. I believe that all of us want peace. We want peace with ourselves, peace with each other, and peace with God. Scripture reminds us that there is a peace that transcends understanding that starts with us laying our requests, our hopes, and our dreams at the feet of Jesus. God declares that we can have peace through simply having faith, not through achieving and constantly striving for more. Having a new lens through which to view life can give us a sense of peace.
Isn’t that what we all really want?
Reflection
Take a few moments to be still and ask God to give you a peace that only comes from Him.
As you continue this process of moving into the new year, what would give you peace?
How could picking a word to lead your formation this year contribute to an overall sense of peace in your life?
Prayer
Lord, as we step into a new year and a new season of life, give us peace. Give us a peace that comes from knowing that you love us, that you are leading us, and you have a path for us in these days. Help us frame this new season of life in such a way that we can see and sense You moving in our lives and we can step into who You have created us to be. In Your name, Jesus. Amen.
Chris Sasser, Pastor of Family Ministries, wrote today’s devotional.