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We are well into Christmas week, and I’m wondering if you’re able to keep stress at bay. It’s a bit of a struggle for me, and I have to keep reminding myself we’re celebrating the Prince of Peace. All should be peaceful, right? Well, although Jesus came with the Good News of God’s peace, we’ve got a long way to go before peace covers all the earth. The story is not finished.
Christmas is a reminder of a promise yet to be fulfilled.
Even the Apostle Paul struggled to keep his heart at peace. In Philippians 2, Paul writes about sending Epaphroditus to the church in Philippi; he says, “Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety” (v. 28).
Paul wrestled with anxious feelings, and he gives us advice from his own experience with anxiety. He writes, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Philippians 4:6).
In other words, pray.
Paul goes on in chapter 4 of Philippians, “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (v. 7).
There’s no better time than right now, during Christmas week, to remember what the peace of God is all about. Because Paul is not saying that your circumstances will change; no, things around you will still make for much stress. We don’t find peace through a change of circumstances; we find peace in our stressful circumstances through the rock-solid peace of knowing that God is with us. God is in charge. So, there’s no need for worry; you are safe and secure through your salvation in Christ.
Prayer is the only way to settle our minds on this truth.
Until the Prince of Peace returns to put an end to all the conflict and uncertainty in our world, every Christmas is a turning of the page, another year closer to the fulfillment of God’s plan. Every Christmas draws us closer to our real home. And so, if anything is troubling your heart, cast all your care on the Lord and go to him in prayer, believing that he will give you his supernatural peace, serenity of spirit, and quietness of soul.
Pray with me: Lord, you know the things that make me anxious. You know my concerns and my fears. Please give me your heaven-sent peace for every problem I face and the assurance that with new problems, I will have new mercies. Thank you that this year I am one year closer to my real home. Give me the supernatural witness that through Christ, and Christ alone, there is peace. |
