Peace Like a River Flows
How we can find peace amidst difficulties
Sometimes I struggle to feel peace within my soul. How about you?
One of the teachings of Jesus that really resonates with me in regards to how we can reflect Christ in our world today despite all the conflicts, chaos, and violence is found in Matthew 11:29–30, which says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
I like even better how the late Bible scholar, Eugene Peterson, beautifully paraphrased this scripture in The Message,
Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me — watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly (Mt. 11. 29, 30, Message).
The Apostle Paul struggled with this issue in his personal experiences and ministry.
When Paul thought his prayers were unanswered and he couldn’t find peace, he got a clear message from God and recorded it in his letter to his disciples in Corinth (2 Corinthians 12.8–10):
Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it (his personal health issue) away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me (2 Cor.12.8, 9, NIV).
Boasting about weakness is perplexing to us. However, Paul went on to state the paradoxical truth regarding humility, especially during hardships.
That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Cor. 12.10, NIV).
Finding Peace with God
Paul expounded on his faith and having peace with God in his letter to the Romans, which said in Romans 5.1–8,
“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. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God (Rm. 5.1,2 NIV).
He went even further by saying that suffering can be beneficial by providing perseverance, character, and hope. Can you imagine that?
Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us (Rm. 5.3–5 NIV).
Jesus is the Christ, the son of God who loves us so much that he died for us despite our flaws, frailties, and unholiness, as we see in the Apostle’s further writing.
You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Rm. 5.6–8 NIV).”
