Peace in the In-Between - Devotion 2

Physical Peace 

“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion - to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified.” Isaiah 61:1-3 

The angels proclaimed that there would be peace on earth (Luke 2:14) after the birth of Jesus, the Son of God. There is a part of peace that is physical and tangible. What we see in front of us is not often peaceful, at least not to our definition of peace. Health issues are not peaceful. Poverty is not peaceful. Captivity and depravity are not peaceful. There is a lot of mourning in our lives, and that is not peaceful.  

Then we come to this passage in Isaiah. The physical peace of God just oozes out of this passage as good news to the poor, binding up the brokenhearted, proclaiming liberty to the captives, opening the prison of those who are bound, comforting all who mourn, giving beauty for ashes, gladness instead of mourning, and giving praise instead of a faint spirit. These are all available because of God’s peace.  

God brings peace to us physically when we learn to trust Him. This peace does not always look like we think it should, however. So often, what we see in front of us that is bringing us concern and upheaval is not the issue that we are actually facing.  

There is Good News for you today and ultimately, peace begins there. No matter what you face physically, there is a reality that Jesus loves you and died for you. I do not want to get too far ahead of myself here as we will talk about this in a couple days, but peace begins with the Gospel, the Good News. This Good News is what allows the things that you struggle with to start down the path of peace.  

In the middle of your brokenheartedness, the things that bind you, the things that you mourn over, the ashes that you cannot see a way of rebuilding, and a spirit within you that is faint of heart, there is Good News. 

Jesus walks with you. He has never left you. He has not forsaken you. He died for you. Call on His name today. Go to Him with what you are struggling with. He knows and mourns with you. When you set your eyes on God, it brings an understanding of your circumstances that you cannot have apart from Him. Living in the in-between can be peaceful as you bring your physical struggles before God and leave them with Him while living your life dedicated to Him. 

What about the thoughts going through your mind? How do you deal with those? This is really where peace lies. We will tackle this tomorrow, and honestly, I cannot wait!