Looking for peace in all the wrong places - Philippians 4:7

SCRIPTURE: Philippians 4:7 (The Message)
Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

A STORY:
In 1555, Nicholas Ridley was burned at the stake because of his witness for Christ. On the night before Ridley's execution, his brother offered to remain with him in the prison chamber to be of assistance and comfort. Nicholas declined the offer and replied that he meant to go to bed and sleep as quietly as ever he did in his life. Because he knew the peace of God, he could rest in the strength of the everlasting arms of his Lord to meet his need.

AN OBSERVATION:
Our president announced last week that the troops will be home by Christmas from Iraq … and the nation breathed a sigh of relieve and a prayer. An ugly chapter in our nations history was finally coming to an end. But will it bring peace?

A lottery ticket is bought and through the miracle of luck a person wins the mega bucks … and answer to prayer they state, but will it bring the peace that they expect?

Two people stand before the altar of a church and vow to love each other “until death doeth us part” … there is great hope, tremendous potential, tons of well-wishes and good lucks are passed around, but will their dreams of peace and harmony last?

Diets are tried and successfully accomplished, weight falls off, new clothes are bought, health is restored, but does it change the nature of the human heart and is peace restored to the individual on this particular journey?

The surgery is successful, the cancer is removed, healing process has begun, but what about the spirit … is peace realized within the process?

Peace is such an aloof quality to life. Just when we think that we understand it and have achieved it … POOF! … it flies away and is no longer … and the search continues.

The things of life and the people of life cannot produce peace – no matter how hard we try and no matter how committed we become to make it a reality. Accomplishments and achievements will bring a sense of “all is right with the world” but only for a fleeting moment because the world in which we live has a “what have you done for me lately” mindset.

Only when we take our rest in the presence of God, even when faced with the most life threatening of circumstances or the most unsettling of situations, can we be at peace. As the gospel song states: We can face tomorrow because he lives!

PRAYER:
When the storms of life are raging, Stand by me;
When the storms of life are raging, Stand by me.
When the world is tossing me
Like a ship upon the sea,
Thou who rulest wind and water, Stand by me.

In the midst of tribulation, Stand by me;
In the midst of tribulation, Stand by me.
When the hosts of sin assail,
And my strength begins to fail,
Thou who never lost a battle, Stand by me.

In the midst of faults and failures, Stand by me;
In the midst of faults and failures, Stand by me.
When I’ve done the best I can,
And my friends misunderstand,
Thou who knowest all about me, Stand by me.

When I’m growing old and feeble, Stand by me;
When I’m growing old and feeble, Stand by me.
When my life becomes a burden,
And I’m nearing chilly Jordan,
O thou Lily of the Valley, Stand by me. Amen.