INNER PEACE

“And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.” —Colossians 3:15

Frustrated, Lucy once told Charlie Brown, “I hate everything. I hate everybody. I hate the whole, wide world!”  Charlie Brown replied, “But I thought you had inner peace.”  “I do have inner peace,” Lucy retorted, “But I still have outward obnoxiousness!”

Our inner peace is often disrupted by obnoxious people or difficult circumstances. However, if we are walking in the Spirit, we can experience God’s inner peace no matter what how unpeaceful our outward situation may be. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, PEACE…” (Gal. 5:22).

Today’s text says, “LET the peace of God RULE in your hearts…” The key words are “LET” and “RULE.”  That means we must make a choice. For something to “rule” means there must be a surrender.  You must choose to “LET,” or allow, God’s peace to rule over your circumstances.  Our problem is we don’t allow God’s peace to overrule our emotions.  We stew and stress instead of surrender our problem to God.

Paul wrote, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). As we commit our problems to the Lord with trust and thankfulness, we will experience His inner peace.

Are you in a situation that is robbing you of God’s inner peace? If so, turn it over to God and allow His peace to rule in your mind and your relationships. The choice is yours:  The rule of God’s inner peace, OR, the pain of an obnoxious problem.