“For whosoever will save his life shall lose it:
and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what is a
man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” - Jesus
Christ
Peace is an elusive state of being. No matter how you
slice it, peace is hard to come by. Whether it be peace between nations, peace
and quiet, peace between families, inward peace, and outward peace, peace is
hard to find. Happiness is not as difficult to obtain, although hard to
maintain, but when it comes down to it……..If you’re living in disobedience to
God you can rule out ever having true: love, joy, peace, and contentment.
Personally, I believe that these are the four things the
whole world is looking for, even though sometimes they don’t even know it (to
broad a statement?.........Perhaps). Stop and consider this for a moment.
Why do movie stars commit suicide? Why do rock stars overdose on reality
altering drugs? Words like: lonely, rejected, unsettled, discontent,
depressed, bound, enslaved come to my mind; “supposing that gain is Godliness”
(1 Tim 6:5). Ask yourself, how can some people be loved by the whole
world and still feel lonely and unloved? My opinion is that true: peace,
love, joy, and contentment does and will not come from without, but from
within.
This is a widely accepted notion: hence the popularity of
yoga, meditation books, and self-help guides geared toward disciplining the
mind and inward self. However, what these practices fail to emphasize is
that true peace cannot come from a recognition of your ability or merit, it is
quite the opposite, it comes from a recognition of you inability. It
comes from a genuine realization of your complete lack, and an earnest
recognition of your immediate need for God, just God, no-one else, nothing
else, God, only God. Perhaps where Satan finds his surest ground is deep
down in the heart and mind of a man that says: “I am the master of my own
destiny, and I can do better.” The biggest theology that is levying the
flood of revival is “TRY”. We say within ourselves we must: Try harder,
try more, try this, try that, try to do better, try, try, and keep trying, YOU
can do it. This idea of educating and advancing yourself out of your own
carnality is idiotic. We can no more advance and “work” our way out of
our natural, sinful desires, than a dog could out of his want to chase a
cat. Trying to “will” our way past our own carnal mind is like
being caught in quick sand, the effort and ability only serves to draw you
deeper and deeper……Very simple WE NEED A SAVIOR. If you find yourself
slave to your own selfish desire, do not despair, there is a Savior; and he can
save completely.
This is where true peace is found. In the earnest
recognition that you cannot will your way past you’re bent to do wrong, and you
must “die out” to yourself and be “risen” with Christ. You must recognize
your lack and cry out “Lord, I am sinking, save me.” When this is done
the mighty hand of God will lift you out and put you upon a firm
foundation. That inward foundation that produces perfect peace is a pure
heart and a spiritual mind. It is the uninhibited communion with the
Father. When we embrace our lack and
constantly lean on Jesus, allowing him too wholly and completely guide our
lives, we then find:
Love, Joy, Peace, and Contentment (and
so much more).
“For to be carnally minded is
death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” – Romans 8: 6
Any
thoughts on the matter? Please reply to pgcollins65@gmail.com
