How to Have a Peaceful Christmasنموونە

God’s Peace Mean Wholeness

The stresses of family dynamics, sickness or disease, financial pressure – even trying to live up to the Hollywood version of the perfect Christmas -- can all come crashing down on us during the holidays. On top of that, add the stresses of 2020, and wow – it just may be that "peaceful" is the last thing in the world you feel today.

God’s peace means wholeness in the lives of His people. Completeness in every realm:  no lack, no fear, no infirmity or worry. This supernatural peace is what Jesus died to give us (John 14:27) – it comes from the inside and is not moved by external circumstances. Colossians 3:15 tells us to “let that peace rule in our hearts.” 

How do we do that? 

Here’s an example from my life:

One night as I lay down, after a particularly busy (and potentially stressful) day, I started meditating on Isaiah 26:3 to help me sleep: You (God) will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You.

I knew from that verse that perfect peace could come to me by keeping my mind “stayed” (or focused, set) on God.

Okay, so…you know as well as I do that my mind did NOT “stay” on Him at first! It started there, sure…but 10 seconds later, it was flitting around, hashing out some detail of my day, or on something someone said, or some dark worry of the future.

It probably took 20 rounds for me to catch myself and haul my mind all the way back to thinking and focusing on Him!

But I was determined, and thankfully, it eventually happened. I meditated on stories or verses from the Bible, and my mind eventually stayed put. And do you know, I spent the next 3 hours or so in the most wonderful fellowship with the Father!  He filled every nook and cranny with His peace, and it was such a sweet time.

I probably got less sleep than usual, but woke up feeling refreshed, and peaceful. It lasted all day long, and I knew that this is how He probably wants us to live all the time, at Christmas and during the whole year!