Peace is a Personಮಾದರಿ

Trust Brings Peace

After a normal, long day of ministering and pouring out His life for others, Jesus told His disciples, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the lake.” (Mark 4, Matthew 8) He didn’t mention anything to them about a violent and sudden storm coming. Did He know? Maybe, maybe not. But does it really matter? Jesus had planned on some purposeful rest and He knew what to do in a storm. Exhausted, He fell asleep. 

Suddenly, a “ferocious tempest arose, with violent winds and waves that were crashing into the boat until it was all but swamped. But Jesus was calmly sleeping in the stern, resting on a cushion.” (TPT) I’m sure the disciples were drenched from the waves and torrential rain. Terrified, Peter rushes to Jesus and shakes him awake, “Teacher! Don’t You care that we’re going to die?” 

Jesus calms the storm with His words and presence. “Hush! Calm down.” He rebukes it in His native language—Peace—and the violent wind dies down and the raging sea is perfectly calm. 

In our own overwhelming circumstances, we often ask the same self-centered questions as the disciples: Don’t You even care? Don’t You see me with my needs and fears? Where are You, God? I’m about to die here! Why aren’t you moving in my situation? Are you asleep?

But Jesus asks us the same question He asked His men after calming the ferocious storm. “Why are you so afraid? Haven’t you learned to trust yet?” This is the bottom-line question: Why am I so afraid? Where is my trust? Has it been shifted because of my wrong thinking?

Mostly likely, yes. Most of our greatest storms will be fought in our minds.

Our peace and our responses will go the direction we allow our minds to take us. Our enemy uses every opportunity to steal our trust and sinisterly smiles when our thoughts carry us to the worst possible scenario. He meets us in the whys, the if-onlys, the should-haves. His desire is that we will make agreements with his loud, never-ending lies. God doesn’t see you. He doesn’t care. He abandoned you in your greatest need. Serves you right for making that choice. You are a lost cause! And if we agree with him, he wins.

Jesus never meets our storms with accusations. In love and gentleness, He asks a simple question: “Haven’t you learned to trust yet?”

Trust is never easy because it involves risk. Trust is my willingness to be vulnerable to your actions and intentions. Forty-six years ago, I took a risk on a man and vowed to trust him with my heart. His faithfulness to me all these years, even in the hardest times, makes me feel safe and secure and gives me peace. I don’t question his intentions. I trust him because I know him. 

This is also true of God. Our trust in God—that place of deep, inner peace—comes from resting in what we believe to be true about Him. The more we know Him, of His love and unchanging character, the more we will trust Him. Perfect peace comes when we fix our thoughts on Him and believe that His intentions toward us are always good, because He is good. 

Fear and worry never have to be invited. They are quick to rush in when things are hard. But peace comes when we courageously invite Jesus into our storms, difficult relationships, and overwhelming circumstances. Peace is not the absence of difficulties, but rather, it’s the presence of a trustworthy Person who sees us, cares, and will never abandon us. He speaks to our fears, our whys and what-ifs, “Hush! Calm down!” 

When peace and security is weak or missing, could it be that your trust is in something other than the Person of Jesus Christ who is Peace? He’s speaking to us all, “Haven’t you learned to trust yet?”