“God is able to give us interior resources to confront the trials and difficulties in life… He is able to provide inner peace amid outer storms. This inner stability of the man of faith is Christ’s chief legacy to his disciples. He offers neither material resources nor a magical formula that exempts us from suffering and persecution, but he brings us an imperishable gift: ‘Peace I leave with thee.’” - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with…peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.” - Apostle Paul to the Roman Church (Romans 15:13).
There is something about experiencing a deep, resonating peace when facing hard times. There is something about remaining calm when circumstances bring pain and confusion. Deep in the heart of faith is a reservoir of hope. It is this hope that contains a life-giving power possessed only by the Holy Spirit.
Our relationship with God, through Jesus, finds its ultimate expression in compassion toward others. But this first comes as we enter into a conscious awareness of His love for us. As our intimate experience of God’s love matures, our ability to demonstrate the love we have received enlarges.
Often we find ourselves searching to feel good, to feel better than we do. Little do we understand that God’s peace, hope and joy are not simply to help us feel good. They are attributes of God’s character purposing to work through us. Why? So we might share something of God’s image within us.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Apostle Paul were not embarking a quest for mystical knowledge on a spiritual plane. Rather, they were enlightening us concerning the appropriate manner in which one experiences a life of true faith and love. Both men urged us to seek God as the ultimate source of peace. The outcome of such searching leads us to experience the outworking of the gospel.
Ivory tower theology belongs within the confines of cognitive castles. Jesus’ theology, however, was deeply intelligent and wise, communicating a doctrine that produced profound, illuminating conviction. One could not walk with Jesus for long and not discover this. Yes, there is something about a deeply resonating calm emerging from an unfathomable peace. It is the confident hope we find through a relationship with Christ.
May God bless richly...
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