by Jill Carattini

A powerful story is told of the bombing raids of World War II where thousands of children were orphaned and left to starve. After experiencing the fright of abandonment, many of these children were rescued and sent to refugee camps where they received food and shelter. Yet even in the presence of good care, they had experienced so much loss that many of them could not sleep at night. They were terrified they would awake to find themselves once again homeless and hungry. Nothing the adults did seemed to reassure them, until someone thought to send a child to bed with a loaf of bread. Holding onto their bread, the children were able to sleep. If they woke up frightened in the night, the bread seemed to remind them, "I ate today and I will eat again tomorrow." (1)

Hours before he was arrested, Jesus spoke to his disciples about the time ahead of them, days they would face without his physical presence. "In a little while," he said, "you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me." Reasonably, at his words the disciples were confused. "What does he mean by 'a little while'? We don't understand what he is saying," they grumbled. Jesus answered with more than reassurance. To their confusion and uncertainty, perhaps also to their fears of the worst and visions of the best, Jesus responded with something they could hold on to. Concluding his last conversation with them before the cross, he said, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

Like children with bread holding onto what gives us life, Jesus offers peace in uncertainty, mercy in brokenness, something solid when all is lost. He speaks of peace can that transcend understanding when we cling to the one who gives us life. It is worth noting that his use of the word "peace" here portrays a quiet state of mind, which is infinitely dissimilar to a mind that has been silenced by coercion or despair—emotions some associate with religion. To these, the gospel is good news. It is as if Jesus says, "These things I have spoken to you, so that in me you might be thoroughly quieted by what gives you life."

When the Apostle Paul wrote down the now oft-quoted instruction "Do not worry about anything," he had every reason to be anxious about everything. In prison and facing days unquestionably out of his control, Paul was undeniably holding on to something solid. "The Lord is near," he wrote from a jail cell. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (2)

Paul does not promise that followers of Jesus will not see darkness or sorrow anymore than he himself was avoiding it or Jesus himself escaped it. But he does promise, as clearly as Jesus promised the disciples, that there is a reason for hope in the best and worst of times. The Lord who is near has overcome the world in which we will continue to find trouble. The mystery of Christ is that somehow even in the midst of trouble he can answer the cries of our hearts with more than reassurance.

For the Christian, to be found in Christ means to be thoroughly stilled by who Christ is. His victory gives life, and the surety of that victory gives peace that transcends all things. Like children pacified by the assurance of bread, we are invited to hold the very bread of life, a hope more solid than fear.

About The Author:

Jill Carattini is managing editor of 'A Slice of Infinity' at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Atlanta, Georgia.

References:

(1) Story told in Dennis Linn’s Sleeping with Bread, (New York: Paulist, 1995), 1.

(2) Philippians 4:5b-7.

by Tracie Miles

"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."
- Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT)

Despite attempts for more than a year to figure out what was wrong with me, doctors could not identify a serious medical condition. It's not that I wanted something to be wrong. I certainly didn't need anything else to stress about.

I was desperately seeking a prescription for peace.

Looking back I can see the main culprit for my stress was my job. Overwhelming expectations and the impossible perfectionism my supervisor demanded took their toll on me physically, emotionally and spiritually.

His harsh criticisms and comments made me feel inadequate, and my self-esteem plunged to an all-time low. Chaos swirled around me, stress raged within me, and my health continued to decline. But I didn't recognize the cause.

When a medical diagnosis continued to elude doctors, I believed the lie that excessive stress was normal and I needed to learn how to live with it.

Eventually my stress reached a dangerously high level, and I began to wonder if this was the way God intended life to be. I wasn't even sure if the Bible talked about stress, but I was desperate, so I searched God's Word for answers. Something had to end, and I didn't want it to be my life.

I came across Philippians 4:6-7. "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." (NLT)

Although I had read these verses before, it was as if a light bulb came on. I was tired of worrying. I was yearning for my heart and mind to be protected and healed. I was longing to control my stress, instead of it controlling me. And I was desperate for peace.

As the words of these verses washed through my soul, I realized I'd been depending on people to diagnose my problems instead of seeking a remedy from God. Going from doctor to doctor, I had overlooked the only One who had a prescription that could heal — Jesus Christ.

As I prayed for the ability to stop worrying and spent more time processing my stress with God, I thanked Him for His provision of my job. And I asked if it was time for me to leave. I needed to be rescued and admitted He was the only One with the power to do so. I committed to trusting His ways, even if I didn't understand them.

Peace didn't come overnight, but it did come. Not because my circumstances changed, but because I tapped into His peace each day in the midst of less-than-peaceful circumstances. Gradually I felt God mend my heart and replace my stress with His truth and love. And when He made it clear after a few months that I was to resign, I was equipped to handle the new stressors that came with that decision.

If you need a prescription for peace, I encourage you to let your thoughts dwell on God's promises and rest in His presence as you pray.

Ask Him to help you release your worry. Praise Him for the good things He's done, and talk to Him about the problems you're struggling with. Seek God's will for every area of your life and commit to trust Him enough to make changes as He nudges you.

True peace comes when we trust God and seek rest in Him, not when life is conflict-free. A daily dose of God's presence and promises is the best prescription for peace.

Dear Lord, I am stressed. I know I need a change in my life, and I am ready for the prescription for peace that only You can offer. Fill me today with a dose of serenity that I cannot find anywhere else but in You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Reflect and Respond:

How can you trust God in your circumstances and receive His prescription for peace instead of handling problems in your own strength?

Ask God if you need to make changes in your life. If so, pray about the next steps.

Power Verses:

Psalm 107:19, "'Lord, help!' they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress." (NLT)

John 14:27, "I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don't be troubled or afraid." (NLT)

by Dr. Charles Stanley

Gospel: John 14:27-31

"My peace I give to you" (John 14:27). Jesus spoke these amazing words just hours before His crucifixion. His peace isn't dependent upon external circumstances, but rather, it transcends them.

Although He gives His peace to every believer as a gift, our experience of it is related to our faith in the following truths:

God is in control of everything. Without this assurance, the world is a scary place.

He loves me and will see me through every circumstance, no matter how difficult or painful it may be.

To have Christ's peace, I must surrender my life to Him. When I hold onto my ways and plans, I'll experience turmoil.

I have a limited perspective and understanding of my circumstances and God's purposes for allowing them. His goals for me are greater than my immediate comfort.

The Lord promises to work all things out for my good. He is continually working to transform my character into Christ's image.

I must live in sync with God, walking in the Spirit and promptly confessing and repenting of sin.

Scripture is my foundation for peace. It increases my trust in the Lord's goodness, assures me that He keeps His promises, and reminds me of His sovereignty over every situation.

Sadly, many Christians live their whole lives without consistently experiencing this incomprehensible peace. Perhaps faith and submission are the most challenging issues. But only as we surrender control of our lives to Christ and trust in His plans for us will we discover tranquil rest for our souls.

by Pope Francis

"Peace and joy" are the true signs of God's presence in the Church – not perfection in its organization and planning. That's what Pope Francis told the faithful gathered for the private daily mass in the Vatican guest house Santa Marta.

The disciples were enthusiastic, making plans for the future and discussing how the new-born Church should be organized. They debated who was the greatest amongst them and restricted to themselves the number of people wishing to do good in Jesus' name. But Jesus, explains the Pope, surprises them – turning the focus of the discussion from "organization" to "children:" "He in fact, who is the smallest among all of you…is great!"

Drawing on the reading from the Prophet Zecharia, the Pope spoke in his homily of the signs of God's presence: not in "fine organization" nor in " a government that moves ahead, all clean and perfect," but in the elderly sitting in the squares and in children playing .

"The future of a people is right here…in the elderly and in the children," he said. "A people who does not take care of the elderly and children has no future because it will have no memory and it will have no promise! The elderly and children are the future of a people!"

Pope Francis warned that it is all too easy to shoo a child away or make them calm down with a candy or a game – or to tune out the elderly and ignore their advice with the excuse that "they're old, poor people."

And the disciples didn't understand this either, stressed the Pope.

"The disciples wanted efficacy; they wanted the Church to go forward without problems and this can become a temptation for the Church: the Church of functionalism! The well-organized Church! Everything in its place, but without memory and without promise! This Church, in this way, cannot move ahead. It will be the Church of the fight for power; it will be the Church of jealousies between the baptized and many other things that occur when there is no memory and no promise."

The "vitality of the Church," then, does not come through documents and planning meetings- these are necessary, yes, but they are not "the sign of God's presence."

"The sign of God's presence is this, so says the Lord: 'Old men and old women will sit again in the squares of Jerusalem, each with a cane in hand for their age. And the squares of the city will swarm with young boys and girls playing…Playing makes us think of joy: it is the Lord's joy. And these elderly people sitting with a cane in hand, calm: they make us think of peace. Peace and joy. This is the air of the Church!"