Finding God's peace?

In the gospels we Jesus tells us that we are much more important that birds and animals (eg Matt 6:26), and that the birds are actually wiser than us because they do not worry. In Isaiah 43:20 we find a similar lesson:

The wild animals honour me,

    the jackals and the owls,

because I provide water in the wilderness

    and streams in the wasteland,

to give drink to my people, my chosen,

Now jackals and wild animals were not nice and cuddly, yet God provides for them and they seem to know about God’s provision better than we do. By the way, if you have seen the recent news about Union Theological Seminary and their praying to plants, don’t worry I am not about to suggest we go down a similar route!

Jesus’ words in Matt 6:26 are part of His teaching on not worrying, and yet we find this so hard to put into practice. But then look at Isaiah 43:21 where it says:

the people I formed for myself

    that they may proclaim my praise.

We were created for God, to proclaim His praise. We were formed for God. That is our identity. We need to be God centered, otherwise we will never find nor fulfil our true purpose in life. Examine your thoughts and feelings, especially if times are tough or you are feeling uncertain about the future. What are our thoughts focused on? More than likely, “how is this going to affect me”. “Me” there may well include our families. Now think “I am here for God’s purposes”. That puts a whole different complexion on it, one of which is to relieve a whole lot of the anxiety. We know that the Bible says, Jesus says, God will always provide our needs. But if we think along the lines “I am here to fulfil my purpose, and God will help me” you will not actually find a whole lot of peace. You may claim promises in the Bible, but your claims are bogus. On the other hand, if we think “I am here for God’s purposes to be fulfilled, and He will provide everything I need” then we will find God’s peace, and we will find the promises of the Bible are indeed true.