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Have you ever done a puzzle? Have you ever got to the end and you’re missing a piece? We did a Charlie Brown Christmas puzzle in December and we couldn’t find a piece! We thought one of the dogs ate it! Eventually, we found one of our friend’s toddlers took it with them in the car. There is another definition for piece though. You can have peace in your heart when things are going bad.
“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.” – John 16:33
It seems like there is constant conflict in our world today: wars, crime, diseases, unrest, problems at work, and problems at home. Life sometimes can be anything but peaceful. At work every day you deal with pressure, stress, and expectations. You try to live up to the demands from your boss, friends, and parents. We live in a world that is struggling to find peace. People are afraid. People are worried. People are anxious. But is this the way God intended us to live? Is there hope for us to overcome our fears, and circumstances and live a life filled with peace? How do we find peace?
Romans 5:1 says, “We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Peace comes through Jesus Christ. See, we each were born with a problem. That problem is sin. We have broken God’s laws by lying, stealing, thinking bad thoughts, saying bad things. This thing called sin has been a problem for mankind since the beginning. The reason it’s such a problem is because God can’t be around sin. In fact, the Bible says in Romans 6:23 that the wages of our sin is death. But God made a way for us to get to Him through Jesus His Son. 2,000 years ago God sent Jesus to the earth to live life just like us, except He was not just a man, He was fully God and fully man. Jesus lived a perfect life and then laid down His life to die on the cross to take the punishment that we deserved for our sin. But Jesus didn’t stay dead, on the third day He rose again bringing our salvation with Him.
It’s not good works or going to church that gets you to God and knowing heaven will be your home in the next life. The Bible says you must believe on what Jesus did on the cross and you will be saved. The Bible says whosoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved! When you call on God, it’s not a magic prayer. The words aren’t important. You’re simply saying, “God I know I am a sinner and I can’t be good enough to get to you, but I believe what Jesus did on the cross was enough. I put my faith on Jesus Christ to save me.”
After we know God personally, we can have peace when we rely on the knowledge that we belong to God and He is in control. When you have a problem with your spouse remember God is in control and there is a right way to handle this. Once you prepare so much for a presentation and you’re nervous about giving it you can have peace knowing God is in control. When you feel like you will never find a good friend know that you belong to God and He is in control. When someone you know doesn’t like you back its ok because God is in control! Never worry about something you can’t change. Just understand that God knows about it and promises that you can have peace. Next time your mind is racing and you can’t sleep because of a situation in your life remember that God wants you to rest your mind in Him!
God is big enough and if you have put your faith in Jesus then you belong to Him! He will take care of you. You can trust Him!
“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.” – John 16:33
In Christ,
Pastor Phil