You will keep in perfect peace
all who trust in you,
all whose thoughts are fixed on you! Isaiah 26:3
How do you think about peace? If the day goes well with little conflict, we often think then that we are experiencing peace. Is peace really circumstantial? Do we have to have “happy” days in order to experience peace?
Isaiah 26:3 provides a true view of perfect peace. It says nothing about circumstances or situations. In fact, if it did, it would probably state that peace is available in any situation. The requirements for perfect peace are keyed on God, not on daily fortune.
Requirement number one for perfect peace is trust in God. In our experience, it feels easier to trust God in the midst of good times. However, are we really trusting God then, or are we trusting in the pleasure of the good times? The truth of the matter is, we always have need and the only source for satisfying that need at its core is Jesus. As you walk through your day, do you trust Him to meet your felt and unfelt needs? Do you have a confidence that you are in the good hands of the creator of the universe? If so, your life looks and feels different.
Requirement number two for perfect peace is fixing thoughts on God. Again, this is not a circumstantial suggestion. True and perfect peace is experienced only in light of who God is. Why is it so important for you to experience a daily personal relationship with God? Because it reframes your thinking about everything you do, say, hear, or see. In the midst of the most difficult trial, thinking on God changes things. That does not mean that we accept every situation. Rather, it means that the light of God’s splendor outshines everything else and provides a hope that does not exist without Him.
Let your life be characterized by this perfect peace. The only way that you can constantly trust in God and fix your gaze upon Him is through His Spirit and by His grace. Submit to the Spirit’s guidance on the field, in the classroom, at meals, in conversations, during study, during rest, in good times, and in bad times. Perfect peace is always available to you, but the source is God, not anything else.