"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 - What has the Lord told you in the past so that today you may have peace today?
As things get harder throughout the year and that dreaded thoughts about ministry come to mind, I am reminded of the one thing that brings me peace in the middle of my storm: I am loved.
I think that the phrase that always soothes, always calms, and always fills me with joy and energy is when I hear Jesus tell me "I love you."
I'm not sure why exactly that phrase brings me all those reactions, but I think that it's because that is what we ultimately want... to be loved and accepted as the people that we are at that moment. To be loved in spite of our errors and short-comings. To feel what a fully-dependent baby must feel when they are completely embraced and taken care of by their father.
In Northwest Chicago Young Life, we have been in financial ups and downs this year. And each time those financial downs have felt like this equation:
fire + storm + hurricane + earthquake + quicksand
and the equation always had this other factor as a multiplier
(fire + storm + hurricane + earthquake) * fear
And... this was an equation for disaster; an equation that nullified faith until I constantly remember this:
(fire + storm + hurricane + earthquake) * fear] <>
In remembering that faith is an action word, I remember that my faith is increased when I act on it. However, I always need to go back to why we are here in Chicago, and that's because Christ called us here. So what is the thing that Jesus has told us that brings us peace? It's that there is no safer place than in His will... and we are smack dab in the middle of it.
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