peace from above

‘Cause I’ve never known peace lest from above
So up in the clear
I’ll find the voice that I hold dear

The lyrics above are written by my favorite artist, Roo Panes. Today, I rediscovered this song and there was something in the lyrics that just had me pause for a moment. How had I not noticed the power in these simple lyrics before?

In a world filled with pain and sorrow, with unrest and heartache, with unexpected plot twists that have many wishing they could rewrite the chapter altogether, there’s a longing for peace. On the darkest of days, when you are desperately searching for a glimmer of light, what I’ve come to discover is that in the middle of our searching, we discover what we are looking for when we take the time to stop.

In stillness, we find the voice that we hold dear.

“Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10
A favorite scripture of mine, it is this action, a surrender to stillness, that leads to peace from above, peace that surpasses all understanding.

Peace is not found in the absence of our problems. Peace is found in the middle of every circumstance we find ourselves in when we choose to fixate our eyes off the situation and onto something greater than us. As Craig Groeschel once said, “Peace isn’t found in the absence of a storm. Peace is found in the presence of God.”

What a gift it is to have access to God’s presence at all times. Because God is omnipresent, He is with us at all times. So often, we are quick to pray, “God, we invite you into this place” but in reality, He is already with us, waiting for us to respond to His invitation. A.W. Tozer speaks on this in his book, The Pursuit of God, which I highly recommend by the way. A lack of peace in our lives has nothing to do with God not intervening on our circumstances, but it has everything to do with what we are choosing to fixate our minds on in the middle of our circumstances.

This small mental shift changes everything. It’s a change in posture of heart, to receive whatever God has for us this very day, that gives us access to that perfect peace that Isaiah writes of. I quote this verse all the time, because it has been a verse that has helped me time and time again. “You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee.” Isaiah 26:4 Even when life isn’t what we imagined, even when we are living through a chapter we wish we could skip, even then, perfect peace can still be found.

In my last post, Every Day A Miracle, I talked a little bit about this. And, what I’ve continually discovered through everything I’ve been through is that choosing to meditate, “on whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy,” as Philippians 4:8 tells us will give us ears to hear and eyes to see the ways that God is working and present in our everyday lives.

Through music, through art, through a conversation with a friend, through His written word, through the elements of the earth, through so many things.

To quote a movie I haven’t seen since I was a teenager, August Rush, “The music is all around us. All you have to do is listen.”

So, with whatever is troubling you today, whatever weighs heavy on your mind, whatever challenges you are unexpectedly facing, whatever worries you have over your future, whatever decisions you are meditating on, take a moment, or as many moments as you need, to be still. And, listen.

Sometimes, you find God’s voice and peace in the most unexpected places.

I’m so incredibly thankful for God’s gift of peace that is available to us every single day. You don’t have to continue living without peace in your life. As Jesus said to his disciples and says to us today, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” -John 14:27

I hope this post just reminds you to be still, let go and breathe in the peace of God. This gift of peace is available to both you and I today. Apart from the gift of salvation, I have found it to be one of the greatest gifts that God could have ever given us.

‘Cause I’ve never known peace lest from above
So up in the clear
I’ll find the voice that I hold dear

P.S. If you’d like to give Roo’s music a listen, you can listen to some of his beautiful music here. You can thank me later. Also, if you are looking for some worship music that fixates your mind on peace, here’s a playlist a friend and I put together. Check it out here.