Peace In Trouble
Our community experienced one of those tragedies that really makes you stop and think about what you believe and why you believe it. A family of five, including two foster children, was on their way home from church when another driver ran a red light at a high rate of speed and collided with their vehicle, killing the entire family instantly. It’s sickening to take in deaths like these, so unexpected and so untimely. How do you understand why or how this happened? How do you explain it to others? It doesn’t seem that going to church gives you an immunity against tragedy as many would like to assume. Many wonder, What happened to God’s angels? Weren’t they doing their jobs?
Tragedies like this seem to take away peace. How can you find peace and be awaketo the realities these kinds of heartbreaks evoke? Jesus said it plainly on theeve of His greatest suffering. He told the disciples and the rest of us thatHe had something to give us, something we would need at times like these. Hesaid, “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” (John16:33).
Jesus doesn’t say that we won’t face tragedies. He doesn’tpromise immunity from pain and suffering. He doesn’t even try to explainwhy bad things happen to good people. He simply offers His greatest gift. Heoffers us peace in the middle of all the trouble we are going through.
In this world, we will have trouble. Jesus is most aware of this trouble, forit caused Him the ultimate experience of sacrifice and suffering. It’snot that He can’t see how unfair things are or how unjust they are, oreven just how bad it hurts. He knows that the troubles some of us face threatento take away our whole hope of living. That is why He gives us what we need most.We will have trouble, and we may have peace.
Have you ever experienced peace in the midst of trouble? It quietly begins tostir from some place you know you have no control over. A place deep inside startsfeeling a power that is greater than the turmoil that has been ruling you. Youmight think you are just giving up because you cannot stand your anguish a momentlonger, but it persists and seems to grow into something bigger than giving in.As you feel hope, the peace slowly builds until your body even responds by looseningits stressed-filled grip. Your muscles relax, your breathing slows, and you beginto believe that God is bigger than your troubles. You can’t see why, youdon’t know how, but you sense that the trouble you are facing has an answer.It has been overcome even if you cannot see how until this earth has completedits mission and returned all who really belong to Jesus back to Him.
Troubles are troubling but there is reason to take heart. Jesus has overcomethe world of troubles. You may not be able to see it now, you may not be ableto understand it now, but you can have peace now. |
