The Bible
The Peace that Surpasses all Understanding
Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them. Psalm 119: 165
Recently I was deeply hurt and offended. As I mulled over the situation, my first thoughts were of anger, rage, disappointment, faultfinding, backstabbing-you know all those feelings that are allowed to rise up when you dwell on "stuff".
God quickly pointed my mind to His Word. I am understanding now more than ever why it is important to have God's Word hidden in my heart.
The first scripture He sent me to was Psalm 119:165 which says: "Great peace have they which love thy law" and nothing shall offend them. So I had to ask myself the hard and painful question: Why am I offended. According to God's word nothing should offend me.
The next scripture He showed me was I delight to do thy will yeah thy law is within my heart. Needless to say, there was not a whole lot of delighting going on in my heart. So I responded, "Point taken, Lord. Is there anything else you have for me"? to which he responded with Isaiah 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee:because he trusteth in thee.
Why did I not have the peace that God promises I would have? Simply because I was not doing my part to have it. My mind was not focused on Him. I chose to focus on my problem instead and doing so brought on all the negative effects of such a poor decision.
Are you experiencing a lack of peace in your life? I encourage you shift your focus and put your trust in God. It worked for me!
Isn't it amazing how the Holy Spirit works? We were discussing these very same Scripture passages this morning at worship... in connection with a similar situation too!
ReplyDeleteYes... a shift in focus is vital. Praise God for His amazing grace. :)
OH My Word! Are you people in my head today or what? Everything I've read - and I do mean EVERYTHING has pointed me toward getting my attitude in check instead of expecting that from someone else.
ReplyDeleteOh boy. I guess trying to tune the Lord out really is not working for me...
Ruth, It's so amazing!
ReplyDeleteRosheeda, Praise God it doesn't work and that He loves us enough to annoy us some times!
I'm currently dealing with conflict of working for a company and local management that I have no respect for after a very negative experience.
ReplyDeleteThe hatred, anger and anxiety made me realize that I need to seek out biblical counseling.
I now focus on Romans 12:19-21 through out the day.
Thanks for sharing that! What a writing gift you have. I tell you after reading that I want to love His law more.
ReplyDeleteOh, you hit the nail on its head, for sure. I recently went through something similiar and was asking myself the same questions. Why is this bothering me so much? It is stealing my peace and I'm allowing it by pondering and dwelling on it, catching myself growing bitter.
ReplyDeleteYes Lord, shift our focus to You!
Thanks for sharing.