I have perfect peace

Today, we are looking at one sure way of retaining perfect peace. Jesus left one of the greatest assurances for his disciples before leaving earth, and that is peace. In John 14:27, Jesus says, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."

This peace that Jesus provides cannot be compared to the kind of peace we have when there is enough money in the bank or live in a peaceful environment. This is a peace that assures you of being cared for by a father who is greater than any human being dead or alive.

It is important to be aware however that there will be attempts to steal this peace. These attempts can be deliberate or unintentional. Deliberate attempts to steal our peace can come in the form of someone taking what belongs to us with the intention of never returning it. Unintentional attempts to steal our peace can come in the form of pressure. Pressure to deliver within slim timelines.

We can learn from Jesus's response to the situation of Lazarus's sickness in John 11.

John 11:1-7 (NKJV) 1 Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. 3 Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick." 4 When Jesus heard that, He said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it." 5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was. 7 Then after this He said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again."

The sisters sent Jesus a message as if He only loved Lazarus and not them (verse 3). But Jesus, knowing that he loved them equally (verse 5), refused to be driven by the cunning construction of their requests (verse 6). He gave an answer that prevented further pressure, prevented the loss of his own peace (verse 4).

You have been given perfect peace already (Isaiah 26:3) but you must understand how to retain the perfect peace. There are people who will come with cunningly crafted requests with the aim of preventing you from making independent and carefully thought-out decisions. You must know how to respond to such requests.

There are three characteristics of Jesus's response to Lazarus' sisters:

1. Jesus' response prevented further pressure.

2. Jesus' response prevented the loss of his own peace.

3. Jesus' response was true!

God wants us to have the very best in life, especially this year, and a lot of discernment is required if we really want to take the opportunities God carved out for us. Pressure is a thief of peace and we must learn to speak words that prevent further pressure, prevent loss of our peace, and are true at all times.

Colossians 4:6 in both TPT and NIV convey the importance of words that are full of grace.

Colossians 4:6 (TPT) 6 Let every word you speak be drenched with grace and tempered with truth and clarity. For then you will be prepared to give a respectful answer to anyone who asks about your faith. Colossians 4:6 (NIV) 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Grace is a divine influence upon the human spirit. So to speak words full of grace is to speak words that convey divine possibilities. Never let your words be limited to or by human realities. Those who came to coerce you are already operating on such a level. To win, you must go higher. When you speak words that convey divine possibilities, you elevate yourself and put those who came to coerce you in the position of favor seekers. By doing so, you have protected yourself and helped them too.

Finally, the Bible talks about the timing of our responses.

Proverbs 15:23 (NKJV) 23 A man has joy by the answer of his mouth, And a word spoken in due season, how good it is!

It is good to speak quality words, but it is better to speak quality words both on time and in a timely fashion. To speak on time is to speak when you are supposed to. To speak in a timely fashion is to speak words that are matching or fitting for the occasion at hand.

I pray for you today, that you have the best words in the name of Jesus and that your words will be both timely and on time in Jesus' name.

Join me in the following video and we pray these words.