Is God's Peace Really Real?

IS GOD'S PEACE REALLY REAL?

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God; and the peace of God which transcends all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus ..." Philippians 4:6-7

Last week was one of those incredible moments where we as a family understood the reality of these two precious verses. Remember the story of my friend Glenda from Arkansas? These were the verses the Lord gave her for our kids as they faced Lindsay's open heart surgery.

There were four specific times that God's peace was so amazing during the past week:

1. On Sunday we left for Boston to meet our kids. About an hour
before arriving in Massachusetts, our daughter Laura (Lindsay's mom) called and said they were on their way to the ER because she was spotting and the doctor felt she might be having a miscarriage. We stopped at the first rest stop in Massachusetts and had to wait there for almost six hours until she was finally released from the hospital. Normally in situations like this, I am like a caged lion - but God's peace permeated by heart and mind.

2. On the day of surgery, saying goodbye to Lindsay was so hard.
There were many tears shed by all of us. Yet we can say that during the
3.5 hours of waiting, God gave us HIS perfect peace.

3. On Tuesday evening, Lindsay had a crisis moment where she went
into cardiac distress. Laura, Jan and I had just walked into her room and the scene was frightening. I went out into the lobby and for a few moments felt like my world was crumbling, and yet at that moment, my heart quieted down and God's peace flooded my heart and mind.

4. On Thursday night I volunteered to spend the night with Lindsay.
Anyone who knows me and my "love" for hospitals knows that is way out of my comfort zone. During the night Lindsay was thrashing around the bed and snapped one of the med lines that went directly to her heart. The nurse needed to take out the line, so I decided it was my time to exit the room. She told me that I needed to stay and help her during the procedure. There is NO WAY that would have happened without the amazing PEACE that I experienced at that moment!

God's WORD is true and can be trusted. He doesn't promise to take away the CIRCUMSTANCES, the pain or the hurt. But He does promise HIS PEACE - the peace that hymn writer, Horatio Spafford wrote about when he penned the words, "When peace like a river attendeth my way; when sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot Thou hast taught me to say: It is well, it is well with my soul!"

Men, trust Him today with whatever you are facing. Allow Him to give you HIS peace! - Bill Welte is the President and CEO of America's KESWICK.

Today's WORD from the WORD: 1 Samuel 25-26; Luke 12:33-59

Think about this: Christianity seems at first to be all about morality, all about duties and rules and guilt and virtue, yet it leads you on, out of all that, into something beyond. One has a glimpse of a country where they do not talk of those things, except perhaps as a joke. Every one there is filled full with what we should call goodness as a mirror is filled with light. But they do not call it goodness. They do not call it anything. They are not thinking of it. They are too busy looking at the source from which it comes. (Clive Staples) C. S. Lewis

In yesterday's paper, a recent poll revealed that 58% of Americans will change their vacation plans because of the rising gas prices. Well that prompted me to tell you that now is the time for you to consider spending your vacation this summer at America's KESWICK. If you'd like a copy of our brochure, please visit our website (www.americaskeswick.org) or respond to this email and I will send you a copy.