“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.” (ESV)
“You will keep in perfect and constant peace the one whose mind is steadfast [that is, committed and focused on You—in both inclination and character], Because he trusts and takes refuge in You [with hope and confident expectation]. Trust [confidently] in the LORD forever [He is your fortress, your shield, your banner], For the LORD GOD is an everlasting Rock [the Rock of Ages].” (AMP)
Isaiah 26:3
For born-again believers in Christ Jesus, perfect peace (“shalom, shalom” in Hebrew) is a reality. We have His very Spirit living within us, His Spirit of peace. It is always there, but we are apt to forget and become fixated on the distractions and chaos and stressors of the world around us, rather than fixing our minds on Him.
Friends, it helps me to think of it this way. …
Picture God wrapping you up in His arms, keeping you in a spiritual safe place where peace resides, a peace perfected and eternal. It envelops you and seeps into your soul. It’s comforting and calm and full of love.
BUT, as you stop trusting Him and allow your mind to wander toward everything outside of His loving arms, you find that you’ve wandered away from that place of peace entirely and are now standing on the outside in the midst of chaos, fear, worry, discontent.
How quickly our minds betray us!
It’s an imperfect metaphor because there is nowhere on Earth we could go that He is not with us. He and His love and power and strength and Spirit are with us always and go where we go.
Having said that, when we take our focus off of Him, we cut off the very Source of our peace.
The way back to His perfect peace, then, is by bringing our minds back to Him.
Peace is a mental practice.
To walk with Christ means not just giving our entire lives to Him and doing good but also thinking good; it begins with our minds.
“And do not be conformed to this world [any longer with its superficial values and customs], but be transformed and progressively changed [as you mature spiritually] by the renewing of your mind [focusing on godly values and ethical attitudes], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His plan and purpose for you].”
Romans 12:2 AMP
“Therefore if you have been raised with Christ [to a new life, sharing in His resurrection from the dead], keep seeking the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind and keep focused habitually on the things above [the heavenly things], not on things that are on the earth [which have only temporal value]. For you died [to this world], and your [new, real] life is hidden with Christ in God.”
Colossians 3:1-3 AMP
A practical application is this: Jesus said that we would experience trials and tribulations in this world, but also that He has overcome the world.
So, on what will we be focused: the troubles or the One who overcomes them and fights for us?
What else are we allowing to occupy our thoughts throughout the day? Is it earthly things, material things, anxiety-inducing things?
“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
Philippians 4:8 ESV
We don’t have to allow our circumstances to steal our peace. Instead, we can renew and strengthen our minds by focusing on our Abba Father, the Source of perfect peace. We do that by:
- studying His Word,
- talking with Him in prayer and listening for His answer,
- seeking out the godly counsel of more spiritually mature believers,
- abiding in God,
- going to Him first when decisions need to be made,
- being in community with our siblings in Christ,
- allowing His Spirit to refine us.
We unleash “shalom, shalom” by continually trusting Him above all others, including ourselves.
“Trust in and rely confidently on the LORD with all your heart And do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know and acknowledge and recognize Him, And He will make your paths straight and smooth [removing obstacles that block your way].”
Proverbs 3:5-6 AMP
His Word also tells us, “For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND and PURPOSES OF THE LORD, SO AS TO INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ [to be guided by His thoughts and purposes].” (1 Corinthians 2:16 AMP)
Friends, we have the very mind of Christ, which is the mind of God, revealed to us by the Holy Spirit. Isn’t that incredible?!?
When peace eludes us, let’s return our thoughts and complete trust to Him and enter again into His perfect peace.
