“Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you. I give to you not as the world gives. Don’t be troubled or afraid.”
Reflection
I’m pretty sure you have seen the phrase “no Jesus, no peace, know Jesus, know peace.” I was struggling with what I wanted to write because I have to admit, I have been struggling recently to feel peace. In fact, when I sat down to write this on Tuesday night, I was very anxious and unable to concentrate to come up with a coherent thought. (You may still question the coherence of this devotion, but that’s ok). Anyway, I was wondering what the issue was. Yes – watching the news has been stressing me out, so I am trying to limit that, but that wasn’t it.
I realized Wednesday morning as I was sitting in the parking lot at the dentist’s office that that was where my anxiety was coming from. I have several fears – claustrophobia included, but I definitely have a visceral reaction to the dentist. I do not have great teeth, and as a child I saw the “expert” pediatric dentist in our area, but he was not a patient or kind person, and so as a result, I have anxiety. Luckily, my dental hygienist is very kind and understands my fears, and she is the person I see every time. After I left, I did have a sense of peace – that my teeth are clean and ok, and I don’t have to return for another 6 months. Given my fear, I could choose not to go to the dentist and just avoid the whole thing, but that seems unwise given my history, and in the end could lead to more problems, so I take myself there with my anxiety and my prayers every 6 months.
Jesus was speaking to the disciples as he was getting to return to God. They had been through a lot, and they were not sure how to proceed if Jesus was leaving. We know – as the disciples knew – that the world is full of struggles, hardship, disappointment, death, and heartache, but that is why Jesus told the disciples in verse 26 that God would send the Holy Spirit to be with them to remind them of everything Jesus had taught them about how to live in this world of difficulty. One of the commentaries that I read about this verse said that the peace Jesus was talking about meant rest, quiet, or a stillness in our hearts. It is not the absence of trouble, but it exists in spite of trouble. The Holy Spirit can help us (as Joe said on Sunday) to have a radical trust in God. That does not mean that things won’t be difficult. It also doesn’t mean that we won’t be anxious, but Jesus was giving his disciples (and us) permission to give those things to the Holy Spirit, so that they (and we)could do the things we need to do to work through our lives and to help further the kin-dom. We can trust in the promise that God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit will be faithful in this even when it feels really hard!
by Janet Waryck
For Pondering and Prayer
Are you ever tempted to just hide away from things that are difficult? Sometimes taking a nap or having a bowl of Cherry Garcia? The theme for Ben and Jerry’s is “Peace, Love, and Ice Cream” and both ice cream and/or a nap can restore a bit of peace. But neither behavior is sustainable – they are, in fact, part of the peace that Jesus warned against as part of “what the world gives.” We need to pray about our anxiety and then do the hard thing, knowing that the Holy Spirit is with us, just as the Holy Spirit was with the disciples as they went along without Jesus.
Prayer: God of peace, grant that we may feel your peace, a peace that helps us to know we can trust in you in all circumstances. Help us to feel your presence in all that we do and to give you all the praise, honor, and glory. Amen.
