“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33, NKJV, bold emphasis mine).
It is absolutely possible to be of good cheer in the midst of tribulation. It is absolutely possible to live in peace in the midst of a turbulent world. Humanly speaking? Impossible. But all things truly are possible with God.
The other day, I felt my nails starting to get in the way. Time to trim them again, I observed to myself nonchalantly.
Holy Spirit piped up. You didn’t notice them growing until they suddenly made themselves known on the end of your fingers, He pointed out. You can’t actually see them growing. But then, all of a sudden, the cumulative effect of growth is tangible. This is how it is with spiritual growth too.
(Yes, Holy Spirit talks to me about my fingernails. He talks to me about just about everything. He loves being intimately involved in every detail of our lives, if we just give Him that space!)
What, you may ask, does this have to do with peace in the midst of trials? A superb question. Here’s the answer. You and I are invited to slowly but steadily grow up in the fruit of peace. Peace develops on the inside of a true disciple of Jesus Christ progressively over a long period of years. Peace gets deeper and deeper and deeper, the more you come to intimately know Him.
Like fingernails, and any kind of physical growth, you can’t watch peace increasing. You can’t perceive its progress by staring at it. Moment-by-moment introspection won’t work for monitoring its development. Peace will grow on the inside of you, slowly but surely, as you instead gaze on Jesus’ loveliness.
Then, a particular moment will arrive, when all of a sudden you become aware that peace has increased in stature within you. The things that flustered you before are no longer able to faze you. The things that used to rattle you, you now take in stride. You are now able to look into the face of what once upset you terribly, and remain steady, unmoved.
Peace is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. This means that He produces it. He brings it forth in our lives… as long as we will walk closely with Jesus. In order for Him to bring forth much fruit in us, we must remain in Him. Dwell in His presence. Stay tucked into His heart. That’s where peace is. You don’t need to come up with peace yourself. In fact, you can’t. However, an abundance of peace is available. In His bosom.
Several months ago, Holy Spirit spoke gently and softly to my heart one afternoon. He said, “You can have peace all the time.” He was communicating to my spirit that His peace really is always available. Now, I have not yet arrived at perfection, obviously. Thus, I am not yet at a 100% peace production rate in my spiritual growth track. There are plenty of moments that I fall out of my peace posture and need to climb, and sometimes fight my way, back in.
However, at this point in my walk with Jesus, I really can say that I live in His peace for the dominant part of my daily life. Holy Spirit has shaped me into a richly peaceful person. He has done this. Not me. All of a sudden, after walking long with Him, I noticed it was there, and it was big, inside of me.
Here is His promise to each and every one of us hungry for more of Him: “Of the increase of His… peace there will be no end…” (Isa. 9:7, NKJV).
Have you come to know the Prince of Peace intimately? Every day wrapped up with Him is a day of increasing peace.
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What are your thoughts on cultivating an increase of peace in our daily lives? Are you experiencing more peace now than you used to?
Feeding On Jesus 
I needed to read this today. It’s early on Monday & I have a crazy week ahead. Father God, I need your peace today & always!
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I am saying a prayer right now for His tangible peace to surround, permeate, and protect your heart as you move through the week 🤗💖
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Thank-you
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Welcome! 💖
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Thank you, Jennifer, for this great insight on peace. I believe there is a connection between trust and peace. It seems that the more I trust God with my affairs, with my life, the more peaceful I become. I don’t always see it happening, as you mentioned, but when things occur that used to upset me and now they don’t, I realize that God’s peace has replaced that angst I used to feel. Thanks for the post. You gave me more to ponder! God bless you today and every day.
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Aw, you are so welcome, Cheryl! And I rejoice with you for the work that He has done in the depths of you by His Spirit. That is precious beyond measure!
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Thank you for this post. Peace can come as part of a learning experience of walking on this faith journey but I KNOW from personal experience , when in a medical crisis situation, that Peace can power in and totally change the atmosphere. It was a code blue emergency. I heard the Word PEACE as in my mind I was praying the 23rd Psalm. Peace overwhelmed me and the medical team, although they did not hear the Word felt and KNEW the Presence of Christ was with us all, The whole hospital was talking the next day and the only thing they could confirm was it must have been GOD. The whole room changed. Thank God for HIs Peace which can be beyond human understanding. Blessings!
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Wow! That is absolutely amazing and SO special, Faye! What a powerful, living testimony of who our Mighty God is, our Prince of Peace!
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Please, Jennifer. May I cite your article here on a relevant blog post I’m working on?
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Of course my friend!
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Such an awesome thing to read this morning! Thank you for sharing! God’s peace is always available, and yes, we continue to grow in His peace day by day. You put this together in such a beautiful way…
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Aw thank you too, Linda! I am truly grateful for your continual encouragement 💖🤗
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Hi Jennifer, i must say you do exhibit the peace of Christ around you – your presence is very calm and peaceful!
I am a working progress more peaceful more often than i used to be. What i used to call maturity is really the peace of Christ that makes me look at things differently knowing God is in Control!
I miss you!
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Aw, I feel the love in your words, sweet sister! And I rejoice that His peace is increasing on the inside of you! How beautiful is His fruit 🍈🍉🍊🍒😁. I miss you too!
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Thank you for sharing these words. God always provides the message we need to hear when we need to hear it. The thing we can control is whether our heart is open to receive it.
I had an unproductive weekend. Too much time procrastinating about, and giving in to the desires to be lazy. Some of this time was necessary rest, but most of it was choice to do things other that God was asking of me. I tried to brute force my way into being productive and fell further away from it. The answer was right in front of me, but my eyes were only opened to it after reading this post. Lean into the peace of the Holy Spirit, and embrace what he freely gives to us.
I know this truth, and say it in my mind often enough, but the next step to *do* it, is more difficult. Have a conversation with God, draw near to Him, and lay down my burden, whether it is socially or self-driven.
Thank you. 💖
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You are welcome, Hamish. And I sense Him saying to you, grace upon grace to you, son! His delight is in you far more than you know. Even when you feel you are bumbling around, He sees your heart and desire for Him. It pleases Him so much, and He wants you to be less hard on yourself!
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