Our God is one of Peace and Order

Read Time: 5 minutes

Peace of mind is an all too often referenced phrase, particularly considering the difficult of achieving it. But what is it really?

Miriam-Webster.com defines it as such:

Peace of Mind

:a feeling of being safe or protected

// Installing a security system in your home will give you a greater peace of mind

The irony of this definition and the example will set in later in this post. However, in the interim, we will stray ever so slightly from the definition of MW and define it as the following:

Peace of mind is a state where our mind is clear, ordered and free from the onslaught of daily distractions, distress, and chaos. This would include the sense of security one gets from protection from worldly threats (i.e. a security system).

Here we can stick with the MW example. What “peace” does a security system really bring us? It is a man made “alarm” trigger which only notifies us and perhaps the police (or the security company) that there is an intruder. It may bring temporary peace of mind, but in the moment (albeit very rare), the system itself is utterly worthless from protecting you. Does that really sound like true peace of mind? And while I know now our minds are racing to alternatives such as dogs, walls, barbed-wire fences, or guns, we have to admit that these worldly items do not truly contribute to a “better” state of mind. In fact, we spend so much time worrying about low probability events in our future, and solving them with worldly solutions, that we rarely spend time enjoying the guaranteed present and finding the godly solution for our future. Doesn’t the latter sound much more appealing!

Now only how to find it…

If attaining true peace of mind sounds like an endless pursuit, something seemingly out of reach for the commoner, perhaps it is because true peace of mind will not come in this life but the next one. We live in an imperfect, broken world. One that runs rampant with thieves and violent criminals, so much so that we have locks on our doors and every sort of camera device to surveil our lot. We see more signs declaring “No Trespassing” or “Violaters will be punished to the full extent of the law” than any sign or billboard giving us hope in God.

Therefore, our only option is to look inward and look into his Word for inner peace. We know that only when Yeshua (Jesus) returns will we have any sort of perfect peace (shalom shalom). So we must try to find as much peace of mind as humanly possible in the days to come by trusting in Him.

We gravitate towards order because our God is one of Peace and Order. He created the universe, a cosmological masterpiece, bringing forth order from chaos and confusion, and structure from disorganized matter. The probability of the “Big Bang” is a scientific miracle that even scientists will admit the odds of happening without some sort of intervention is almost infinitely small. To quote the Wall Street Journal article entitled “Science Increasingly Makes the Case for God”

”For instance, if the ratio between the nuclear strong force and the electromagnetic force had been off by the tiniest fraction of the tiniest fraction—by even one part in 100,000,000,000,000,000—then no stars could have ever formed at all. Feel free to gulp.” (Metaxas 2014)

You may find it easier to trust science, and if you do, I would propose a change in thinking – God shows Himself in the physical world, and that is modeled by science! If you find it easier to trust in God, great! But also understand that God created the laws of science and He created the stars in the universe as signs!

“And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years:” (Genesis 1:14, ASV)

In the Torah (first five books of the Bible) we learn a significant amount about order. We learn about the order of creation, we learn about the order of the ark, the order of the priestly and temple procedures (and layout), and the order of our spiritual calendar and annual feast days, among many other things.

Nevertheless, life is about love. And in order to love someone, you have to trust them. So in loving God, trust Him with all your soul and all your might. Trust Him even when everything seems as if it is in complete disorder. In the chaos, you may only see the smaller part of a bigger picture. When you end up trusting him, you will find exactly the peace of mind you need.

We naturally value peace and quiet, so perhaps also some disorder is God’s way to speak to you to say “Hey, come over here and experience some order.” “By the way, it comes with _truer_peace of mind.” God knows that order also contributes to our happiness. It allows us to have a plan in spite of potential future volatility. It cleans up our past messes. Order allows us to live in the moment and spend quality time with Him. Hope (as a function of Faith) + Order = Peace of Mind.

This is why we are to seek first the Kingdom of God! (Mat 6:33) In doing such, we find exactly what we were seeking for – hope, order, and eventually peace of mind. We trust our future is up to God, and in the end He will prevail and we will be raised on that great day in His Kingdom – if we trust in Him and call Him our Lord and Savior.

”And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever.” (Isaiah 32:17 ESV)

God’s mercy yearns for us to learn from the past but live in the present. We should live in hope for the future but not let the future consume us because God is here in the present. He was there with Abraham in the burning bush, and He will be there for you when you need Him! For Abraham, trusted God with the fate of his son Isaac and he was called righteous (James 2:23).

Isaiah also prophesied about our Messiah Yeshua and stated:

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6, ASV)

Did you catch that last part? If we are looking for peace – particularly in our mind – who better to give it then the prince. And if the son is the Prince, who is the King?! I really love the Word of God. It is truly a living, breathing, double-edged sword; perfect for teaching, instruction and rebuke. So as you search for perfect peace, I will leave you with one more verse from Isaiah…

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” (Isaiah 26:3, ESV)

Shalom v’ahavah (Peace and love),

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”” (Isaiah 52:7, ESV)

“Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father’s Son, in truth and love.” (2 John 1:3, ESV)

“And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace for them that make peace.” (James 3:18, ASV)

Takeaways to make a way…

-Trust in God as the foundation and Yeshua as the Prince of Peace
-Seek out truth and love in nature and in others (God created the laws of nature, just as the Torah)
-Seek first the Kingdom of God
-Hope + Order = Peace of Mind

Further Study with your Buddy…

Coming soon…

Questions for Reflection…

What are you worried about?
What keeps you awake at night?
Are you seeing the big picture of God’s Plan (If so, zoom out more)?
How can you trust God more (think like Abraham)?
How can you live more in the moment?
What is your happy place where you have peace of mind…now imagine the Kingdom…

Sources

https://www.wsj.com/articles/eric-metaxas-science-increasingly-makes-the-case-for-god-1419544568