Jesus Gives Peace and Hope

JESUS IS OUR PEACE

For 2025, peace is my #oneword. I started the year well with my word, writing, looking up scriptures, and making journal pages using various materials. Focusing on scriptures about peace reminds me that true peace is only found in God.

I am grateful for the peace found in Christ alone, which is beyond all understanding.

This peace is never far away because Christ is always with me.

When grief comes to call, peace in Christ brings comfort.

This peace is full of hope that carries me through trials.

With the peace God gives me, I can encourage others.

HOPE BRINGS PEACE

In late spring, my focus was on finishing my second book and getting it ready for publication, but the thought of peace was never far from me, even when I wasn't consciously thinking of it. My book is called Through A Glass, Darkly: Daily Hope in Light of Eternity, available on Amazon.

My peace is found in Jesus, who is also my hope. He is the One who left the glory of heaven to come down to earth and be born as a human baby. It was the only way He could atone for our sins and give us the hope of eternal life.

Blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you. 
1 Peter 1:3-4 

This hope also enables us to have peace and rejoice that one day we will be reunited with our loved ones who have gone before. It is especially meaningful today, the 6th anniversary of my son's memorial service and burial. Yet I can have joy mixed with the grief, because I know he is free from his pain and full of joy in the presence of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  This poem I wrote some years ago fits well, here, I think.

The Light of Hope

Into the darkness

shines the light

of hope wrapped in love,

bringing sight

to my blinded eyes,

bidding me to come.

Into the darkness

beams the light,

though my falling tears

blur the sight,

as my blinking eyes

give only a glance.

Into the darkness

bursts the light!

It shimmers and glows,

clearing sight

for my waking eyes,

bringing joy and peace.

PEACE BEYOND UNDERSTANDING

Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

Through good times and hard times, God has promised to be with us. There are times when I forget and begin to focus on my circumstances. I may not "feel" peace at the time, but God is faithful. He reminds me that my faith is in Him, not in what I can do. As I yield to Him, He gives me a peace that I can't explain. My circumstances may not change, but my attitude and whole countenance become more relaxed. I pray that you, too, may experience the peace that only Jesus gives.

I'm linking up with #oneword365