Pathway to Purpose: Peace
"These things I have spoken to you so that in me you may peace. In the world, you will have tribulation. But be of good cheer: I have overcome the world." John 16:33
I used to think two things about peace that I have come to realize were incorrect. The first, was that peace is a state without conflict, without trial, without pain or tribulation. Peace I thought was sitting in my woods alone with my thoughts, on a perfect day, in silence and solitude, without distraction. I now realize without tribulation, without conflict or trial, there can be no real peace. Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is an enduring quality of victory over conflict, of having the peace of God (the knowledge of his love and presence) with me in the midst of trial.
In this passage, Jesus refers to that very concept. He is about to go to his crucifixion. He will be tortured, abandoned, ridiculed, persecuted and finally killed. He is alluding to his disciples that their lives will not be without tribulation either. Real peace isn't avoiding this tribulation, it is overcoming it. Our physical muscles only grow stronger by opposition. In exercise, we challenge our bodies to resist. If we are successful, we grow stronger. To train for a marathon, one forces the body to run past the point of pain. So it is with our spirit. However in the spiritual realm, we don't fight back in the same way. We rest in the peace that Christ gives us: the peace of the awareness of his presence.
My second misconception was that peace is a final destination. However I've learned this peace, while overcoming the world and all the trials and pain it can throw at us, is not a permanent state of being here on earth. We don't stop facing the pain, the tribulation, the dirty work that faces us as spiritual people. Jesus Christ, as the second person of the Godhead, emptied himself (kenosis) to live the incarnation among us so that we too can find real peace and life. Even in the Buddhist tradition, from what little I know about it, the goal of a bodhisattva (one who is enlightened) is to seek enlightenment not just for oneself, but for all.
Again as I journey towards finding purpose in life, and seeking a resting place, I come across another pathway. One that I must take and travel through, and one that I must take with me. Real peace is knowing God: it is mindfulness, being aware of his loving presence at all times. (Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace who's mind is stayed on thee, because he trusts in thee. Isaiah 26:3). It is not avoiding suffering, it is experiencing it and sharing it with the rest of humanity. It is not the absence of suffering, it is the realization that Christ overcame it, and through his power, so will I.
And so in my own life I seek to acquire inner peace, or allow it to acquire me. As I do, somehow peace will come to others.
I used to think two things about peace that I have come to realize were incorrect. The first, was that peace is a state without conflict, without trial, without pain or tribulation. Peace I thought was sitting in my woods alone with my thoughts, on a perfect day, in silence and solitude, without distraction. I now realize without tribulation, without conflict or trial, there can be no real peace. Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is an enduring quality of victory over conflict, of having the peace of God (the knowledge of his love and presence) with me in the midst of trial.
In this passage, Jesus refers to that very concept. He is about to go to his crucifixion. He will be tortured, abandoned, ridiculed, persecuted and finally killed. He is alluding to his disciples that their lives will not be without tribulation either. Real peace isn't avoiding this tribulation, it is overcoming it. Our physical muscles only grow stronger by opposition. In exercise, we challenge our bodies to resist. If we are successful, we grow stronger. To train for a marathon, one forces the body to run past the point of pain. So it is with our spirit. However in the spiritual realm, we don't fight back in the same way. We rest in the peace that Christ gives us: the peace of the awareness of his presence.
My second misconception was that peace is a final destination. However I've learned this peace, while overcoming the world and all the trials and pain it can throw at us, is not a permanent state of being here on earth. We don't stop facing the pain, the tribulation, the dirty work that faces us as spiritual people. Jesus Christ, as the second person of the Godhead, emptied himself (kenosis) to live the incarnation among us so that we too can find real peace and life. Even in the Buddhist tradition, from what little I know about it, the goal of a bodhisattva (one who is enlightened) is to seek enlightenment not just for oneself, but for all.
Again as I journey towards finding purpose in life, and seeking a resting place, I come across another pathway. One that I must take and travel through, and one that I must take with me. Real peace is knowing God: it is mindfulness, being aware of his loving presence at all times. (Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace who's mind is stayed on thee, because he trusts in thee. Isaiah 26:3). It is not avoiding suffering, it is experiencing it and sharing it with the rest of humanity. It is not the absence of suffering, it is the realization that Christ overcame it, and through his power, so will I.
And so in my own life I seek to acquire inner peace, or allow it to acquire me. As I do, somehow peace will come to others.
posted by Jeff at
3:01 PM
