I have recently been involved in premarital counseling sessions with four different couples. Over the years I have officiated a number of weddings and conducted dozens of counseling sessions for those getting married. We talk about all kinds of topics, but one of my favorite to talk about is holidays. Even after years of marriage, the holidays can be the least peaceful time of the year. Even though we sing “peace on earth and mercy mild,” it often feels like the opposite during the holiday hecticness!
I often read through the book of Isaiah during the holidays. Chapters 13-27 are a particularly rough section of this book, for they picture a number of specific judgments carried out on various people groups, culminating in a worldwide judgment of all man-made kingdoms when Christ returns. And yet, embedded in the midst of this judgment of God’s enemies, is ch.26. This chapter reminds us that God’s people can be at peace even the most difficult of times. Consider two verses from this chapter:
“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD God is an everlasting rock.”
“O LORD, you will ordain peace for us, for you have indeed done for us all our works.”
These verses present a conditional promise with respect to peace. First, the promise: true peace is indeed available to us through the Lord. He alone offers PERFECT peace, for he alone can offer us rest from all of our striving and conflict and worry and wrongdoing. Through the perfect sacrifice of Christ, he has accomplished what we need; indeed, he has “done for us all our works.” Second, the condition: we can only experience peace as we place our trust in the Lord and what he has accomplished through Christ. He invites us to fix our minds on this truth, so that we are not shaken in the midst of external circumstances.
So, may we look to Christ alone for peace in the midst of holiday hardships that are sure to come!
Ben