Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace … (2)

Have you ever noticed how patient Siri is with you, I meant no matter how many times you screw up, she simply and patiently says “recalculating!” But of course God is even more patient, and I am thinking this morning, that if He is so patient with me, I need to be just as patient with myself. As a young Christian I learned the promised at the head of this post from Isaiah 26:3 in the King James version, and I need it just as much today as I did back then. The new King James version has “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in to You.”

I woke in the night, and in my semiconscious state I was fretting about the leak in the roof that I can do nothing about until the spring. But I knew what to do. It is my habit to rise early, invite the Lord into my day by asking Him to fill me again with His Spirit, and then spent some time soaking in the His presence listening to worship music. I have to confess, that 99% of the time I fall back asleep. But the point is that what this is doing is essentially rebooting my system, recalculating if you like. I may have to do this several times, depending on how stressed I have allowed myself to become!

There are two things here in this recalculation. First of all I need to choose again to trust Him, because if I don’t trust Him I won’t have any kind of peace, let alone perfect peace! This gets easier as I do this over and over, and I can look back and see how He brought me through previous trials. This morning I am remembering the bedbug situation. It was not a lot of fun, but He brought me through it, and I am still alive! The second thing, is that I need to take authority over my thought life. I need to cast all my cares upon Him (1 Peter 5:7), and to steadfastly replace my worrying thoughts with memories of his faithfulness, and of His precious promises. This is quite different from suppressing my thoughts and worries. The former practice works, the latter does not!

Father, though sometimes it takes numerous recalculations, I do know it is possible to come into Your peace, because if it was not, Your whole Word would be a lie. Thank You that that peace becomes more and more perfect, as I increasingly learn to trust You, and I increasingly learn to set my mind steadfastly on You instead of on the circumstances. Thank you Lord, that these little victories give me confidence for the greater ones I am still waiting on You for. Thank You Lord that Your promises are true, and that all things are possible in Christ, in Jesus Name Amen