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Waiting with Peace



                Deep breath—Christmas is here.  Peace is in the air.  The angels sang: Peace on Earth Good Will to Men.  They should know.  Angels are messengers of God’s peace.  They bring the message without delay.  The question is: Do we receive the peace the angels describe?
                Peace in your soul evolves from a heart that has received the message of Christmas—that God gave His only Son to live, die, and rise again.  This reality is what leads to peace.  Peace is the destination we all desire in our souls.  Advent paves a way to peace. 
                Peace begins when we hope in the promised Savior Whom the prophets foretold.  A Savior taking on flesh to save the world can have no other motivation than pure love.  The love of heaven to earth is unlike any other love.  It is the love our hearts were created to enjoy.  God proved His love for us through sending Jesus to us.  He sent Him to become one of us.  There is no greater love than taking on the sin of the entire world so that we can be saved through His righteousness.  Hope and Love naturally lead to joy.  The Gospel is joy given to the world.  It is the too-good-to-be-true Good News!  Who can contain the joy of a soul who comes to salvation through faith?
                Advent brings us to peace this fourth week.  We light the Angel Candle because the angels were the bearers of the good news:  Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests (Luke 2:14.)  Their song is short and sweet yet penetrates the reality of a fallen world.  The recipients of this undeserved favor will have hearts that glorify God and feel peace in the difficult circumstances of life.  The angel’s message contained news of great favor and ultimate peace.  They were clear that this favor and peace should naturally lead to hearts that glorify God.  If you know the peace the angels speak about, your heart will be full of praise and thanksgiving to God.
                People who know me personally know that my circumstances are full of challenges and heartbreaking realities.  If I did not have the peace of God, I think I would be sitting in the back of my closet in the fetal position paralyzed by the harsh realities of my life.  Perhaps I’m being a little dramatic, but my life experiences could overwhelm me, if it were not that I know what the peace of God can do.  When I recognize that the hard things I am facing are not punishment from God rather opportunities to grow in faith, my soul opens to deeper spiritual experiences.  The peace I have cannot be found anywhere on earth.  It comes directly from heaven.  If I could bottle up the peace I have and sell it on the open market, I would become the richest person in the world.  The peace on earth will literally come in the future when Jesus comes the second time and remakes the heavens and the earth.  In the meantime, peace on earth can only be experienced inside the hearts of individuals who put their hope, love and joy in the work of the baby who came at Christmas, then lived, died, was buried and rose again and now lives in heaven interceding for us.
                The pathway to Christmas is through hope, love, joy and peace.  Glorify the Father by lighting the white Christ Candle in celebration of God’s utter goodness to you.
Copyright © 2104.  Deborah R Newman teatimeforyoursoul.com  All Rights Reserved.

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