Philippians 4:9
“Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”
Thank you, Jesus, for revealing to me the importance of embracing the God of peace. We need to stop digging and creating problems that weren’t already there by constantly ruminating on the past. God is showing us, through our reflections, the things we need to let go of—our dreams and our thoughts.
But what if the things we need to release are tied to our past? Isaiah 43:18-19. Didn’t God say to forget the former things? Yes, but you can only truly move past and forget them by giving them to Him. Surrender your past to God. Dwelling on the past, overthinking, and a desire to control and fix things are inherent in our human nature and societal culture. Time traveling and overthinking about what could’ve been different or the different outcomes of our situation, and ways it could’ve been prevented, is also a natural inclination. However, having to time travel only with God, not by ourselves, is something we should consider in our pieces, our pieces of growth. Traveling back into the past alone will only leave you stuck. God will take you back to show you how far you’ve come, the blessings you’ve received, and what you need to let go of. Thank you, Holy Spirit.
Now, ask yourself this: After you gave your life to Christ, regardless of whether you’ve been a Christian your whole life or not, what are some experiences that have disappointed, discouraged, or hurt you? Are there things from your past that you’ve forgotten to give to Him? This is why you still feel stuck and lack peace. You may find comfort in holding onto things or people that do not serve you or God and the lifestyle He desires for you.
Let us pray,
Jehovah shalom, Prince of Peace, help us to embrace the peace you so freely give. Let your peace wash over us wherever we are and for us to carry your peace wherever we go. We bind and rebuke rumination and negative thinking that isn’t pleasing to you and potentially leading us to sin. We ask that we continuously learn to take every thought captive and invite you in our decisions and plans that it becomes muscle memory. Thank you Abba for your patience, the times we slip up, the times we dwell on the past and thought it was through, the times we got so caught in our thoughts we missed to see your divine hand at work in our lives and those around us. Lord help us to not get caught up in our thoughts and fix our focus, our eyes on not our past, or what is seen but what is unseen. Lord help our unbelief and give us hope for the future and the hurt that we carry. Help us not shove it deep within us and help us come to the altar laying it at your feet. Thank you gracious and merciful God, help us let go of the things we need to let go of, accept change in the different seasons you bring us through instead of fantasizing on what could have been. Thank you Jesus for using us in our pieces and carefully, renewing,refining us to make us whole like you Jesus, we thank you and love you. It is in your mighty and matchless name we pray, amen!
You can’t protect your peace if you don’t practice it.
Supporting verse: 2 Corinthians 10:5