Peace Beyond Imaginable

How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, "Your God reigns!" Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices; together they shout for joy. When the LORD returns to Zion, they will see it with their own eyes. Burst into songs of joy together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the LORD has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem. -Isaiah 52:7-9


And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever. -Isaiah 32:17


For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men." -Romans 14:17-18


Weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning! -Psalm 30:5


It is truly incredible how much the Lord has done in my life, especially in just the past few weeks. The Lord has allowed me to see strongholds in my life and created conviction in my heart of those things that I was still holding onto with knuckles so white. The Lord is still continually teaching me areas of life that I am trusting myself in more than Him but He has done SO much in my heart recently. Have you ever been in a plateau with your relationship with God where it just seemed like you were not getting much deeper than where you were at? To be honest, that is where I felt I was for awhile until the Lord started using 'Breaking Free' to truly break my heart for those areas deep down that were keeping me from His true peace. The Lord has revealed heart issues of trust due to the environment I grew up in, situations that I put myself into, and circumstances that I was completely to blame for. The Lord uprooted deep pain in my life and blessed me with time and knowledge to process how they were still keeping me from the Lord and growing deeper in my relationship with Him. I felt like I was learning submission to authority all over again--even when I felt like I had it figured out for the most part. I have learned how far I am from knowing and paying attention to all God's commands and being obedient in them. I am definitely not perfect. I realize that no one is perfect, but even just that statement of admitting your life is not all together is SO FREEING. I stumble and still think it is a better idea sometimes to put up the front of having everything together rather than being honest about having an incredibly bad week. I still am figuring out how manipulation can set into my mind and how the enemy uses it to convince me that my control over situations is best because I know what is going on and I don't have to sit and wonder. I am definitely still CONSTANTLY learning what it looks like to love others as Christ does. The Lord has definitely showed me how much I fear loving people the way I am called to because of fear of being rejected. This list of things that I don't have together could go on and on and on and on. However, I have experienced the greatest gift of all. The Lord has still looked at me with all the flaws in my flesh and whispers, "Behold, you are beautiful, my love, behold, you are beautiful!" (Song of Songs 4:1) The Lord has lavished his perfection on me that I may be seen as beautiful and perfect in His eyes for His glory alone! Being on this journey the Lord has led, I have seen the peace that comes with true obedience to God's Word and Spirit in my own life more than ever the past few weeks. Obviously, obedience does not come easy because we naturally want to rebel. We want to find our own way and find peace for ourselves so that we can feel a sense of accomplishment. Puke. The Lord calls us to a higher standard and calls us to sacrifice to live for Him and His kingdom. Isaiah 32:17 tells us that peace is a fruit of righteousness. We are filled with righteousness when we respond in obedience to Jesus' words in Luke 9:23: "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it." When we are ready to truly surrender, we are proclaiming that we will remain in His love by being a branch to the vine. The Lord blesses us with this opportunity to cling so tightly to Him so that we may experience peace and joy and that we may be complete. What an incredible blessing! The Lord has taken my heart captive and has filled it was joy and peace that has never been found anywhere else I have looked. I have never found this joy in drinking, controlling eating habits, or dating relationships. I have never found this joy in friendships, in sports, in hobbies, or in independency. There is NOWHERE other than God's loving arms that will allow you to experience overflowing peace in any situation and circumstances. Out of this peace comes complete display of His splendor and promise. I still don't understand how God has chosen me to reveal His love through, but I am beyond thankful for a God who is all powerful and who has taken me out of my darkest days and brought me into the brightest shining light I will not find elsewhere. I will proclaim, "Because Your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise You!" (Psalm 63:3)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YInS5krgB0s