Finding Peace Between Me & God
WEEK ONE
DAY FOUR
My heart is not proud, Lord,
my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters
or things too wonderful for me.
But I have calmed and quieted myself,
I am like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child I am content.
Israel, put your hope in the Lord
both now and forevermore.
Psalm 131:1-3
I love how David describes himself in these verses. All these content and holy words that place himself at the center of communion with God. He is humble, trusting, calm, quiet, and content. Why do we think this is? How did David get to this place?
He paints a beautiful picture of having “grown up” in his faith. No longer thrown about in confusion or restlessness or pride! He drank spiritual milk long enough that he is eating solid foods. His need to be coddled and pampered as a helpless “baby in the faith” is no more. He can sit next to the one who raised him, content and confident, knowing he is at peace with God.
LET’S PRAY
1.) Do you feel you still need spiritual milk, or are you eating solid spiritual food daily? How can we know? Babies are fussy, unpredictable, needy, incapable of making decisions for themselves, and cannot be trusted with more responsibility. Ask God to reveal to you whether you are clinging to infancy or moving further in your faith walk.
2.) Be still and know. If we can be still and listen, we will hear from God himself how He fights for us. Do you trust God to fight for you? We must trust God to be at peace with Him. How are you trusting Him currently?
3.) Contentment feels like peace. There is no unsettled need in your heart that keeps you up at night or longing for worldly success or possessions. Do you struggle to feel content? What pulls at your heart the most? Give those to God today in a prayer of repentance.
Good morning. I am struggling this morning as my spirit is conflicted. I noticed the avatar for our group in group me this session noticing the “peace” symbol born of the nuclear arms race in the 1950’s and following. I grew up during this era in a Christian home, the daughter of a Navy Chaplain, and I assure you, this symbol was never embraced as being associated with Christ’s love for us. It was very much embraced by protesters in despair over the threat of nuclear annihilation often with a hippie life style who also embraced a culture of flagrant drug use and sexual immorality. In my home it was viewed as a symbol of the anti-Christ. Personally, I think it is inappropriate to use this symbol to reflect our Peace, that is true Peace, born of our Savior. Suggest using something more Biblical.
Sweet Peggy I’m so sorry that you view the peace symbol this way. I would like to tell you a little bite about my experience and how a God changed the way I view them now.
At one point in my like for about 20 something years I had suicidal thoughts. I wold see our daily tools for example a knife, a hammer, and pan I would ask myself how can I use this to do what I thought I needed to do at the time. After some deep deep healing I am free from the lies the enemy keep telling me, with God’s love and his support He has redeem me.
I know see our daily tools for what they are meant to be used for.
I hope this helps a little and I was able to explain myself.
Someone took what was supposed to be a fun and colorful symbols and used it for evil.
Prayers heading your way sweet Peggy 🦋
Patricia, thank you for your concern and kind words. I’m glad you found freedom. I respectfully disagree that this peace symbol is appropriate for use in Christian ministry in this context. Symbolism is important and 1 Corinthians 10:32 says to not cause others to stumble. I know it’s not anything to the same degree, but it is like telling Jewish people the swaskita is okay…it is a symbol of purity and spirituality for Hindus. For the Jews, it is a symbol of death thanks “someone using it for an evil purpose”. Sorry, not buying it. Now in a secular context, I have no problem with the peace sign. For my God who is Holy, I do have a problem representing Him with something that, for me, and I’m sure others as well, is considered unholy.
I’m not mad or offended, I just think it is inappropriate and bad taste.
Thanks for sharing your convictions with us, Peggy! I respect your view point and can see where this could be a stumbling block for you and others who believe as you do. I have personally felt no conviction, after much prayer and fasting, that I am dishonoring God by using this symbol. The reasons for that are a long list of verses/spiritual points/practical points, that I don’t believe would bring the two of us on the same page if they were debated here on a website. I completely understand if you cannot continue to participate further with this session, as this symbol has already been scheduled to be used throughout the remaining session. You are a good friend and I would not take it personally if you chose to do so. Love you! Proud of your strength of faith, even if it isn’t the same as someone else. 🙂