Speaking on Peace

I'm preparing a speech on peace. Here it is:

Hello, My name is Amber ######,
I'm from (city, state.)
I am serving at (my church), where I am the director of the children's ministry.
I was asked to speak by Jimmie whom I have known for several years, and is a close friend to my mom and to me. 
I will be speaking on Finding Peace in God. I am going to be telling you what peace means to me. 

When asked to speak about this topic, I found it to be interesting. I thought to myself, I don't have peace... But in reality, that isn't the truth. I just have difficulty practicing peace, and walking out peace. One of the fruit of the Spirit is peace. Because I have the Holy Spirit living in me I know that I have peace. The Spirit gives me peace. I have the ability to be peaceful. I may not always live in peace, but I do know what it is. 

Peace comes from trusting in God.
Peace comes from truth.
The Bible says in John 8:32 that you will know the truth and the truth will make you free.
What does the truth free you from?
I believe that knowing the truth about God and about yourself will free you from fear, worry, doubt, free from bondage.
Freedom brings peace.

One example of truth that could free someone from bondage is the Baby Elephant Principle. 

To restrain a baby elephant, circus trainers must chain it to a huge stake driven into the ground. When the baby grows into an adult, however, it is many times smarter and stronger. What trainers must then drive into the ground is just a tiny tent peg.
The baby had tried everything to break free. It had strained with all its might, pulling in every conceivable way, hour after hour, day after day. The huge stake refused to budge. So, rather than mindlessly keep trying to do the impossible, it did what at the time was the intelligent thing: it gave up trying.
The baby grew into a powerful beast. Convinced by bitter experience that whenever it is tethered there is no point trying to resist, it never bothered to determine whether anything had changed. So it suffers indignities, even though, if only it could grasp the fact, it could easily rip up the peg and trample those who sought to dominate it.
As an adult, it finds itself bound not by a stake but by a powerful psychological force. This powerful force has been given several names, one of which is ‘Learned Helplessness.’

The grown elephant was in bondage to the lie that it can't escape. The truth that the elephant is stronger than the tent peg is truth that would make the elephant free.

If elephants are able to be bound by lies, I wonder what lies are we as people believing about ourselves that are keeping us in bondage. 

The thing about a lie is that you don't know it's a lie- otherwise you wouldn't believe it. I think the way to be sure to get lies out of our lives it to be filling ourselves with truth. Just like a glass the only way to get the air out is by filling it with something else. 

This years luncheon is Ocean themed. When many people think of the ocean, they think of peacefulness. They think of still waters, and of quiet.


So you might think that peacefulness is quiet. However when I think of my life, quiet isn't how I would think of it. Whether you're a student, you work, you have a family, or even if you're retired- I'm sure your days are full and not very quiet. This "peace and quiet" I've heard so many mothers long for, doesn't seem to happen. So let me reassure you that you don't need a quiet life to have peace. 

In contrast to this peaceful picture, I can't help but think of crashing waves, or of ships caught in a storm. I think of Jesus and His disciples being caught in a storm. They weren't in the ocean, but it was a large body of water. And the storms can be extreme and dangerous for those in a small fishing boat. 

Here's the story from Mark 4:37-41

And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. 38 But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”

39 Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. 40 But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”[a] 41 And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”

It's not that Jesus didn't care about or value the lives of His disciples. Jesus was calm because He knew the truth. Jesus questioned the faith of His disciples because of their inability to trust beyond what they could see. Faith believes the truth even when the truth is not visible. 

I think that the level of peace you are experiencing is determined by the amount of truth you are believing.

Do you believe the truth about God?
Do you believe the truth about who God says you are?

I want to challenge you that what you believe isn't just what you know, but what you act upon.

You may say that God is good, and God is in control, but do you pray as if He can and will answer any of your prayers?

Do you believe that you can do anything through Christ? Or are you faced with fears of failing when it comes to doing something new, uncomfortable, or just challenging?

Examine what you believe, checking to see if it lines up with truth.

Does it line up with the Bible?

Does it line up with God’s Character?

Don’t believe everything you think.

We know who God is from the Bible.

1.       Everything about God is good.

a.       1 John 1:5 “God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.”

b.      Mark 10:18 “No one is good except God alone”

2.       God is always good.

a.       Psalm 119:68 “You are good and what you do is good.”

b.      Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

3.       Everything God does is good.

a.       Genesis 1:31 “God saw all that He had made (the earth & man,) and it was very good.”

b.      Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose.”

Recount some of the ways that God has been good to you. (Write down at least 10 instances.)

We know that God is good, not only because of the Bible, but because we have experienced God’s goodness in our lives. 

Peace comes from believing in a truth greater than the appearance of you circumstance. Just because it appears bad, doesn't mean that God isn't doing something. The truth is God is always doing something. He will never leave you.

Isaiah 55:8 states: "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD

What God is doing doesn't have to make sense to me. I don’t have to understand. He’s the expert, not me.

Having peace means that I can trust God with my efforts, even my failed attempts. Because something doesn't have to be good to work for good. Even when it looks like I have failed, I can trust God to use it for good.

Sometimes, as children's church leader, I might think it looks like they aren't learning... But I get to trust that God can use me and what I offered even if I didn't say every word perfectly.

Having peace means that I can trust God with my future. Because "I may not know what my future holds, but I know who holds my future." 

God loves me even more than I do, He gave His son, He died for me. He will take care of me. 

Even when we don't know what God is doing, we know that He is good. 

Having peace can come through accepting that which you cannot change. You are in control of yourself. You are not in control of other people's actions or the outcomes of your efforts.

I realize that I don’t actually know what’s best. God has proven Himself faithful again and again. When I follow His way, it is always the best way. Sometimes I don’t understand what’s happening, or why I should do the things God has instructed me, but I just have to do my part and I can count on God to do His. God has asked me to difficult things that go against what my flesh wants, but the choice is mine whether I want to choose God, or myself. Choosing God has everything to do with trust. God is even more capable than I am. It feels good to be out of control if the one in control is better at controlling the situation. I myself would be terrified to pilot a plane on my own and would be much more comfortable as the passenger. I see it the same way with God. He knows what He is doing and I will sit back and let Him be in control

I have come to realize that having peace comes majorly through perspective, the way you look at things. If you are able to remove yourself from your position, ask God how he sees it. Look at your life through eyes of truth.