It’s day five of the twelve days of Christmas series, and today we’re looking at the third fruit of the Spirit: peace – another foundational element of the Christmas season. “Peace on earth,” was the proclamation of the angel who carried the birth announcement from heaven to earth. “Prince of Peace” was Jesus’ prophesied title: “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders, and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.”
Yet so often “peace” seems like a foreign concept in today’s world. It’s a rush from one thing to another: paying the bills, working jobs, preparing meals, caring for family members (children or elderly), keeping the house warm, making sure the clothes are clean, battling pests, dealing with broken appliances, upgrading things around the home, decluttering, managing the checkbook and the calendar, keeping the car running, participating in social commitments, making sure children are properly educated, helping out friends, planning family gatherings, remembering special occasions, making phone calls, staying on top of social media, shopping, indulging in hobbies, and everything else that makes up “modern life” and fills up daylight hours.
With lengthy to-do lists comes heightened stress.
Plus, every day is filled with the unpredictable. Someone called in sick. A toddler used your furniture for a drawing board. The dinner burned. The car won’t start. You’re out of tape.
Sometimes life just seems like a series of dealing with one stress factor after another.
Yet Christmas offers us the reality of a glorious hope of something more.
Peace.
Peace in our daily chaos.
But how?
“Peace on earth” and “Prince of peace” might seem like the furthest possible reality from our daily life. But . . . the incarnation of Christ upon earth isn’t just about God taking on a human body. It’s about Christ being born in you and in me – about Him taking over our daily lives, fueling every action, encompassing every thought.
That’s peace. Peace from our self-life. Peace to let Him rule.
And that’s not just something that impacts our daily life; it’s something that stretches for eternity, long after the cares and stress of today are past. Ponder the words of today’s Christmas carol:
Break forth, O beauteous heavenly light,
And usher in the morning;
O shepherds, shrink not with afright,
But hear the angel’s warning.
This Child, now weak in infancy,
Our confidence and joy shall be,
The power of Satan breaking,
Our peace eternal making.
All blessing, thanks and praise to Thee,
Lord Jesus Christ, be given;
Thou hast our brother deigned to be,
Our foes in sunder riven.
O grant us through our day of grace
With constant praise to seek Thy face;
Grant us ere long in glory
With praises to adore thee.
On the fifth day, make devoted time to seek Him. Spend time in His presence, your thoughts fixed on His word. When His word rules your thoughts and your life, then you experience true inner peace – peace even amid daily chaos.
Come back tomorrow for Everyday Christmas.
Find the rest of today’s Twelve Days of Christmas party posts here.
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Another one that I hadn’t previously heard. Such beautiful lyrics. 😀