God Speaks Through The Storm, Part 11: Peace with a Purpose

If you’ve missed any part of this series, click on any post directly below.

Part One-Intro
Part Two-My Storms in a nutshell
Part Three-Depression
Part Four-More Depression
Part Five-Even More Depression
Part Six-Guest Post, Dan Blanchard
Part Seven-The Last Depression Post
Part Eight-Death of a Child
Part Nine-Death of a Child
Part Ten-Guest Post, Holly Good
Part Eleven-Death of a Child
Part Twelve-Death of a Child
Part Thirteen, Death of a Child
Part Fourteen, Death of a Child
Part Fifteen, Death of a Child
Part Sixteen, Conclusion

I can hear some of you now: Yee Gads! Part ELEVEN!!!!! Will this series ever end?”

Perhaps. But only if you stop saying, “Yee Gads!”.

And as long as I keep you entertained on Fridays, I figure you’ll stick with me through the Storm Series, right?

It’s a fair trade.

And here is a totally random entertaining thought for you: in my blogger spell check, the word “rol-a-dex” is not there, but “ROFL” is. I’m getting old. The next thing you’ll tell me is that VHS tapes are not cutting edge technology.

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Again, I adapted the following post from my manuscript, Defining Moment: Deciding to Live After the Death of Your Child. Your feedback on this manuscript is helpful and encouraging. Thank you!!!

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I don’t remember feeling the peace returning to me, but I do remember when I discovered it was there. It was about 15 months after Noah died, and I was holding my little baby girl, Rebekah. She was just a few months old. A bundle of blond hair, pink cheeks and big blue eyes. She was that “perfect baby age.” You know, the age when babies smile all the time, yet they are still too little to crawl away from you or talk back? That age.

I was listening to a CD by the contemporary Christian group, Watermark. While the music played, I swirled around the family room with my sweet baby as she giggled and squealed in delight. I was singing to one of my favorite songs on the CD called Peace.

Well, I’ve got peace in my heart
I’ve got peace in my soul
Flowing like river
Into the depths of who I am

And I’m sure of who You are
And as far as I can see
You are bringing peace to me
You’re bringing your peace to me
You bring your peace to me

At that moment, I looked into Rebekah’s eyes. She was oblivious to the fact that just a few months earlier her brother had died. Oblivious to the fact that her mother had struggled to survive the last year of her life.

Oblivious to sin and pain…and storms.

She was so joyful—belly laughing with that toothless grin. I glanced up at the mantle over the fireplace. There sat three 8×10 framed photos of Noah taken just a few days before his death. Noah…with that same toothless grin. Noah also oblivious to death and sin and pain and storms. Now resting peacefully in the arms of Jesus.

I began weeping and laughing all at the same time, still twirling and singing with Rebekah,

I’ve got peace in my heart
I’ve got peace in my soul
flowing like a river
Into the depths of who I am…

…realizing the Lord was, indeed, restoring my peace. Remembering a time not too long ago when I believed I’d NEVER have real peace again, I could finally see a vital element in my spiritual healing was emerging: the peace of God.

Heart Attack

If you are battling the storm of your life, restoration of your peace must be a top priority. Why? Because the peace that God gives is not like the peace that anyone or anything else gives us.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)

God’s peace is not a state of mind. It is not a feeling. It cannot be achieved by deep breathing, physical rest, going on vacation or taking a long bath (although I highly recommend any and all of those things!). It is a spiritual condition, and it has a purpose.

“Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything, but in every circumstance and in everything, by prayer and petition (definite requests), with thanksgiving, continue to make your wants known to God. And God’s peace [shall be yours, that tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and being content with its earthly lot of whatever sort that is, that peace] which transcends all understanding shall garrison and mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7-Amp)

The purpose of God’s peace is to guard our precious hearts and minds. These are the places the Enemy most often attacks. Our mind is in turmoil and the pain is unbearable. We may battle disturbing images of the traumatic event. Often we are flooded with thoughts of guilt or regret, wishing we had acted sooner or done something differently to prevent the storm from raging in the first place. It can become like a tape that plays over and over and over again.

Friend, those are all attacks on your heart and mind, and they are not from God.

“Let the peace (soul harmony which comes) from Christ rule (act as umpire continually) in your hearts [deciding and settling with finality all questions that arise in your minds, in that peaceful state]…” (Colossians 3:15a AMP).

God wants his peace in your heart to act as an umpire, deciding which thoughts are “safe” and which are “out.” I love that promise.

“Above all else guard you heart, for it is the wellspring of life.”( Proverbs 4:23)

In order for you to find your life again after your storm, you must mount guard over the wellspring of that life. This is only something that the peace of God can do.

“A heart at peace gives life to the body.” (Proverbs 14:30a)

I’m guessing that if you are in a storm, you already know to pray for God’s peace. You’ve probably asked others to pray for you, too. That is a great place to start. But in order to obtain peace that sustains through the major storms of life, the Bible takes it even further.

“Seek peace and pursue it” (Psalm 34:14b).

“Pursue” is a very proactive term: it means seeking, following, chasing and seizing. And one of the ways I have found to pursue peace Biblically is to keep my mind on the Lord through meditation on His Word.

“You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee because he trusteth in thee.” (Isaiah 26:3-KJV)

What a beautiful promise. He will keep us in his peace, when we fix our minds on Him and trust in Him. There is no better way to fix your mind on the Lord than by reading, meditating upon, and speaking His word.

“Great peace have they that love your law, and nothing can make them stumble.” (Psalm 119:165)


God Speaks Peace Over My Mind

In the days and weeks following Noah’s death, I dreaded going to bed at night. I hated the quiet and I hated the darkness. That is where the video tape started in my head every night. I would see it over and over again:

the hospital room,
the nurses,
the furniture,
the little bed,
the little orange socks on his swollen feet,
the bruises from countless failed attempts at inserting the IV’s,
the sight and feel of his lifeless body growing cold and stiff in my arms,
the parade of relatives kissing him goodbye for the last time…

On and on it would go.

I’d relive the nightmare every night in great detail. I’d flip-flop between trying to will the thoughts out of my mind and trying to think of something else, only to be quickly thrown back into my mental prison. I’d toss and turn for hours begging God to please let me sleep and stop the attack on my mind.

Then one day I came across a scripture written on a little daily calendar:

“Humility and fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life.” (Proverbs 22:4).

It honestly didn’t even have special meaning for me at the time. I didn’t memorize it on purpose. It just sort of stuck in my head.

That night as I lay in my bed the tormenting thoughts started again. Almost in a panic I searched my mental rol-a-dex for something to replace the nightmare. The first thing that came to mind?

“Humility and fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life…Humility and fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life…Humility and fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life…”

Over and over I quietly repeated it. I struggled to grasp the full meaning of the verse. I fought to keep my mind on every word.

I considered humility and what that meant.

I tried to remember all the times the Bible talked about the fear of the Lord.

I considered what kind of honor or wealth God would bestow upon the humble…

It was truly a battle to focus on that scripture and fight the thoughts in my head. But before I knew it…it was morning! I had fallen asleep meditating on that verse and slept peacefully the entire night for the first time since Noah’s death.

The next night when the thoughts started, I again directed my mind to the word of God. That same short scripture repeated and spoken in the darkness, over and over. It wasn’t very profound, and it didn’t even really apply directly to my situation (At least I didn’t think it did at the time, but as I write this today, I see the beautiful truth God was speaking to me). But it was still the Word of God and it still brought liberty and peace to this troubled, tormented heart. Again, the attack on my mind ceased and I slept through the night.

After that second night, the tormenting thoughts never returned, and I have never had another night of disturbed sleep due to that attack on my mind. It was as if God built an actual fortress around my mind, protecting it from the Enemy.

And isn’t that exactly what His peace promises?

A Prayer for You

If you are battling a raging storm right now or you know someone who is, I highly recommend praying God’s word for peace and protection over the mind. Through my storms, God revealed to me an aspect of His character that I would have never known otherwise: Jesus is The Prince of Peace. Since that night on my bed when God used His word to cast out the attack on my mind, I’ve clung to His word for dear life.

His word, quite literally, is life to me.

If you don’t know where to start, or you aren’t familiar enough with the Bible to pray God’s word, I’ve written some prayers, which are essentially God’s word in prayer form. Here is the one I now pray for His peace. I’d be happy to let you borrow it…no extra charge.

Heavenly Father,

Your Word says that you are the Comforter (Jeremiah 8:18) and the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). Today/tonight I ask that you would touch my anxious, troubled heart with your peace. You’ve said that in every circumstance and in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, I am to make my wants known to you. And that when I do this, the peace of God which transcends all understanding shall garrison and mount guard over my heart and mind in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7) Lord, thank you for erecting a fortress around my heart that the enemy of my soul cannot penetrate. I know that my heart must be guarded, for out of it flows the wellspring of life (Proverbs 4:23). I lay claim to your promise for a peaceful heart, because I need life in my body. Lord, I speak life into my broken body and my broken heart right now. I diligently seek your peace. I pursue your peace (Psalm 34:14b). I purpose today/tonight to trust in you and fix my mind on you (Isaiah 26:3). You’ve promised great peace to me because I love your word (Psalm 119:65). Lord, I know it is not your will for me to be afraid, anxious, depressed or confused. Your Holy Spirit living in me produces peace, love and a sound mind (Galatians 5:22, II Timothy 1:7). I stand on the power and authority of your Word today/tonight and its many promises for peace, understanding that it is vital to my emotional and spiritual recovery. I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone , O Lord make me dwell in safety. (Ps 4:8)

In Jesus’ Name I pray. Amen.

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For more on the Peace of God, check out my series by the same name: Peace. Also check out other posts dealing with God’s peace from the archives.