Peace in a Chaotic World

• My roommate told me he can’t remember if he took his anti-anxiety medication or not. So, I asked him, “Are you worried about it?”
• What do you call a dinosaur that worries too much? A nervous Rex.
• A man said to his counselor, “Stairs really freak me out and give me anxiety.” The counselor replied, “I think you need to approach this fear step by step.”
• Did you know that over 90% of the things you worry about never happen.Which proves….worrying really works.
• Did you hear about the man who was worried about the calendar? He was worried because its days are numbered.

Have you had any anxiety this week over something that you know you have zero control over?  There is certainly no lack of things to worry about. I’m certain that for each of you, the issues that create worry are a little bit unique.  However, no matter the issue that causes you anxiety, it always leads us all to the same end, which is an absence of peace in our lives.

I love to pray for people. The one thing that I pray for people, more than anything else, is peace. When all we see in our circumstances is uncertainty, doubt, and instability, we crave peace—peace of heart and peace of mind.

Who of us is not craving more peace in our lives?

We crave peace:

• Peace in our relationships (marriages, kids, parents, co-workers, friends, and neighbors)
• Peace of mind about the future, (what will happen to us tomorrow, will I have enough?)
• Peace between Republicans and Democrats and peace in the Middle East, in the world
• Peace between us and our Heavenly Father

We are all craving peace!

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The title of my sermon today is Peace in a Chaotic World.  

The antithesis of peace is chaos and conflict. A great example of this is Mk 4.

Here’s the context of Mark 4: Jesus had called the twelve disciples and He began teaching in towns and in the countryside.  Everywhere Jesus went, large crowds would gather to hear him. There was a lot of chaos, including conflict with the religious leaders. In Mark 4, Jesus spends the day speaking to a gathering crowd on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. So many people gathered that He tells His disciples that evening, “Let’s go to the other side.”

Mk 4:36-39 (ESV)—And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

Maybe you can identify with the disciples in this situation.  Jesus, I feel like I’m drowning, don’t you care?  Jesus, my world is crumbling around me, don’t you care?  Jesus, I don’t know what to do, don’t you care?

“Do you not care that we are perishing?”—the disciples asked. Maybe you are asking the same question.

I want you to know this morning that God is speaking these words over your life: Peace! Be still!

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First, let’s talk about some misconceptions about peace.

Misconception number one: Good Christians don’t struggle with a lack of peace.

This is a misconception, a misunderstanding, and a lie.

Some of the great heroes of our faith struggled with a lack of peace.

The Prophet Elijah was so depressed at one point that he wanted to die

King David, in the Psalms, often talked about his despair.

The Prophet Jeremiah struggled with loneliness and insecurity, and at one point, he cursed the day he was born.

Charles Spurgeon, born in 1834 and died in 1892, was known as The Prince of Preachers. He was an incredibly effective and talented preacher. In his lifetime, he preached to approximately 10 million people, often speaking ten times a week. His 3,561 sermons are bound in sixty-three volumes, and he also wrote many books.  

Many don’t know that he struggled with a lifetime of depression and anxiety.

If you are struggling to find peace, you are in good company with all of these people.

Look back at Mk 4 and the response of the disciples to Jesus when He calms the storm:

Mk 4:40-41 (ESV)—He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” 

Jesus, with three words, brings the peace and the calm that they were hoping for, but now they’ve found a new thing to worry about.  It says when they see Jesus’ power at work they are afraid. Now there’s a new source of anxiety for them.  The good news is we’re not going to drown, the bad news is, can we trust this guy who can command the wind and the waves?

It’s just a reminder that we will always find something to be anxious about, we will always find something to worry about.

If you are struggling with a lack peace, it does not mean you are a bad Christian, it simply means that you are human; it simply means that you, like the rest of us, haven’t arrived yet. You’re still in process; God is still perfecting you, but He isn’t done quite yet.

Look at what Paul says to the Thessalonians:

1 Thes 5:23-24 (CSB)—Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely. And may your whole spirit, soul, and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will do it.

God is sanctifying you. In other words, He is changing you so that your life reflects His character. As you grow and change, your life looks more like the God who is changing you, the God of peace. Your life then begins to be filled with more and more peace.

In Gal 5, you will find the list of the Fruits of the Spirit, which are the result of our sanctification and a sign that the Holy Spirit is at work in us. What is the third of the nine fruits listed?  Peace!  The first one is love, the second is joy, and the third is peace!

Which leads me to the second misconception about peace: God doesn’t care about your lack of peace.

That simply isn’t true.  It is a lie.

God does care when you can’t take hold of the peace He has for you.

Over 600 times, the word “peace” is translated from the Hebrew in the Old Testament and  Greek in the New Testament. Six hundred times makes it seem to me that peace may be an important topic for God.

You might be thinking, with God holding the universe together, He doesn’t have time for your trivial worries and anxious thoughts. But He wants you to know peace in your life. 

If it is worrying you, it is important to God.

Consider what King David, who wrote Ps 88, which is basically a long list of how crummy and hard his life is, writes about God’s peace:

Ps 27:1 (CSB)—The LORD is my light and my salvation— so why should I be afraid? 

Ps 34:18 (CSB)—The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. 

Ps 46:1 (CSB)—God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. 

Ps 23:1 (CSB)—The LORD is my shepherd; I have all that I need. 

He cares enough about our worries that He encourages us to bring the things that are causing us anxiety, to the foot of the cross in prayer.  Look at what Paul says to the Philippians:

Phil 4:6-7 (CSB)—Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

He doesn’t say, “Don’t worry about anything, just get over it.  Move on for Pete’s sake.”  But He says, bring those requests to me.  Let’s do a swap.  You give me your worry, I’ll give you my peace.  It’s the kind of peace that the rest of the world will not understand.  It is a mind-blowing peace.

So, how do we do this?  How do we swap our worry for God’s peace?

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Here are a few ideas or ways to find peace:

1. Peace is found in a holistic approach.

Finding peace has a spiritual component. It involves learning to trust God, remembering God’s faithfulness, praying about your worries, and then waiting on God for the peace He promises.

There is also an emotional component to finding peace.  Understanding why you are experiencing worry and anxiety is important.  Ask yourself why you are worrying and why certain things trigger your anxiety.  

I grew up in a single-parent home that was always filled with anxiety about not having enough. My mom worked two jobs to pay the rent and put food on the table. We always had enough to survive, but it was incredibly stressful. I was the oldest, so I was in charge of my siblings most of the time we weren’t in school, so I understood just how hard life can be when you worry about your next meal or if you will have a place to live next month.

What I found as an adult with a family of my own was that I had a lot of anxiety about not wanting my family to go through what I went through as a kid.  I was always worried about my kids having enough.  Even today, those emotions still creep up at times, but I understand them better now and can deal with them better than when I was in my 20’s.

There is also a physical component to finding peace.  How are you eating?  Are you exercising?  Are you sleeping well at night?  These are all things that contribute to your state of mind.  

If you are not taking care of yourself physically it will be very difficult for you to find peace. When you are overstressed and overtired your body creates extra cortisol that puts your body in fight mode.  It creates that feeling that you can’t sit still.  I makes you feel like you always have to be doing something.  When you are in that state, physically, if peace were to punch you in the face, you wouldn’t recognize it because you are too preoccupied with the overwhelming sense of urgency to do stuff.  There is no way you can sit still and hear God’s voice as He speaks peace over your life.

Some of you struggle with chronic, ongoing illness.  I don’t but my wife does and I know how daunting and how out of reach good physical health can feel and what that does to your peace.  If that’s you, hang in there, don’t quit the fight to find answers to your health.  Do what you are able to find good health and don’t neglect your spiritual and emotional health in the process.

2. Beware of counterfeit peace.

There are many things that our culture promises will bring you peace.  But beware of false promises.  Anytime what the world tells you conflicts with what God tells you, it is a lie.

The world may tell you that all you need to do to find peace is get a new spouse.  Your current one is not bringing much peace; just get a new one.  It’s a lie.  There are reasons to pursue divorce, but God’s design for marriage is that it be for a lifetime. Research shows that couples who choose to work through hardships in their relationship are stronger in the long run.

The world may tell you that peace comes from having enough money or stuff. This is a lie. Jesus pointed this out in Matthew 6.

Matt 6:19-21 (CSB)—Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

At some point, your stuff will let you down.

If whatever our culture tells you will bring you peace, and it does not involve the presence of God, it will fail you.

Paul puts it this way to the Corinthian church:

1 Cor 1:20-21 (CSB)—Hasn’t God made the world’s wisdom foolish? For since, in God’s wisdom, the world did not know God through wisdom, God was pleased to save those who believe through the foolishness of what is preached.

3. Peace is an outcome.

Peace results from filling our minds with things that will bring us peace.

Isa 26:4 (CSB)—You will keep the mind that is dependent on you in perfect peace, for it is trusting in you.

When our minds are filled with things that will lead us to trust in God, He says we will find perfect peace. This is Isaiah’s way of saying mind-blowing peace.

When your mind is filled with the things of God, the outcome is perfect peace.

The obvious question is, “What are you filling your mind with?”  What is your mind dependent upon?  This is important because your life is moving in the direction of your strongest thoughts.  What are you allowing to form those thoughts?

Our brains are built over time. Starting at birth, the brain begins making simple connections called neural pathways. You create 1 million neural connections every second in the first few years of life. After the brain starts to learn, those connections begin to get simplified. The brain prunes those connections, and it gets more efficient.  It starts to think in patterns. That is why once you think a thought, it is easier to think that thought again.  That is good news when you feed your brain healthy thoughts, but bad news when you’re not.

Make sure you are filling your brain with things that will lead you toward God and peace, not things that will lead you away from God and steal your peace.

If you are obsessing about the economy, constantly watching the daily news cycle, or always on your phone scrolling, I guarantee your mind will not be dependent on God.  The Bible says that we reap what we sow.  That is so true in many areas of our lives, especially our thought life.  Peace is an outcome of what we sow into our minds.

Sow God’s Word, sow truth, sow things that will lead you to become more like Jesus, not things that lead us away from Him.

4. Peace isn’t found in the absence of problems but in the presence of God.

Peace is not found in the absence of chaos, difficulty, and pain; it is found in the presence of God.

Jn 14:27 (CSB)—Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful.

Jesus said, “My peace.”  Not a peace, but My peace.

Do you know when Jesus said these words?  When did He make this promise? Right before He was arrested, tortured, and then crucified.

Peace isn’t found in the absence of problems but in the presence of God.

Sometimes, that peace comes in the midst of bad news, when you lose a job, when your child is rebelling, your marriage is struggling, or when money is tight. Even though all of our worries and anxieties may not be resolved, we still have access to God’s peace.

In God’s presence, we find peace that is different from the peace the world offers.  In God’s presence, we find the peace of Jesus that goes beyond our understanding.

That peace begins with a relationship with Him, and as we learn to become more like Him, we find that peace is the norm, not the exception. Be sure to take time to be still and seek Him this week. When you find Him, you find His peace in a chaotic world.