Why Don’t I Have Peace?
You don’t have peace because you care too much. Clear? No? Ok. Let’s dig in!
The Classic Quote
You know the words of Jesus we like to quote about peace. Just in case there is any confusion, here they are.
“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 NIV
And yet you often think, “But I DON’T have peace! I’m frightened and frustrated and anxious and tempted and miserable.” Or maybe that’s just me. At least it has been me in the past.
Jesus said He left His peace with us, and yet we struggle to have that peace. Why is there a disconnect here? We know Jesus told the truth, in fact in the same chapter and verse 6, He told us He is THE Truth! So, if the words of Jesus are true, and yet we lack peace, the issue can’t be with Him, it must be with us.
The Problem of Caring Too Much
Let’s look at a line from one of the most famous parables Jesus shared while He was on earth.
“But the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.”
-Mark 4:19 ESV
This is part of what’s known of The Parable of the Sower. It’s been analyzed many times over the centuries. (As an aside, two of my favorite applications of it are found in the book Parable Church by Mike Burnette and in the You Are Here message series by Robert Morris.)
But for our purposes I want to discuss the way this verse speaks to the issue of peace in the heart of the Jesus follower. To begin, let me clear up a common misconception. The four words of the verse say, “and it proves unfruitful.” This doesn’t necessarily mean the person being discussed is bound for Hell and not Heaven.
Do you know why in this case the Word is unfruitful? Because “the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word.” I’m about to say something, and you may not like it. But please, stick with me here.
If you and I don’t have the peace Jesus promised, the reason is simple. We don’t have peace for the same reason the Word proved unfruitful in the Parable of the Sower. Because we care too much about things in this world.
But I’m a Sincere Jesus Follower
I know that. Me too. And yet, we so often lack peace. Let me give you a few examples.
We worry about not having enough money.
We worry about the political situation.
We worry about the state of the world our children or grandchildren are going to grow up in.
We worry about projects in our jobs, or about the stability of our jobs.
We worry we will never live in a place we love.
We worry we won’t accomplish our goals and dreams.
We worry about the death of others or our own death.
We worry that our lost loved ones won’t come to Jesus (oh yeah, this one too).
We worry about more things than I could possibly list here, and that is the reason we so often lack peace.
Here is the truth. As far as I can tell, there was exactly one time Jesus MIGHT have shown anxiety, and that was the night before He was tortured and crucified. However, even that lasted very briefly. As for us though? We worry our entire lives. Therefore, we don’t have peace.
Worry vs. Concern
Maybe I should explain that worry about our loved ones not coming to Christ and the problem with it. To do so we need to understand the difference between worry and concern. Worry means we are anxious about something possibly happening or not happening, and yet we don’t properly address it. Concern means we are aware of the possible negative outcome, but we do properly address it.
Worry is the pathway to anxiety. Concern is the pathway to peace. When we worry, we imagine the worst case scenario and fill ourselves with dread, but we either can’t or don’t do anything to change the situation. With concern we recognize the range of possible outcomes, negative AND positive, and, where possible, take action to influence toward the positive outcome. Where not possible, we just give it completely to God.
Characteristics of worry:
Fear
Inaction
Anxiety
Misuse of imagination toward negative outcomes
Fruitlessness
Characteristics of concern:
Faith
Trust
Proper use of imagination
Action
Prayer
Release
You can be concerned about something without allowing any of the characteristics of worry to affect your peace.
How the Disciples Were Taught
There is another famous verse from Jesus about peace. It’s found in John 16. Frankly, I’m a little leery to quote it out of context, because it’s critical to understand why Jesus said it when He did. Plus, people often ignore the first part of the verse itself. Here is the verse.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
-John 16:33 NIV
Here is the issue, we must answer the question, “What things had Jesus told them?” I encourage you to go back and read all of John 16. In it, Jesus gave the disciples plenty of things that they could potentially worry about, but He also gave them promises that would allow them to not have fear, but rather, anticipatory concern. He let them know things that were about to happen, both good and bad, so the disciples could be confident that He already knew the future AND that it was under control in His almighty hands.
The Simple Secret to Peace
I could give you a number of strategies to deal with fear and increase your peace. In fact, I’ve done so in talking about the trustworthiness of God, discovering the will of God for your life, how to move forward in God’s plan for your life, and a host of other blog posts.
But here is the simple path to peace. Orient your life around God, pray, obey His will, and let everything else rest in His hands as you trust Him without holding back.
If you have follow-up thoughts, feel free to reach out to me directly via our contact form. Also, if you’d like to learn more about me and why I create all this content about following Jesus, check out my About page.
Love you Jesus follower!