The Power of Inner Peace

Rev. Nigel Felder
Isaiah 26:3
“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.”

There is no substitute for inner peace. The human quest for things and possessions cannot compete with the joy of a quieted spirit and stable mind. In this age of chaos and confusion, the hope of the saints is for inner peace.

When I was a child, our home was filled with happiness and excitement. It was just the four of us, Daddy, Momma, my brother and I, yet the house resonated with excitement about the day and the things we would do or get into. Each evening we would press our pants and starch the collars of our shirt and then go outside and spend the evening with neighborhood friends. After momma blinked the lights we would come into the house and the family would watch the one television we had.

We would eat junk food (sometimes) and drink soda as we sat together in the living room watching the television. Life was so simple and we were happy. We did not have a television in every room. We did not have air conditioning. We only had one car. Momma cooked every night; my father drove the family to church each week, as he and my mother were officers. We prayed before meals, before bed, and before we started each day. We read scripture at mealtime. We talked about our day and our hopes and dreams.

We loved God, each other, God’s world, and ourselves. In our little home, we grew up with the assurance that God would be with us and that God would always be there for us. I know no other truth that has been so embedded in my spirit.

Isaiah’s world is intended to give us the stability and the security. He gives us a promise that God will keep us in the peace we need and the peace we have enjoyed as long as our minds are stayed on him. When our hearts are once again turned to simple fellowship and intimate communion, we will know God’s peace and it will pass all understanding. As a child I remember the joy and the peace of feeling that we were safe and secure.

As an adult, whose earthly father is now deceased and whose mother is almost 90 years old, I know now the peace that my God, our God, promises. I have found that meditating on God’s love and grace has given me the inner security that translates into inner peace. This is God’s gracious gift to each and every one of us. We can sit in our world and know that all is well. God will take care of us.

Dear Lord,
I have fallen so short, and I admit it not because I’m in trouble, but rather because I know what I have done. Forgive me this day and as I turn from those things that keep me from you and turn to you for your guidance and direction, create in me a clean heart, a focused mind, and a servant heart that I may prove your perfect will for my life. Amen

Rev. Nigel Felder

Louisville, Kentucky