“Great peace have they who love Your law; nothing shall offend them or make them stumble.” Psa 119:165
If you thought you had only a few hours to live, how would you have spent it? This is a question most of us will never have to answer, but was what confronted the Apostle Peter as he spent his supposedly last night in the despot King Herod’s prison. Plans were already in place to execute him the following day and security was so tight that Peter dared not think of a way of escape. So after praying as was his custom before going to bed, Peter fell into a deep unconcerned or peaceful sleep. How could he have managed it? Why wasn’t he troubled by the fact that he would lose his head the following day the same way that James, the brother of John had lost his for the cause of preaching the Gospel? Did Peter know something that assured him that his time was not up yet and which gave him the confidence to sleep rather than worry?
The answer is yes. In one of His discourse, Jesus had revealed to Peter that he would live to become an old man and Peter had no reason whatsoever to doubt his Lord. He realised that God would never allow Himself to be made out as a liar by the devil or his agents and was secure in the knowledge that if it meant turning the world upside down to effect his release, that was what God would do to keep His promise. Hence, he reasoned that if God was already on His case, why should he lose a night’s sleep? And promptly went to bed. Peter’s peace was unmoved and his confidence in God unshaken by the storm that was seemingly brewing around him.
So, when God finally arrived on the scene during the night, Peter was so sound asleep that he did not realise the enormity of what was going on around him and while God was busy opening one prison door after the other and facilitating his escape, Peter still thought that he was in dream land. It was only when the cold reality of the night’s chilly air hit him full in the face that he finally realised that God had come through for him and engineered his escape. He didn’t need further prompting to run into hiding until the political pressure finally cooled and he could once again operate safely.
The reality of life is that difficulties may come in many guises, but without exception always require just one solution – the word of God. God’s word is big and powerful enough to solve your problem. It gives us a foundation strong enough to withstand whatever the enemy throws at us and come out victorious. Therefore, knowing where we stand with God as demonstrated by our placing absolute trust in His word will cause His peace to descend upon us irrespective of the maelstrom that the devil might be whipping up around us and we will be strong, immovable, always abounding in the love of God. So, take your eyes off the dark cloud that is threatening to swallow you up and focus them on His promise to you. He never fails.
Prayer:
Lord, your word assures me that nothing is too hard for you and that you are not man that you should lie. I resolve today to let God be God in my difficult situation as He works to counter the devil’ lies in my life. I shall retain my peace because God is too good to disappoint and too righteous to fail. Cause your peace to flow like a river through me so that the world can acknowledge and praise your name. Amen.