Day 11- The Comforter, The Holy Spirit

The peace the world offers is for this life.  We have peace when our relationships are healthy and we're not in conflict with another.  We have a few moments of peace when the children are finally tucked in bed.  We have peace when we're able to step away from the pressures and stress we all face and take a walk or work out at the gym or read a good book.  In order to make our way through daily life, we all need to find ways to experience a sense of peace within.

Jesus tells his disciples "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you.  I do not give to you as the world gives."  I understand this to mean His peace is a deeper, more profound peace.  It is knowing that he is present within us, in the person of the Holy Spirit.  According to the passage, the Spirit is our counselor, the one to whom we turn for guidance.  The Spirit is our teacher.  The Spirit reminds us of all that Jesus has done for us.  The Spirit takes our troubles and the Spirit takes away our fears.  

It is important to have a sense of peace in our daily lives.  The world offers many paths to peace.  But today we're reminded of the spiritual peace that comes with having the Holy Spirit as part of our lives.  The world's peace is fleeting.  It comes and goes.  Some days we feel it, others we don't feel it at all.  But the Spirit's peace is deep and abiding.  It cannot be taken away.  It is the promise God is living within us and is with us always.  No matter what comes our way, God is there.  Knowing that, I know peace.    I'm reminded of a bumper sticker I once saw, "Know Jesus, Know Peace."  That's our Lord's promise to his disciples and to us.  May you know Jesus today, and by so doing, also know His peace.