Learning how to rest in God is one of the most powerful experiences we can have in our lives of faith. The more we learn how to rest in God, the things we pursued to fill the void of our emotional and spiritual restlessness will diminish their influence on our lives.

That kind of rest will become a gift to us. The gift is living a life of peace when those around us are pursuing things that will never bring them the peace that only God can provide.

Pursuing God’s peace is an act of spiritual warfare. It will be used to challenge those things that want us to engage or re-engage in things that can never bring us real and lasting peace.

Jesus told His disciples, “I am leaving you with a gift – peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give” (John 14:27). The most powerful influence upon us is coming to the realization that what the world has to offer us is not worthy of our energy and attention. God’s peace will calm and simplify our lives.

Paul wrote about this kind of peace, “As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has also died” (Galatians 6:14).

Paul went on to say, “May God’s peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God.” (vs. 15-16).

Pursuing God’s peace will become the guiding principle in our lives. It will put to death a constant striving to get and gain those things the world tells us we need to be happy. It will oppose the temptations that want to lure us into a stream of constant striving where real peace is not possible. The depth of our spiritual transformation is revealed when we come to realize that what the world has to offer us is a false peace that was crucified in Christ.