Do you 'find' it or 'experience' it?

Can I actually 'find' PEACE or do I rather have to 'experience' it? It may seem like semantics, but I am not sure that PEACE is something hidden that we need to search for. Rather I think it is a fruit of being in relationship with God (Galatians 5). When we draw nearer to Christ and allow the Spirit of Jesus to fill our hearts then we begin to 'experience' PEACE.

"The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace." - Psalm 29:11

The issue I have with pursuing PEACE is the fear that even though I may try hard to find peace, I may never actually get to enjoy it. If peace depends on my ability to track it down, then I am missing the nature of the GIFT of peace. Peace comes to us in the form of a welcome gift from the Father - it is a deposit of his GRACE and mercy.

Having just said this, I need to clarify that there are verses in the bible that encourage us to seek peace (Psalm 34). The peace that this speaks of, is rather the 'state of peace' (as opposed to being at War). What I am speaking about is 'inner peace' - if that makes any sense :)

Are you seeking peace in your life at the moment? Maybe you don't need to go all over the world to discover it - perhaps all we need to do is to create a space to allow God to encounter us with His peace. What do you think?

"While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart." -Francis of Assisi

"God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing." -C. S. Lewis 

Living in Grace

D3LM3