What does it mean to have peace?
I am not a very erudite person. Erudite means showing deep, scholarly language. The only reason I know the word erudite is because of the movie “Divergent” and I had to Google how to use it in a sentence. Because I tend to not understand big words, or “scholarly language,” I have gotten into the habit of looking up words I don’t understand. In fact, I’ve even begun to look up words I do know because sometimes the meaning of a word changes over time. (Did you know that the word “nice” originally meant “foolish” or “stupid?” Crazy!)
I recently was studying the Fruits of the Spirit found in Galatians 5:22-23, “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” As part of my studying, I looked up the definitions of the original Greek words to make sure I fully understood what these words mean so I know what the Holy Spirit wants to produce in me, because as I mentioned, the meaning of some words can change.
Most of the definitions would be what you expect; patience means long suffering and endurance, gentle means soft and humble, etc. I was, however, able to learn something new about the word peace. The English word “peace” is used in multiple different ways throughout Scripture, but the original Greek word for it when used in Galatians 5:22 is “eirēnē.”
As you might guess, it can be translated as quietness or rest, but what I learned was that it can also translate as “set as one again.” This felt like a lightbulb moment (the scholarly word might be an epiphany) because I came to the understanding that if we want to have peace, we must first be set as one again with God. When we are one with God, we are at peace.
When we are one with God, we are at peace.
And this makes a lot of sense, right? In John 15, Jesus says over and over to abide in him. He tells us that he is the vine and we are the branches. For a branch to live and produce fruit, it must be attached to the vine. For us to produce fruit, we must be attached to Jesus. For us to have peace, we must be one with him.
The idea of being set as one with God, to have peace, reminded me of newborn twin babies. Have you ever seen a video or read a story of twin babies who, once they were separated, began to decline with a drop in heart rate, oxygen, etc.? There have been cases of twins who were one in the womb, were separated at birth, begin to decline, are brought back together, and then begin to improve.
In the separation, there is chaos; they are crying uncontrollably and their bodies even start to decline. But when they are put in the same bassinet, when they come back together as one, there is peace; they stop crying and their bodies start to get stronger. Their numbers improve and they end up okay. Just being together strengthens them and calms them down. They have peace.
That is like us with God. When we are separated from Him, there is chaos, but when we are one with Him, there is peace. So often, when my mind feels chaotic, I ask God to give me peace. That is certainly not a bad option because we know that Jesus gives us peace that transcends understanding, however, is that always the best prayer?
I tried to switch my prayer from “give me peace” to “God, where am I not one with you? How can I be one with you?” I think it’s been so helpful because it has shifted my mindset from expecting God to fix the problem, and instead, to me adjusting my focus back to Him.
God showed me how many of my prayers were about Him doing something for me, answering a question, fixing a problem, and so on. Now, I try to make my prayers about spending time with Him with no agenda, just to be in His presence, just to be set as one again with Him.
I try to make my prayers about spending time with Him with no agenda, just to be in His presence, just to be set as one again with Him.
Maybe you don’t struggle with this like I do. Maybe you already spend time with Him with no agenda, that’s great! I would still encourage you to ask God, “How can I be one with you this week?” because I imagine all of us can spend a little more time in His presence.
And for those of you that are exactly like me, struggling to be at peace with Him, I hope you are encouraged knowing you are not alone. Let’s make a commitment together to readjust our focus to Him this week. We may need to readjust a few times, and that’s okay! None of us are perfect, but we are all Holy in Progress.
With love,
Erica