June 20, 2016 – I Peter 3:11

Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it. I Peter 3:11Searching for peace is a lifetime pursuit.  Peter should know.  The Peter who often jumps into things with his whole heart and often with his feet in his mouth.  The one thing he said would bother me, I will never deny you, Lord, probably gave Peter a lot of angst and restless nights.  For those impulsive words, I will never deny you, came back to haunt him every time he heard a rooster crow.  Just as our impulsive words and actions come back to us to replay in our heads.Peace comes only with patience and self-control. Do not even say, ‘By my head!’ for you can’t turn one hair white or black.  Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ Anything beyond this is from the evil one.  Matthew 5:36-37.  That means no excuses or defensive declarations of innocence.Work to maintain peace.  Make kind and gentle words and actions a habit.  When we want control, our words are ugly and unbecoming for a Child of God.  Self-pride and arrogance  is thinking more of ourselves than we do others.  Love one another flies out of the window when we allow pride and arrogance to fly in and take residence in our hearts.The Lord turns his face away from us when we do evil.  Have you ever wondered what the world would be like if we shut God out of our lives?The eyes of the Lord watch over us when we do right.  His ears hear our heart’s prayers.  When we listen to the Lord and obey, we have a heart to heart relationship with Him.  He truly becomes our Abba Father in Heaven.  The chorus of an old hymn describes this precious relationship….And He walks with me and He talks with me,  And He tells me I am His own,  And the joy we share as we tarry there,  None other has ever known. (Merle Haggard)The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right, and his ears are open to their prayers. But the Lord turns his face against those who do evil. I Peter 3:12