Tuesday, April 30, 2024
The power of Christ’s peace
An excerpt from John 14:27
Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.”
Reflection from Nanci Patterson, Trinity:
Lent was the perfect time for me to examine my relationship with God and to work on feeling closer to the Divine. I have struggled with truly feeling God’s presence in my life. I recently had a short conversation with my priest who suggested the ancient Ignatian practice of Examen, a technique of prayerful reflection on the events of the day in order to detect God’s presence and discern his direction for us.
I have since implemented some of the Examen spiritual exercises in my daily life and found them centering. I have gratefully become much more aware of God’s presence in my life.
I was struggling to find peace and then was invited to reflect on this passage from John. What a gift it was! New prayer habits and the results have shown me that Christ’s peace is attainable with little effort, it is a comforting other-worldly peace I could not have imagined.
My prayer today is that others find comfort in truly knowing that the Lord’s peace and Presence is with us and accessible always. Fear not.
A place of quiet at Trinity, Highland Park.
ADDITIONAL READINGS:
For further study and prayer, the readings assigned for today are:
• Psalm 145:9–14
• Acts 14:19–28
• John 14:27–31a
MUSIC:
“Deep Peace”
by Elaine Hagenberg
“Deep peace of the gentle night to you. Moon and stars pour their healing light on you.
Deep peace of Christ, the light of the world to you.”
Tags: Easter to Pentecost 2024