Receive God's peace

John 20:¹⁹ On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you."

The disciples are all hidden in a locked place. They are afraid of the Jews. They are afraid that mobs are coming for them to kill them because Jesus had died. They are scared and definitely thinking that they are going to die just as Jesus died because they were his disciples. But Jesus appears to them in this locked place alive. The first thing He says to them is "Peace be with you." The Lord sends His peace upon this group of frightened and nervous people.

Jesus calms my fears. Jesus sends peace upon His disciples. There are so many things in this world that I could worry about. I can get caught up in thinking about who doesn't believe in Jesus and who wants to disprove my faith, but truly, I need to remember that Jesus is sending me peace. I need to receive it. I cannot allow fear and anxiety to rule over me. God's peace is with me and that should cancel out any debilitating fear. Today, I really need to keep my ears tuned into Jesus. I'm realizing that I'm so caught up in what I need to do to survive, that I leave very little room for God's voice. He wants to send me His peace. I need to receive it. Man can do nothing to me. I have nothing to fear in this world. I don't need to be afraid of what people on Facebook say to me. I don't need to be afraid of what will happen if I don't do everything I set out to do for today. God is with me. He is the peace that Jesus sends. If I don't rest in that, I am only choosing to life apart from God.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your peace. Jesus, thank You for finding me when I'm caught up in my own little world and bringing me back to the Father. Forgive me, Lord, for sinning. Please show me how to keep my eyes and heart fixed on You. May I hear Your voice throughout today and always. I receive Your peace. I need Your peace. I choose to not fear this world. I love You and want to be with You always. Thank You for loving me. Thank You for Your grace and lovingkindness. I pray all this in the peace-bearing name of Jesus Christ, Amen.