Your Peace is From the Lord

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. 

John 15:9–10 ESV 

A Traditional Irish Blessing 

May peace and plenty bless your world 

With a joy that long endures. 

And may all life’s passing seasons 

Bring the best to you and yours. 

In Ireland—­particularly in the coastal areas where we lived—­gale force winds are a near daily experience in the winter. And all the rest of the year. It isn’t uncommon for the winds to stir up regularly. 

I used to peer out onto the bay from our living room windows and see how many whitecaps were dancing on the water’s surface. It always made me grateful when it was unseasonably calm. Of course, everyone was elated when the wind died down, the sun came out, and the world seemed at peace. Or at least that small, emerald corner of it, anyway. 

But inevitably someone would point out that the peace was never going to last. You could almost set your watch by it. “Ah, well, ’tis grand now, but just ye wait. It’ll change,” they’d say. And we’d all murmur and nod, because we knew it to be true. 

Longing for Peace 

I find myself doing the same thing in my own life even now. I long for the peaceful quiet of the absence of conflict, but when it comes, I know it won’t last. That’s why I’m so grateful for both today’s blessing and the accompanying Scriptures. Because God’s Word tells us exactly how to find that lasting peace that defies logic. We can simply: 

present everything to Him in prayer, with thanksgiving (see Phil. 4:6) 

put our faith in Jesus and allow Him, through our faith, to declare us righteous (see Rom. 5:1) 

recognize and embrace that our struggles and difficulties refine our character, if we remain in Him (see Rom. 5:3–5) 

remain in Him—stay, linger, soak in His presence—and let His love flow through us (see John 15:9–10) 

This peace reaches beyond the direst of circumstances and settles deep in the core of our souls. It remains when life is chaotic and we feel like a leaf blown on a gale. It enriches our joy as we celebrate milestones and victories. And it guides us when the fog of uncertainty settles over our hearts. 

In His Word  

If you are not sure how to put your faith in Him, read 1 John 1. In it, John very clearly lays out that we need to admit to God that we’ve missed the mark. When we do, Jesus will cleanse us, forgive us, and make us right in the eyes of our Father. This is how we have true peace. 

In Your Life 

Does peace seem fleeting to you, like it’s floating just out of reach? Choose one of today’s Bible passages and pray it back to God, asking Him to solidify His peace in your heart. 

We Recommend 

We recommend the book May the Road Rise to Meet You by Jennifer Deibel. We love how she draws us closer to Jesus through biblical wisdom, while exposing us to Irish blessings and how they can be paired with biblical knowledge. 

Let’s Connect 

Jennifer Deibel is the author of A Dance in Donegal (winner of the Kipp Award for Historical Romance), The Lady of Galway Manor, The Maid of Ballymacool, and The Irish Matchmaker. With firsthand immersive experience abroad, Jennifer writes stories that help redefine home through the lens of culture, history, and family. After nearly a decade of living in Ireland and Austria, she now lives in Arizona with her husband and their three children. You can find her online at JenniferDeibel.com.