Finding Peace During the Advent Season

This is an excerpt from Advent - The Weary World Rejoices by Lifeway Women.

One of my favorite moments of the Christmas season is the final song of the Christmas Eve service at my church. The overhead lights are turned out and we’re left with just the Advent candles burning at the front of the sanctuary. One person lights his small disposable candle using the center Advent candle—the Christ candle—and then he lights his neighbor’s candle, and the congregation slowly passes the flame around the room until everyones’ candles are lit. As the flame is passed around, someone starts singing “Silent Night, Holy Night” and the song spreads through the crowd, much like the flame.

As a child, I loved getting my very own candle; it was a fun way to celebrate Christ’s birth. As an adult, I’ve noticed myself letting out a sweet sigh as I savor the wonder of Christ’s coming while the a cappella carol fills the room. Sometimes I feel like the busyness and stress of the holidays cause me to hold my breath—until this final song. As I exhale and sing “Sleep in heavenly peace” I feel just that—peace.

The feeling of holding your breath through life—of waiting for the hard things to pass—is something most of us are familiar with. We’ve probably all walked through hard things—some tragic and some disappointing—and it can be difficult to know how to find peace in the midst of the pain.

God promised peace to His people throughout the pages of Scripture, so it’s important for us to return to God’s Word and remind ourselves of this promise.

If we visit the familiar story of Christ’s birth, we see a promise of peace from the angels who visited the shepherds in Luke 2:13-14: “Suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to people he favors!”

This heavenly praise immediately followed the angel of the Lord’s news that Christ was born. It seems significant that one of the few words the heavens rang out with was peace. Peace was a big part of Christ’s coming—the Prince of Peace came to the earth to bring us peace.

It can be tempting for me to see others experiencing God’s peace and believe the lie that the promise of peace is for everyone but me. When I’m overcome with worry about a situation, it can feel like peace is a far-off dream, something that just isn’t possible for me. But if we look back at Luke 2:14, we see the angels offer peace to the “people [God] favors.” And Romans 5:1 helps us interpret whom the angels were talking about: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” If we have placed our faith in Christ and His sacrifice, we have been declared righteous and are among those whom God favors. The promise of peace is for us!

When I doubt God’s promise of peace, I know it’s because I’m trying to walk through a situation in my own strength. And, if I’m honest, the “peace” I often seek is a solution to my difficult circumstances, not a quiet heart in the midst of the storm. But God’s peace is more about the promise of His ultimate victory through Christ. It’s so much bigger than my circumstances. I can have peace in the waiting, knowing that God already has the victory.

Christ has the ultimate victory over death and over all the things that worry us. He is in control, and He is working for our good (Rom. 8:28).

What does it look like for us to embrace the promise of peace in God? It means being totally dependent on God to provide for us and walk through life’s hard things with us. The short version? It means trusting Him fully. Isaiah 26:3 says, “You will keep the mind that is dependent on you in perfect peace, for it is trusting in you.”

I’ve found that the process of surrender is a constant for me. Paul encouraged us to “pray constantly” (1 Thess. 5:17); in the same way, we have to continually turn our eyes toward God and keep our minds dependent on Him. I can’t do this on my own; I need the Lord to sustain and provide for me. When I stop relying on myself and trust in the Lord to walk with me, there is freedom and, in turn, peace.

There is nothing too big or small to place at the Lord’s feet when we approach the throne of grace in prayer. He can handle our burdens, our frustrations, and our hardships. He can handle the messiness.

This season, bring your worries to the Lord in prayer. Ask Him to help you trust Him more fully with the things that weigh on you. Ask Him to help you experience the peace He promises in His Word.

May you walk in God’s peace in the everyday moments of life and in the hardest seasons of life, both during advent and all year long.