Led by Peace?

I’ve often heard people say, “God will lead you by his peace.” Is that true? Often…but not always.  Let me give you an example.  

Early in our ministry, we were invited to come interview with a church in a different state. We were so happy in the church we were in that I couldn’t imagine leaving it! But because we knew the pastor issuing the invitation, we were interested. So we met with their youth committee. We had a great time getting to know all of those lovely people. 

But once we got to our motel room that night, I couldn’t quit crying! I didn’t know what was wrong. I’m sure Andy was so confused because he kept reassuring me we didn’t have to come.  I just kept saying, “Something’s wrong here!”

The next morning, we met with the pastor and his wife. They told us some things about the church and let us know they’d love it if we came. I asked, “Why are you here?” I had to know. If someone as black and white as this pastor was in this church, I had to know why. Maybe it would help make sense of my feelings. He basically said, “God had been teaching me some principles in my former church that I knew I needed to practice somewhere else.”

The night that the church voted on us, our little family was waiting in the pastor’s office. I couldn’t quit crying!! I just kept saying, “There’s something wrong here!” And Andy kept saying, “We don’t have to come!” Finally, I said, “Yes we do! I know God is leading us here, but WHY?” We went in front of the church (red face and all) and accepted their call.  

There WAS something wrong in that church. There was sin—and a spirit of control. I look back on that experience and am still amazed that the Spirit of God so clearly showed me how out of order things were in that church. What’s so crazy is that most of the people were great. The youth were exceptional. But the church was out of order. 

I believe God revealed how out of order things were—to prepare us. We counted the cost and accepted the mission. We encountered many hard things while we were there. But it was also where we grew…and where God defined our ministry. 

Will God lead you by his peace?  Yes, at times. But he may also show you a future filled with persecutions and have you count the cost before you say “yes.”

I’ve found both to be his way.