Tuesday, May 17th, 2022

Today I’m thinking about a few sentences of the gospel, John 14:27-31.

I’m focusing on the part where Jesus says to his disciples, in verse 27, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.”

What is the difference between how the world gives and the way Jesus gives?

The disciples are startled because they found out something Jesus is going away.

With this statement, Jesus is trying to calm them down by essentially saying, “Hey, I know something is going to happen to me, but I’m not going to leave you alone.”

Chances are they probably didn’t get what Jesus was talking about, and I don’t blame them. I wouldn’t have gotten it either.

I think Jesus was talking from a different dimension…the spiritual kind.

What does this verse mean?

I can’t claim to have an answer but I could start by asking, “why do I give to other people? And why do people give to me?”

It seems to me that the world gives in a very physical plane level of existence. We give based on feeling, getting something in exchange, wanting to help someone because I want to feel good about it.

We then rationalize it by saying, “it’s just my way of serving the Lord. My way of showing that I care.”

That’s not to say it’s wrong. I’m simply speaking to this concept that there’s some version of an exchange or a condition.

To me, Jesus is speaking from the spiritual perspective: He’s giving you the peace that no words can describe where it’s coming from, why it’s coming and isn’t attached to earthly things.

I can speak to that level of peace because for the last five years, I went through this rough patch of not having a traditional job and trying to figure out how to run my business.

There was a lot of stress from thinking about finances and expanding the family with no recurring salary. It all could have been interpreted as very stressful.

In a way it was stressful, but, at the same time, I went through the entire experience with a sense of peace.

Don’t ask me where it comes from. I just remember every so often praying about it, writing it down, journaling… give me peace…I want peace…give me peace…I want peace.

It’s journaled on many days throughout those four years.

In hindsight, that’s what happened.

I did not necessarily succeed at the physical level of existence where I wanted to have an amazing business, certain types of jobs, work with certain people, and have all these resources I had in my mind.

Most of that did not work, but, through it all, peace was always there.

There are things that God…Jesus…does that are not meant to be understood at the physical level of existence.

That’s the way I heard it.

“Peace I leave you, my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.”

However that speaks to you, thank you for watching/reading.

In peace,

~Juan