It’s a hilarious story I heard at my Grandma’s funeral. If you knew her, you’d know how embarrassed she would have been when it happened. Her church was putting together a cookbook or something like that and she was asked to include her favorite verse.

Well, in at least two places in her house she had plaques with Isaiah 26:3 written to remind her of the peace she had at her disposal. When life happened and troubles came, she could remind herself of the promise of God. Peace was so much of her character; it was an obvious verse to include in the cookbook.

Somehow the verse was put in wrong and someone looked up the reference by her name. It was Isaiah 20:4 “So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.”

Needless to say she was quite taken back when she was asked why it was her favorite verse.

We didn’t have peace in New Zealand. I was turned down for jobs I was over qualified for, qualified for, and capable of doing. “Why God did you call us down here?” I couldn’t adequately describe it at the time, but I knew I didn’t give up everything just to re-establish ourselves in a new country, doing the same thing we could be doing at home.

I had an idea for a business I was getting excited about but one Sunday out-of-the-blue God said “It’s a waste of time.” I took it hard. But God was the one I wanted to keep in step with so I gave it back to him.

The next morning I was about to start on a ministry website I had agreed to set up, but I knew I needed to talk to God. I went for a walk and poured my complaint out to God.

It ended with a cry from my heart: “What do you want me to do?” The response was instant and was without doubt the voice of God. He said “I’ve given you time to write, why are you doing everything but?”

I didn’t worry about fitting society’s expectation any longer. God had commissioned me and when I heard his voice, I had complete peace to do his will. We’d all have a lot less stress, if we waited on God to hear his voice. How much time do you give him to speak to you?

Would you describe your life as one of peace?

-Trevor Lund