active. We don’t have to be ragged and
stressed. The Lord wants us to be content and serene, despite the many activities in which we are engaged.
More than peace in our hectic paces of
life, we are also offered peace during the
chaos that comes from painful trials.
There were two powerful events during Jesus’ ministry where He proved his
power over water. In one episode, He
spoke to the storm and it was silenced.
The other incident involved the Lord
walking across the water. As frighten-
It’s easy to get wrapped up in our overly-stuffed schedules, to the point we
suffer from burnout. This is not exclusive to worldly activities, but to ministry
related ones as well. Water is a great symbol of peace and serenity that the
Lord offers His flock.
The word water in Psalm 23 is the Hebrew mayim, which is most frequently
used figuratively to mean rest and peace. This imagery makes sense, especially considering how we often view water. When many of us think of
water—especially us city-dwellers—we imagine a tranquil beach scene, or
perhaps a slow flowing stream that cuts through a wooded path.
This, I believe, is part of what David was getting at when he said the Lord
ing as these sea expeditions were for the
disciples, Christ demonstrated His sovereignty over the water.
Similarly, waters of various storms and
trials try to capsize our vessels. We can
trust in the peace that the Lord gives to
us in our storms. It is a peace described
well by John Newton in his well-known
hymn Amazing Grace: “When peace,
like a river, attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my lot,
Javan Rowe
Peace Like a River
Thou hast taught me to say, ‘It is well, it is
well, with my soul.’”
“leads me beside still waters.” It is the peace that is given to us while we are
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