“I waited patiently for the LORD; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the desolate pit, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure” (Psalm 40:1-2)

Joyce was born into this world in a way that no human being ever deserves to be born. Life dealt her a crushing blow even before her tiny life could begin.

There are many ways in which children end up at New Hope Uganda, a children’s center in Uganda for orphans and the unwanted children. The stories of how each of the children arrive in New Hope is unimaginable and gut wrenching. But I had never heard of anything like what Joyce endured.

Joyce was born in a place that no baby is ever supposed to be born. She was ushered into this world in an outhouse. Her mom went into the outhouse to give birth to Joyce with every intention to end the life of her baby even before it could start.

After giving birth to Joyce in that outhouse, Joyce’s mom stuffed her tiny new born down a filthy, slimy hole. Joyce fell about thirty feet into the muck and the filth of that pit latrine. How she survived that terrible fall, only God knows. Had Joyce landed face first, she would have suffocated in that filth. Somehow she managed to land on her back only to sink into the depths of that unspeakable filth all the while her newly severed umbilical cord began absorbing all that nastiness the pit latrine could throw at her. There, in that slimy pit, Joyce was abandoned to die. Alone.

No one deserves to die that way.

But God had other plans for baby Joyce. God was determined to use her life to impact the world for good. God created her for a purpose. There was a destiny for her to fulfill.

No one knows how long Joyce was in that filth. A woman heard a baby crying and to her horror saw a baby down in that slimy pit. Joyce was rescued and rushed to a hospital where they began pumping her tiny body with antibiotics. No one gave her a chance.

But to everyone’s surprise, Joyce began recovering and a few days later was brought to New Hope. New Hope is the place where the hopeless are given hope. Just like that, she had been plucked from filth and death and given a new life. She now belongs in a family who loves her and cherishes her.

Joyce’s story is the story of every one of us. We too were plucked from the slimy pit of darkness and, just like that, made children of the living God. We went from slowly dying in the filth of sin, and just like that, we have been given new life and a grand purpose, all because of Jesus Christ. God has a plan and a purpose for each and every one of us.

God loves you. You are here for a reason. You are here to tell of God’s wonderful story of salvation, particularly during these days of the pandemic.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid” (John 14:27)

Peace…Do not let your hearts be troubled…Do not let your hearts be afraid…

Yes, yes, yes! I want that. I desperately want all of that!

So how do I make this peace a reality? The kind of peace where our hearts are not troubled and our hearts are not afraid? How do we experience that?

Jesus tells us in the preceding verse. In order to have this peace, we need the Holy Spirit. Jesus says, “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you” (John 14:26). Notice the role of the Holy Spirit – to teach us everything that God has said and promised in his word.

So, to have peace, we need the Holy Spirit who will teach us everything God has said and promised in his word. Why?

Jesus tells us in the preceding verse. “Those who love me will keep my word…Whoever does not love me does not keep my words” (John 14:23-24).

Why does the Holy Spirit teach and remind us everything God has said and promised in his word? So that we might obey and keep his word.

Want to know why? It’s in living life according to God’s word that we experience the peace that Jesus describes in John 14:27.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” 

There is peace in obedience. There is peace in God’s promises.

“Do not fear, for I am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God, I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).

So here’s the thing about verses like this. We want this to be true. We want to believe it. But if it’s true, then why am I so fearful and so anxious? What are we supposed to be about the disconnect between the promise and our reality?

These are great questions!

Have you ever tried snuggling with a two or three year old boy? Infants are awesome for snuggling. They aren’t going anywhere and they love being held. Two or three year old boys? Not so much.

The thing is God is always with us. Always. God’s presence, help, strength, and victory is always with us. We just have to stay in his hand. And that’s the thing. We keep wiggling our way out. We want our freedom and independence. We want to play. The last thing we independent selves want is to be held in the loving hands of God.

And then we wonder why when bad things and hard things happen we’re so afraid and anxious.

It’s not that God’s presence and help is not true, it’s that we’ve left God’s presence.

So what can we do? Return.

Return to the loving arms of God and practice being in his presence. That’s where the strength is. That’s where you’ll discover peace.