Stay Your Mind on the Lord

Isaiah 26 3-4

You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever, For in Yah, the Lord, is everlasting strength.

Reflections

Perfect peace seems daunting as we live in this world. We hear of wars and rumors of wars, watch families face devastating losses, find courts filled with cases of unthinkable atrocities, and find others facing hunger or vulnerable harm. In the midst of all this pain and suffering, can we truly find perfect peace? In John 16:33, Jesus tells us, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Our peace is not dependent on our external circumstances. It comes from believing God will keep His promises.

Isaiah tells us we have perfect peace because we keep our minds preoccupied with the One who is trustworthy. God’s character is seen throughout all of Scripture. He is self-existing, without origin (Col. 1:17); He never changes (Rom. 8:35-39); He has unlimited power (Jer. 32:17); He is all-knowing (Is. 46:9-10); He is always everywhere (Ps 139:7-10). and that is only the beginning. If these were the only ones, they would carry enough weight to trust Him, but Scripture is full of examples and truths of His character (John 21:25).

Here in Isaiah, we are being called to stay on the thought of God, to literally not be able to stop thinking about Him. This lends to us having our minds so filled with God that we cannot easily dismiss the thoughts of Him. The tenacity to keep Him at the forefront of our minds at all times can lead to the perfect peace for which we long. God can bring perfect justice to the wrongs and gives us the reminder to look with an eternal perspective and ultimate trust in Him.

It is interesting that Isaiah 26 is a song to be sung declaring the Lord’s reign as king over the earth. It’s sung in anticipation of His judgment over evil men and His salvation for those who trust Him. This song holds the banner high in the trust of His eternal strength and power to overcome. It’s a declaration of victory. In the Hebrew text, perfect peace is written as shalom shalom. In that repetition, God indicates He will not just give us the minimal peace required but a double measure of peace. He is not satisfied to console us in our wonderings, but he desires to assure us of His everlasting strength that will give Him victory for all eternity.

Can you rest in His shalom? Stay your mind on our eternal hope!

Prayer

Lord, I want to continue to grow in what it means to have perfect peace. Please keep me in this space and allow me to know You more deeply and trust You more fully.