Hello, I'm Bill Crowder, and I'm glad you could join us for today's encouragement

from the Our Daily Bread Devotional.

I've entitled it, The Life of Peace.

In Perth, Australia, there's a place called Shalom House, where men struggling with addictions go to

find help. At Shalom House, they'll meet caring staff members who introduce them to God's

Shalom, the Hebrew word for peace. Lives crushed under the weight of addictions to drugs,

alcohol, gambling, and other destructive behaviors are being transformed by the love of God.

Central to this transformation is the message of the cross.

The broken people of Shalom House discover that through the resurrection of Jesus,

they can find their own lives resurrected.

In Christ, we gain true peace and healing. Peace isn't merely

the absence of conflict. It's the presence of God's wholeness. All of us need this shalom,

and it's only found in Christ and His Spirit. This is why Paul pointed the Galatians to the Spirit's

transformational work.

As the Holy Spirit operates in our lives, he generates his fruit that includes love,

joy, patience, and more.

He gives us that vital element of true, enduring peace.

As the Spirit enables us to live in God Shalom, we learn to bring our needs and

concerns to our Heavenly Father. This in turn brings us the peace of God which transcends all

understanding, the peace that will guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus. In Christ's

Spirit, our hearts experience our minds in Christ Jesus. In Christ's spirit, our hearts experience true

shalom.

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