Safe Again

Will we ever feel safe again?

Last weekend a car rigged with explosives nearly exploded in New York City’s Times Square. Police also reported a possible explosive device at the Pittsburgh Marathon finish line.

Is nowhere safe? What’s going on? Why can’t we live our lives in peace? With reports of violence, terrorism and natural disasters multiplying, is this the “New Normal?” If so, how can that be? What happened to the “Old Normal” and how can we ever feel safe again?

One thing most Americans agree on is that the world changed forever on September 11, 2001. Our old sense of security seems to be gone forever.

Maybe it’s because we are living in what the Bible calls the “End Times.”

“Whoa! --Hold on just a minute! What do violence and terrorism have to do with THAT?”

A few years ago Dr. Tim LaHaye, Jerry Jenkins and Joel Rosenberg appeared together on a TV opinion show. The host asked, “Is this it? Are we in the “End Times?” These men, all authors of best selling books about the End Times, agreed, “This could be the End Times.”

The Bible refers to the End Times as “The Day of the Lord.” Speaking about that time, God’s Word warns us that this time will come unexpectedly. It adds, “While people are saying ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly…and they will not escape.”

Two main concerns of the day we live in seem to be “Peace” and “Safety.” So perhaps those times are upon us. There are those who want peace at any price, including surrender, appeasement or defeat. And many go to great expense to ensure their family’s safety.

But even with all of that effort, peace and safety still escape us.

Once again the Bible has good news that we need. It tells us that the child of God can have peace in the midst of chaos. In fact, many survivors of tragedies and disasters say that their faith in God is what got them through it.

“OK, so how does faith bring us to a place where we feel safe again?”

First we must make peace with God. We secure that peace through a personal faith in Jesus Christ and his death for our sin on the cross. Then the Bible says, “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

Jesus told his disciples, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid.”

In spite of all the peace treaties made and signed, we still do not have world peace. Do you have the peace that Jesus gives? He can bring peace to your soul. That’s the place to start.

Once you know you’re a child of God, the Bible tells us God has said, “‘Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.’ So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?’”

The child of God has peace because he or she knows that God is in charge and can be trusted completely. They feel safe because the safest place in the world is in the center of God’s will. They feel secure because they know what they will find on the other side of death.

How do they know? Because God tells us in the Bible. God’s Word is the source of peace.

To find the safety and the peace that is not of this world, you must come to Jesus. When you trust him to forgive you and give you new life, you will have peace again in the midst of chaos.

Just when you thought it wasn’t safe any more, it is! We can be safe again in God’s care.

Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!