Peace for the Year Ahead

A new year often arrives with mixed emotions. Hope and anticipation sit alongside unresolved conflict, lingering grief, and quiet fear about what lies ahead. Even when the calendar turns, many of the burdens we carry do not automatically lift.

Paul offers a different starting point for the year ahead when he writes,

“For he himself is our peace.”(Ephesians 2:14)

Notice what Paul does not say. He does not say Christ gives us peace once circumstances improve. He does not say peace comes after problems are solved or relationships are healed. He says Christ himself is our peace.

Peace, in the Christian life, is not primarily a feeling or a season. It is a person. It begins not when everything around us settles down, but when we learn to rest our lives more fully in Jesus. Christ steps into divided places, broken relationships, anxious hearts, and uncertain futures and stands there as our peace.

As a new year begins, I am reminded of this truth in a personal way. Lisa and I just celebrated our 30th anniversary of marriage. Over the years, we have known both deep joy and real heartache. We have learned a great deal, made more than a few mistakes, and discovered that peace is not something you find by avoiding hardship. It is something God forms in you as you walk faithfully through it together. I am deeply grateful for such a steady gospel partner, one who has taught me so much about God’s grace, enduring love, and quiet tenacity. Through the years, I have learned that peace is not found in a perfect life, but in a faithful Christ who walks with us through every season.

As the year unfolds, the invitation is not to manufacture calm or force optimism. It is to receive the presence of Christ in the places where peace feels fragile or absent. The same Jesus who reconciles divided people and heals deep wounds is present with us now, steady and faithful, as we step into what lies ahead.

This year will bring challenges and blessings we cannot yet see. But it will not be entered alone. Christ goes before us, walks with us, and remains our peace.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, you are our peace. As we step into a new year, help us to rest in your presence, trust your nearness, and receive the peace only you can give. Amen.

One question

Where do you need to receive Christ’s peace as you step into this new year?