Abiding in the Prince of Peace Session 1 | How's your soul? Big Ideas: · Jesus, the Prince of Peace · How is your soul? · Identifying where my lack of peace comes from. · Godly purpose in every season. “It seems God whispers to us in our pleasures … and shouts to us in our pain!” -C.S. Lewis Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;" Advent Changed It All Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Prince-commander, chief, ruler, leader. Peace- means prosperity, success, welfare, deliverance, salvation, completeness, soundness, peace. Jesus Christ is the commander and chief of my prosperity, success, welfare, deliverance, salvation, completeness, soundness, and peace. Abiding in Christ-When I have peace with God, it will produce the peace of God. This peace we are discussing is a fruit of abiding in Christ. It does not come any other way. How is Your Soul? “Research tells us that as go our emotional self-awareness, emotional self-control and empathy skills so goes the quality of our leadership, our relationships and the quality of our life.” Dr. Gary Oliver Here are a few conditions of the soul we find in scripture: My soul waits for you (Psalm 130:5-6) Downcast soul (Psalm 42:11) Anxious soul (Philippians 4:6-7) Prospering soul-3 John Rest for the soul (Psalm 62:1) Praise to God (Psalm 103:1-5) Expresses love to God (Matthew 22:37) Refreshes soul (Psalm 23:3) Reviving the soul (Psalm 19:7) Where Does Lack of Peace Come From? 1. Spiritual attack of the enemy John 10:10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. 2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2. Physical, neurological, psychological “If there ever was an illness from the pit of hell, it is mental illness.” Monica Sweeney 3 John 2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. 3. Anchoring my peace into shakable things and not Christ Be careful what you allow to have a voice in your peace. · Hebrews 12 · Where am I getting my information from? · What information am I allowing into the gateway of my soul? · What lies am I believing? · What truth from God's Word am I replacing those lies with? · Do I have accountability outside my brain? 4. My own sinful desires James 1:12-15 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. 14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. Ecclesiastes 3:1; 9-11 To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven: What profit has the worker from that in which he labors? 10 I have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. “What is the purpose you have for this season?” “What are you doing in this season? “What is the enemy, circumstance, and other people responsible for in this season?” “What am I to learn from you in this season?” “What changes need to occur for me to grow into my next season?” "Unexamined failure teaches you nothing. It can throw you into depression and discouragement, not to mention the stupidity of continuing the wrong thing." Crawford Loritts Take Away Questions: 1. How would you describe the word peace? What are some differences between worldly peace and the peace we read about in the Bible? 2. When you look at your life, where do you tend to anchor your peace (ex. relationships, job, politics, social media, money)? 3. What is the condition of your soul? List some places in your life where you are not experiencing peace. Write out a sincere prayer to God inviting Him to be your Prince of Peace. Journal: Pick a few verses from Chapter 1 that stood out to you and use the STAR journal method from Appendix A to process them.