Peace. Be Still
The New Testament teaches that God’s Spirit dwells in believers. Centering Prayer begins with the conviction that God is not distant and that the heart may become attentive to His indwelling presence.
Matthew 14:25-31 · King James Version
And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.
And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.
But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
And He said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
But when Peter saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
Mark 4:37-41 · King James Version
And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.
And He was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake Him, and say unto Him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
And He arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
And He said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?
And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?
Peace, Be Still
Finding the Quiet Heart Where We Can Hear Jesus
Peace is not some tiny idea tucked into a quiet corner of the Bible.
It is everywhere.
Scripture speaks of:
the God of Peace,
the Son of Peace,
the Lord of Peace,
the Prince of Peace,
the Gospel of Peace,
the bond of peace,
peace between believers,
peace within our hearts,
and those wonderful people Jesus calls:
peacemakers.
Paul even lists peace as one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit.
To me,
that makes Peace one of the greatest treasures in Christ’s Kingdom.
I would place:
God’s Peace,
right beneath God’s unconditional love,
Because if our hearts are filled with fear,
anger,
resentment,
worry,
and noise,
it becomes much harder to hear the still, soft voice of the Holy Spirit.
And that makes peace absolutely essential to Centering Prayer.
Jesus Kept Saying, “Peace”
After His resurrection,
Jesus suddenly appeared among His frightened disciples.
They were behind closed doors.
They were afraid.
And what were some of His first words?
“Peace be unto you.”
Not:
“Everybody calm down. I can explain.”
Not:
“Yes, I know the door was locked.”
Not even:
“Before anyone screams, let Me say something.”
Just:
“Peace be unto you.”
Then He said it again.
And again.
That tells me something.
Peace mattered to Jesus.
A lot.
“Let the Peace of God Rule in Your Hearts”
Paul tells us:
“Let the peace of God rule in your hearts.”
That word:
rule
gets my attention.
Something is going to rule my heart.
For many years,
several applicants were competing vigorously for the position.
Money applied.
Ego wanted the corner office.
Ambition wanted to be chairman of the board.
Fear kept showing up without an appointment.
Worry apparently believed it had tenure.
But Centering Prayer gradually changed who I wanted sitting on the throne of my heart.
Jesus.
And if Jesus is going to rule my heart,
then His Peace needs room to live there.
What Does “Peace” Really Mean?
We usually think of peace as the absence of war.
But peace is much richer than that.
Peace can mean:
stillness,
tranquility,
harmony,
rest,
calm,
and the ending of hostility.
Even the old expression:
“hold your peace”
means:
stop talking.
Become quiet.
That phrase has become especially meaningful to me.
Hold your peace.
Become still.
Stop talking.
Listen.
That is very close to the heart of Centering Prayer.
“Center”
At a Centering Prayer retreat,
the instructor used one wonderfully simple word:
“Center.”
I love that word.
To center is not merely to stop talking.
It means bringing our hearts back to the true center of our lives.
And for me,
that center is:
Jesus Christ.
My plans move aside.
My worries move aside.
My ego moves aside.
My internal committee meeting about what Bill should do next is temporarily adjourned.
No motions.
No amendments.
No seventeen-minute speeches from the chairman.
Just quiet.
Then I listen.
Peace Creates Room for Listening
This is why I believe peace is foundational to Centering Prayer.
I do not seek peace merely because relaxation feels nice.
I seek Christ’s peace because:
peace creates room in my heart for listening.
Jesus said:
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you.”
And He repeatedly told His followers:
“Be not afraid.”
Those two ideas belong together.
Peace.
And:
fearlessness in Christ.
Fear fills the room with noise.
Peace gives God room to whisper.
Fear Is Terrible at Listening
Fear is one of the great enemies of inner peace.
Fear shouts.
Fear demands attention.
Fear grabs hold of our imagination
and starts producing tomorrow’s disasters before today’s breakfast has even been served.
We worry about:
money,
work,
family,
health,
aging,
crime,
bills,
relationships,
politics,
mistakes,
and that mysterious noise the car made yesterday that may require either a $12 repair or the sale of a kidney.
Fear has an extraordinary imagination.
Give fear one unanswered question at 2:00 in the morning,
and by 2:15,
it has produced a twelve-part disaster documentary,
complete with sequels.
Jesus continually moves His followers in the opposite direction:
“Be not afraid.”
Peter Looked at the Storm
Consider Peter walking on the water.
As long as his attention was on Jesus,
he walked toward Him.
Then Peter looked at the wind.
Fear entered.
And he began to sink.
His prayer was wonderfully uncomplicated:
“Lord, save me.”
Jesus reached out His hand.
Immediately.
What a beautiful picture of the spiritual life.
We can become consumed by the storm —
or turn toward Christ.
For me,
Centering Prayer is repeatedly turning back toward Jesus ruling my heart.
When fear enters my heart,
I do not have to pretend that the storm is not real.
I do not have to convince myself that problems do not exist.
I do not have to fix everything by myself.
I simply refuse to make the storm my God.
I return to Jesus.
“Lord, I am afraid.”
“Lord, I need Your peace.”
“Lord, what would You have me do?”
Then:
I become still.
And listen.
“Peace, Be Still”
One of my favorite Bible stories takes place in a boat.
Jesus and His disciples are crossing the sea.
A huge storm erupts.
The disciples are terrified.
Jesus is asleep.
That difference alone could probably fill an entire article.
The disciples are preparing for the end of civilization.
Jesus has found a pillow.
Finally they wake Him.
Jesus gets up
and speaks to the storm:
“Peace, be still.”
And Scripture says:
“the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.”
I love those words.
Because sometimes the greatest storm is not outside the boat.
It is inside us.
Sometimes the Storm Is in the Mind
Our minds can become storms of:
fear,
anger,
resentment,
appointments,
memories,
regrets,
plans,
ambitions,
and imaginary arguments with people who are not even in the room.
The wind is howling.
The waves are crashing.
And somewhere inside my mind,
the 1,000 squirrels have apparently acquired power tools.
Meanwhile,
underneath all that commotion,
I am trying to hear the still, soft voice of the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes I need Jesus to retake the rule of my heart, and speak directly into my heart:
“Peace.”
“Be still.”
Peace Does Not Mean Life Becomes Easy
This is important.
The peace Jesus promises does not mean nothing difficult will ever happen.
Jesus said plainly:
“In the world ye shall have tribulation.”
Then He immediately added:
“be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
And He said He told His followers these things so that:
“in me ye might have peace.”
That is a very different kind of peace.
It is easy to feel peaceful when everything is going according to plan.
The peace of Christ becomes extraordinary when absolutely nothing is going according to plan —
and somehow,
we still know God is with us.
That is the peace I want.
Not a life without storms.
Christ in the boat during the storm.
Not a life without difficult decisions.
The Holy Spirit guiding me through them.
Not a promise that I will never become frightened.
The confidence that when fear comes, I can turn toward Jesus.
The Prince of Peace
Isaiah calls Jesus:
“The Prince of Peace.”
Paul calls God:
“the God of peace.”
Scripture speaks of:
“the Lord of peace.”
The Gospel itself is called:
“the gospel of peace.”
Paul tells us that being spiritually minded is:
“life and peace.”
And Galatians tells us:
“the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace.”
Those are not disconnected phrases to me.
They describe the atmosphere of Christ’s Kingdom.
Love.
Joy.
Peace.
And notice the order.
Love.
Then joy.
Then peace.
To me,
that is beautiful.
When God pours His agapē into our hearts,
joy begins to grow,
and peace begins to settle in.
“Hold Your Peace”
Jesus Himself sometimes:
“held his peace.”
He remained silent.
He did not answer every accusation.
He did not defend Himself every time someone attacked Him.
That lesson is difficult for me.
Sometimes the most spiritual thing I can do is:
keep my mouth shut, which means to listen.
There have been times when I had an excellent response prepared.
Beautifully organized.
Devastatingly logical.
Possibly deserving of publication.
And then the Holy Spirit whispers:
“Bill... hold your peace and listen.”
Apparently not every brilliant statement requires immediate public release.
That has probably prevented several unnecessary wars.
When I first started Centering Prayer, dozens of times, in many situations, I was given a one word command from the Holy Spirit. It was:
Listen.
Peace Helps Us Hear
This is the part I especially want every Christian to understand.
Peace is not merely a reward after listening to the Holy Spirit.
Peace also helps us listen to the Holy Spirit.
Fear is noisy.
Anger is noisy.
Pride is noisy.
Resentment is noisy.
Worry is extraordinarily noisy.
Peace makes room.
When my heart becomes peaceful,
I can become attentive.
When my thoughts settle,
I can listen.
When I stop fighting every imaginary battle in my head,
I can ask:
“Lord, what do You want?”
Then I wait.
God Is Not the Author of Confusion
Paul tells us:
“God is not the author of confusion, but of peace.”
That verse has become very important to my discernment.
If I believe something is leading me toward:
chaos,
hatred,
revenge,
pride,
hostility,
or needless conflict,
I need to stop and examine it carefully.
Does this resemble Jesus?
Does it produce His fruit?
Does it lead toward:
love,
joy,
peace,
patience,
kindness,
goodness,
faith,
gentleness,
and self-control?
The Holy Spirit does not pour peace into our hearts on Monday
and then announce on Tuesday:
“New plan. Everybody panic.”
God’s character matters.
Peace Does Not Mean Avoiding Truth
There is also an important verse where Jesus says:
“I came not to send peace, but a sword.”
That can sound contradictory until we look at what Jesus is saying.
Following Christ can create division.
Truth can create difficult choices.
Obedience to Jesus may sometimes put us at odds with:
family,
culture,
friends,
or the expectations around us.
Peace does not mean:
avoiding truth,
avoiding difficult conversations,
or pretending evil is acceptable.
Christ’s peace is not cowardice.
It is inner stability while following God’s truth.
We can stand firmly for what is right
without allowing hatred to rule our hearts.
That distinction matters enormously.
Blessed Are the Peacemakers
Jesus did not merely say:
“Blessed are the people who enjoy peace.”
He said:
“Blessed are the peacemakers.”
A peacemaker carries Christ’s peace into places where peace is missing.
Into families.
Churches.
Friendships.
Neighborhoods.
Arguments.
Broken relationships.
A peacemaker does not merely possess peace.
A peacemaker spreads it.
And Jesus says:
“they shall be called the children of God.”
That is an astonishing honor.
Jesus Sent His Disciples Carrying Peace
When Jesus sent His disciples out,
He instructed them to enter a house saying:
“Peace be to this house.”
Think about that.
They were carrying something.
Peace.
Not merely preaching words.
They were bringing the peace of Christ into homes.
That is exactly what I want to do.
When I walk into a room,
I do not want to carry:
anger,
pride,
resentment,
fear,
or division.
I want to carry:
peace.
I want people to feel more loved after I leave,
not relieved that I finally left.
Peace and the Holy Spirit
One of the most beautiful passages comes after Jesus’ resurrection.
He stands among His disciples and says:
“Peace be unto you.”
Then He says it again:
“Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.”
Then:
“Receive ye the Holy Ghost.”
Look at the progression.
Peace.
Mission.
Holy Spirit.
That combination means a great deal to me.
Jesus gives His peace.
Jesus sends His followers.
Jesus gives the Holy Spirit.
That is Centering Prayer theology in a beautiful little picture.
Receive His peace.
Listen to His Spirit.
Then go serve.
The Gift I Didn’t Think I Deserved
When I first began practicing Centering Prayer,
something happened that was difficult for me to accept.
I began experiencing what I understood as:
God’s unconditional love,
joy,
and peace.
At first,
receiving God’s love was harder than I expected.
I had spent seventy years largely living according to my own will.
How could God simply forgive me?
My mind wanted an accounting department.
Surely there had to be paperwork.
Surely somebody needed to calculate the interest.
Surely there had to be a form somewhere titled:
“Application for Forgiveness After Seventy Years of Doing It Your Own Way.”
But grace does not work that way.
God’s love was not something I could buy.
Forgiveness was not something I could earn.
Jesus came for sinners.
That included me.
I had not been disqualified because I had spent seventy years not listening.
I was being invited to start listening now.
And as that truth settled into my heart,
fear began losing its grip.
Grace accomplished what guilt never could.
God’s love did not make me want to run away from Him.
It made me want to serve Him.
From Receiving Peace to Becoming Peaceful
Then came another discovery.
God’s peace was not meant to stop inside me.
If God gives me peace,
I am supposed to carry that peace into the world.
Jesus says:
“Blessed are the peacemakers.”
Paul tells us:
“live in peace.”
He tells us to keep:
“the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
That means Centering Prayer must eventually leave the bedroom,
the pew,
or the prayer chair.
If I spend thirty peaceful minutes listening to Jesus in the morning
and then spend the afternoon spreading anger,
division,
and irritation everywhere I go,
something has gone seriously wrong between breakfast and lunch.
The fruit has to leave the tree.
Peace Is Part of Our Witness
Imagine a Christian who is:
calm in conflict,
kind under pressure,
slow to anger,
quick to forgive,
gentle in disagreement,
and peaceful in the middle of turmoil.
People notice that.
They may ask:
“How can you remain peaceful?”
That becomes an opportunity to say:
“Because I know the Prince of Peace.”
Not because I have no problems.
Not because I never become frightened.
Not because my life is easy.
But because I know where to turn when the storm begins.
Centering Prayer Begins With Peace
For me,
Centering Prayer follows a simple rhythm.
First:
peace.
Then:
stillness.
Then:
listening.
Then:
discernment.
Then:
obedience.
Then:
service.
I become peaceful enough to become still.
I become still enough to listen.
I listen so I can discern.
I discern so I can obey.
I obey so I can serve.
And through that service,
God’s love and peace can reach someone else.
That is how I understand life in Christ’s Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.
Let Peace Rule
Paul says:
“Let the peace of God rule in your hearts.”
That is what I want.
I want Christ’s peace ruling my heart before:
fear,
anger,
money,
ego,
pride,
or resentment
gets another chance at the job.
Every morning,
I become still.
I center myself on Jesus.
I ask:
“Lord Jesus, how may I serve You today?”
Then I stop talking.
I hold my peace.
And I listen.
When fear appears,
I turn back toward Jesus.
When the storm begins,
I remember His words:
“Peace, be still.”
When anger rises,
I hold my peace.
When confusion enters,
I seek the God who is:
“not the author of confusion, but of peace.”
And when I leave my quiet time,
I want to carry that peace with me.
Into my home.
Into my church.
Into conversations.
Into disagreements.
Into every place where God sends me.
Because peace is not simply something Christ gives us to enjoy.
It is something He gives us to live.
And something He calls us to share.
So tomorrow morning,
before the worries arrive,
before the news starts shouting,
before the phone begins demanding attention,
and before the 1,000 squirrels in my mind locate their power tools,
I will become still.
I will turn my heart toward Jesus.
And I will hear those beautiful words again:
“Peace, be still.”
Then I will ask:
“Lord Jesus... how may I serve You today?”
And in the peace that follows,
I will listen.
Peace Doesn't Mean an Easy Life
There is an important distinction here.
The peace Jesus promises is not a guarantee that nothing difficult will happen.
Jesus said plainly:
“In the world ye shall have tribulation.”
But He immediately followed that warning with hope: “be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” He told His followers these things so that in Him they might have peace.
That is a very different kind of peace.
It's easy to be peaceful when everything is going exactly according to plan.
The peace of Christ becomes extraordinary when absolutely nothing is going according to plan — and somehow we still know that God is with us.
That is the peace I want.
Not a life without storms.
Christ in the boat during the storm.
Not a life without difficult decisions.
The Holy Spirit guiding me through them.
Not a guarantee that I will never become frightened.
The confidence that when fear comes, I can turn toward Jesus.
The Peace That Lives in Our Hearts
Paul gives us a wonderful instruction:
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.”
That word rule catches my attention.
Something is going to rule my heart.
For seventy years, I frequently allowed other things to apply for the position.
Money submitted an application.
Ego wanted the corner office.
Ambition wanted to be chairman of the board.
Fear kept showing up without an appointment.
But Centering Prayer gradually changed who I wanted sitting on the throne of my heart.
Jesus.
Paul says that being spiritually minded is “life and peace.” He calls God the “God of peace.” Isaiah calls the coming Messiah the “Prince of Peace.” And Paul tells us plainly that the fruit of the Spirit includes love, joy, and peace.
For me, those aren't disconnected verses.
They describe a way of living.
Centering Is More Than a Morning Prayer
This is where Centering Prayer began expanding beyond my morning prayer time.
Paul tells us:
“Pray without ceasing.”
That doesn't mean that I must spend twenty-four hours a day, kneeling beside my bed, with my hands folded. My knees would file a formal complaint almost immediately.
I understand it as an invitation to remain centered upon God throughout the day.
I can stop for a moment.
Become still.
Return to Christ's peace.
And ask:
“Jesus, how may I serve You right now?”
I can do that in the morning.
I can do it before an important decision.
I can do it when I'm angry.
I can do it when somebody hurts me.
I can do it when fear starts building.
I can do it before speaking words that I may regret thirty seconds later.
Sometimes the wisest spiritual practice available to me is simply:
Bill, hold your peace.
Listen.
This is how I understand praying without ceasing — not necessarily talking to God without ceasing,
but living in an ongoing relationship in which I continually return my attention to Him.
The Gift I Didn't Think I Deserved
When I first began practicing Centering Prayer, something happened that was difficult for me to accept.
I began experiencing what I understood as God's unconditional love, joy, and peace.
At first, receiving God's love was actually harder than I expected.
I had spent seventy years largely living according to my own will.
I was afraid.
How could God possibly forgive me for seventy years of all these wrongdoings?
My mind wanted an accounting department.
Surely there had to be paperwork.
Surely somebody needed to calculate the interest.
But my pastor began preaching about God's unconditional love and grace.
Again and again,
I encountered the message that forgiveness wasn't something I could purchase by becoming good enough.
Then I came across Jesus' words:
“I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
Suddenly I understood:
Jesus came for people like me.
I hadn't been disqualified because I had spent seventy years not listening.
I was being invited to start listening now.
And as that truth settled into my heart, fear began losing some of its power.
Grace did what guilt couldn't.
God's love didn't make me want to run away from Him.
It made me want to serve Him.
From Receiving Peace to Becoming a Peacemaker
But there is another step.
God's peace isn't something I believe we're supposed to hoard.
Jesus said:
“Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.”
Notice that He doesn't merely say blessed are the peaceful.
He says blessed are the peacemakers.
A peacemaker carries peace into places where peace is missing.
Into families.
Into friendships.
Into churches.
Into communities.
Into arguments.
Into wounded relationships.
That is where Centering Prayer moves from an interior experience to service in Christ's Kingdom.
If I become quiet every morning and experience wonderful peace but then spend the afternoon spreading anger, hostility, pride, and division, something has gone badly wrong between breakfast and lunch.
The fruit must be shared.
Paul tells believers to “keep the unity of the Spirit, in the bond of His peace.”
"There is one body, and one Spirit,"
Jesus sends His disciples into homes carrying peace with them.
And after His resurrection,
Jesus says “Peace be unto you,”
then immediately says, “As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you,”
and tells them to receive the Holy Spirit.
Jesus blessed them by filling their hearts with His peace.
I find that connection beautiful:
Peace.
Holy Spirit.
Service.
Center Yourself in Christ
That is what the word Centering has come to mean to me.
My heart needs a reboot. It isn't simply emptying my mind.
It is re-centering my life upon Jesus.
When fear becomes the center, I return to Jesus.
When money becomes the center, I return to Jesus.
When ego becomes the center, I return to Jesus.
When anger becomes the center, I return to Jesus.
When the day's endless to-do list starts running the government of my brain without congressional oversight, I return to Jesus.
I become still.
I receive His peace.
And I listen.
Then I ask:
“Jesus, how may I serve You?”
And perhaps that is why those three little words, that Jesus spoke to the storm, have become such a beautiful description of Centering Prayer for me:
“Peace, be still.”
First, peace.
Then, stillness.
Then, listening.
Then, discernment.
Then, obedience.
And finally, service.
That is the rhythm I want throughout my day.
Not merely peace when everything around me is peaceful.
Christ's peace when the storm is raging.
Not merely silence because I have nothing to say.
Silence because I finally want to hear.
Not merely Centering Prayer once each morning.
A life centered upon Jesus Christ.
The Prince of Peace is already calling us toward His peace. Scripture tells us to let that peace rule in our hearts.
So perhaps we don't need to wait for the world to become peaceful before we can begin.
We can start with one heart.
Our own.
Become still.
Let the fear settle.
Let the monkeys take the morning off.
Turn your heart toward Jesus and ask:
“Lord, how may I serve You today?”
Then hold our peace.
And listen.
Questions for prayer:
What do these passages reveal about God?
What response does it ask of me?
Is the impression I receive consistent with the character and teaching of Jesus?
What loving and faithful action should follow?