I was listening to a description of someone recently and they described a person as having a calming influence. I thought that was a wonderful description. Do we speak fear or faith, create peace or unsettle?

We are still in 1 Samuel 16. Saul the king is tormented by an evil spirit.

Saul asks his servants for someone who will play the lyre for him, they are convinced that “you will be well” vs 16. They suggest David.

One of the young men answered, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who is skilful in playing, a man of valour, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a man of good presence, and the LORD is with him.”  1 Samuel 16:18.

Here is something for up and coming leaders to reach for and learn from. David has become skilful, he has courage, he has trained himself to defend whatever needs defending, he is discerning and speaks well, people warm to him, but most of all people notice God is with him.

They fetch David and David plays for Saul.

And whenever the harmful spirit from God was upon Saul, David took the lyre and played it with his hand. So Saul was refreshed and was well, and the harmful spirit departed from him.  1 Samuel 16:23

What an impact! A refreshing calming peace.

Paul describes it in Philippians 4:7 as the peace of God that surpasses understanding (what we know and see) will guard our hearts and minds in a way that no human mind can fully comprehend.

Can I encourage us to choose to speak this to both ourselves and to others, boy do we need this in these days. Yes?

Something else Paul says about this “peace” of God is that it becomes ours when we pray (vs 6). It far surpasses and outstrips and transcends all human comprehension. The human mind can’t fully grasp it. The human hand can’t reproduce it in a factory. The human eye can’t begin to envision what it looks like. As much as we pride ourselves in our scientific and technological achievements, this peace is something that will never be reduced to merely human terms or explained by even the greatest and most brilliant minds.

It’s time to pray for each other, maybe this change in everything is God’s way of giving us an opportunity to deliberately and purposefully pray for each other.

This peace guards our “hearts” and “minds” and we definitely need that. This is protection. This is God being a refuge and a strong tower.

This is about fear not entering, kept beyond the walls.

But don’t be misled into thinking that this is a promise or guarantee for just anyone. This is not a universal promise that just anyone can lay hold of. This is a protection which comes from the peace of God that is found only in Christ Jesus. If you don’t know Christ, if he isn’t your treasure, if your faith isn’t grounded and fixed in him alone, this passage promises you nothing unless you cry out to him to be your peace.

Let me finish by encouraging you to be a calming influence.