"Peace, That Flows Like a River"

"He opened the rock, and the waters gushed out; they ran in the dry places like a river."
(Psalms 105:41)
It is really quite simple to understand how this all works, provided you are looking at it in the light of who God is and what you must become. God never changes, He is always the same, yesterday, today, and forever. We are the ones that must change, we are the ones that must turn back to Him, always! If you are feeling resistance in your life, as if you are trying to paddle a boat upstream, then you are not going the right way and you need to turn around. It is really quite simple to understand, Jesus is not called the Prince of Peace for nothing; and it surely is not because He brought peace upon this world. This world will never truly know real peace; real peace will be felt in the new world, when God rolls this old one up like a scroll and presents His new one. The peace that Jesus brought was to those who belong to Him; those that follow Him and believe that He has the keys to eternal life. It is so easy to be taken off course in this life; whether it be for just a moment or for forty years, time is not the issue when it comes to turning a life around; what matters is the way that you are turning. Sometimes we might just turn slightly, as to get over to the shore and take a rest, thinking that we have made the right move because life just seems easier. But if we are not flowing downstream, then we are not moving, which means that our spiritual life can become stagnate. We can become hardhearted to the word of God when our lives become stagnate. We might hear the word, and we might even receive it, but if it's not put to work in our lives, it really does nothing. The river only flows one way; if you are going in the right direction, then the ride is easy! Jesus said, "For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." How is this even possible when life is so difficult? It's all about the Way! Only Jesus gives us a way that is free from the law and all the requirements that come with trying to keep it. When we are following Jesus, He is all that matters! So you messed up, turn back to Him; so you messed up again, then turn back again and again! Sometimes we simply just get off course, we get turned around, or we get stuck on the riverbank; but God is always, willing to forgive, and waiting for us to turn back to Him. The real definition of "the wicked" are those who are not willing to turn...
"This is what the LORD says -your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: "I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow. Oh, that you had listened to my commands! Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river and righteousness rolling over you like the waves in the sea. Your descendants would have been like the sands along the seashore -too many to count! There would have been no need for your destruction, or for cutting off your family name." Yet even now, be free from your captivity! Leave Babylon and the Babylonians. Sing out this message! Shout it to the ends of the earth! The LORD has redeemed his servants, the people of Israel. They were not thirsty when he led them through the desert. He divided the rock, and water gushed out for them to drink. "But there is no peace for the wicked," says the LORD." (Isaiah 48:17-22) NLT