Hope, joy, peace, love - some of the most common words you see during the Advent season. I’m sure you’ve got a mug or two with one of these words on it - I have three.

Let’s take a look at peace. Everyone desires peace in some way, maybe it’s “I’ll have peace once the Christmas shopping is done” or “I’ll have peace once my kids move out on their own” or “I’ll have peace once I get out of my toxic work environment or relationship”. Perhaps it’s a regular habit or routine to escape the stress of the everyday.

But this is not the peace that Jesus was promising when he said in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you”. And not the kind of peace “that is beyond understanding” as it’s described in Philippians 4:7.

So if that’s the case, where is it?

Jesus came to earth to lead a broken world to a place of peace where it could be made whole again. His followers expected Him to create that peace by getting rid of their oppressors and be their peaceful king. But Jesus had a much bigger plan than that. He wanted to make a way for us to know God. Only then could we experience true peace directly from the source, not by trying to control our circumstances and create ‘ideal’ situations.

As much as we’d like it to be, the peace Jesus offers isn’t about removing problems or every source of stress. It’s a kind of steadiness that settles in even while the situation stays the same. It shows up in places that don’t make sense—when you’re waiting on news you can’t control, when a relationship feels strained, or when a prayer seems to hang in the air without an answer. This peace doesn’t depend on everything going right; it comes from trusting that God is present and working even when you can’t see how.

God offers us this peace freely but we need to be willing to release our control of situations and acknowledge that He is the only one that has any control. When we do this, it’s only then do we start experiencing the peace that He came to earth to give.