May 20, 2026; Jehovah Shalom, the Lord is Peace

Daily Dose of Hope May 20, 2026   Name of God:  Jehovah Shalom – The Lord Is Peace Scripture:  Judges 6:11-24   Prayer:  I come before you today, laying down my anxieties, my fears, and the heavy burdens of the day. Lord, you know the exact situations and unseen battles that are causing turmoil in my heart. Right now, I invite Your presence into my mind, my body, and my home. Forgive me for the times I have allowed the noise and chaos of this world to distract me from Your unwavering faithfulness. I ask that You quiet my spirit and replace my restless thoughts with the perfect peace that passes all human understanding. Guard my heart and mind. Remind me that you are in control and help me to surrender my need to figure everything out on my own. In Jesus' Name, Amen.   Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional and podcast that complements the New Hope Church daily Bible reading plan.  We are currently in a study on the names of God in the Old Testament.  Remember, names held a great deal of significance in the ancient world, indicating aspects of someone's identity, character, and purpose.  Certainly, it is the same with God.  God has many different names, all of which demonstrate one aspect of His character.  Today, we are focusing on Jehovah Shalom, which means the Lord is Peace.   The title Jehovah Shalom occurs only once in the Bible, in Judges 6.24, Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and called it, The Lord Is Peace [Jehovah Shalom].   As we know, the name Jehovah means God or Lord, while the term shalom refers to soundness, completeness, harmony and the absence of strife. It is best described by our English word, peace.   Judges is such a hard book to read.  The boundaries and guardrails that God put in place were ignored and things were violent and chaotic.  The time of the Judges was a 350 year period in Isreal's history when people did what was right in their own eyes.  That never works out well.  We are too selfish.  Our inner compass fails us.  We need direction, specifically God's direction.    During this time, God's people were worshiping other gods and sinning against the Lord and other people.  When things got really, really bad, God would lift his hand of protection and the people would be conquered by a foreign power.  That foreign power would oppress Israel and make things absolutely unbearable.  Then, the Jewish people would cry out to the Lord and He would send a judge.  The purpose of the judge was to save the people and defeat the foreign power.  Once the foreign power was defeated, Israel had peace.  They remembered God.  And this lasted as long as the judge was alive, but after the judge died, the whole cycle began again.  At this particular juncture, Israel was oppressed by the Midianites, who left them hiding in caves, without food, livestock, or working tools. Hungry and terrified, they cried out to God for help. He reminded them that their disobedience caused their troubles, but He also sent them a judge, Gideon. Although the Lord commissioned Gideon to save Israel, he felt weak and incapable. Because of his lack of confidence and fear, Gideon asked for a sign. Witnessing the food he prepared for the angel miraculously consumed by fire, Gideon was filled with even greater fear.  He had seen the Angel of the Lord face to face!  The immediate divine response was this, Peace be to you. Do not fear, you shall not die. As a result of these words, Gideon's heart was filled with confidence and courage. He experienced peace in the truest sense. Building an altar to the Lord, he called it Jehovah Shalom or the Lord is Peace. His encounter with the God of Peace had taught him that he was not alone. We live in a world in which peace is often elusive.  There is war, conflict, and division.  We are plagued by depression, grief, anger, or anxiety.  We are all Gideon hiding from the Midianites.  The truth is that the only way to experience true peace is through God.  Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, offers us a peace that passes understanding.  Even in the midst of the most difficult of circumstances, we can experience an inner peace that defies worldly explanation.  Jesus' presence = peace.  Spend some time praying to Jehovah Shalom today.  Where are you lacking confidence?  Where do you need peace? Blessings, Pastor Vicki