I am probably not the person to ask this question.  I have an instant gut-level dislike for what I call Cookbook Spirituality.  Are there devotional practices that can help a Christian grow in their spirituality.  I believe that there are.  But I caution people, just following some practice does not necessarily mean that you will achieve some goal that you are aiming for.  For instance, praying the Rosary is supposed to deepen our understanding of and appreciation for the life and ministry of Christ.  However, the meditations need to involve our minds, our emotions, our imaginations and our wills.  You can pray the Rosary “until Kingdom Come” with no useful result if you pray it in an only perfunctory way.  The Truth is, that everything that we do in the Church can be done badly and even so badly that it will work to our destruction.

Saint Paul wrote in First Corinthians about the most sacred thing that we do in the Church and he had a warning to go along with his instructions: (1 Cor 11:27-32)  27  Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. 28  Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.  31  But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.

It strikes me that if the most fundamental thing that we do by entering into communion with Christ can be perverted simply by inattention, then Christianity requires, as we say at the beginning of the service that we “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind.”  It is true that Christianity demands our total commitment; mind, body and spirit.  Anything less is simply posturing.  That sounds awfully harsh as I write it, but I believe it to be the truth. 

So, back to the question.  Is there something we can do to “tap into” the Peace of God which passes all understanding?  Yes there is.   But.   You knew there would be a But.  But, the Peace we are talking about is a gift from God.  This is not a thing to be conjured up by us, but rather a gift to be received and cherished.  Let me caution you that while God gives the gift, we have to receive it and nourish it.  Typically, however, most of us live in such anxiety that when we are given the gift of Peace we promptly strangle it and cast it aside.  We are so neurotic about being in control of things in our life, that actually relaxing and letting God give us His Peace makes us very nervous and we simply can’t stand it.  In short, we can’t make it happen, but we can sure as shootin’ make sure it doesn’t happen.  And most of us do that very thing.

Allow me a cautionary note. People often desire the peace of God when their lives are in turmoil.  That is at the very time that their own self-constructed peace has failed.  That is precisely the wrong moment to try to awaken the Peace of God.  Read carefully this portion of Paul’s letter to the Phillippians: (Phil 4:4-9)4  Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you. ESV

Far from Cookbook Spirituality, the Peace of God will be your constant companion when the Lord is your constant companion.  If you find that you are looking for Peace in a time of turmoil, please accept my condolences. Life can be very hard sometimes. Take your turmoil as a sign that you have left the Lord behind in your daily walk. When times are good, we don’t look for the Lord and we don’t notice that He is not in the picture. But when times are good is exactly when rejoicing in the Lord is easiest. If He is with you in good times, you will find that He is right there at your side in the bad times.