It’s become one of the most common pieces of advice in our culture.
Set boundaries.
Protect your energy.
Don’t let people steal your peace.
There is wisdom in that.
But lately I’ve been wondering if we’ve elevated protecting our peace above something Scripture seems to value just as highly, giving it away.
Because when I look at the life of Jesus, I don’t see someone who fiercely guarded every interruption.
I see someone who entered into other people’s chaos without losing His own.
Peace was never meant to end with us.
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you” – John 14:27
Peace isn’t something we’re meant to hoard. It’s something we receive from Christ so we can become people who carry it into anxious places.
“If it is possible as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone” -Romans 12:18
“Blessed are the peacemakers…” -Matthew 5:9
Not merely the peace-protectors. The peacemakers.
The Tension I’ve Been Wrestling with
Or should I give it away?
Then I realized… They’re both true.
Just in different relationships.
Your inner circle is your well
The five or so people closest to me whether my family or closest friends, those are the people responsible for helping keep my well full.
These relationships are where I can be fully known.
Where I’m encouraged.
Where I’m corrected.
Where I’m reminded of who God is when I forget.
These are the people who help restore what the world slowly drains.
Protecting these relationships matters.
Because they’re essential.
Even Jesus withdrew with His closest disciples. He regularly stepped away to pray. He wasn’t available to everyone all the time.
He knew the difference between ministry and intimacy.
“Protect my peace” is reserved for those core relationships but the world needs me to bring peace into it.
Every day we encounter people carrying burdens we can’t see.
The exhausted cashier.
The overwhelmed parent.
The coworker quietly grieving.
The neighbor who’s one conversation away from losing hope.
If my default posture becomes protecting my peace from every inconvenience, interruption, or difficult person, I may also be protecting myself from the very opportunities God has given me to reflect Christ.
Sometimes love is inconvenient.
Sometimes compassion costs something.
Sometimes being present means stepping into someone else’s mess.
Jesus certainly did.
The well has to be replenished.
Of course, we aren’t called to pour endlessly until we’re empty.
Even Jesus withdrew.
He rested.
He prayed.
He returned to the Father.
Healthy giving requires healthy receiving.
Life has a rhythm.
God fills us. Our closest community helps sustain us.
Then we go back into the world carrying what we’ve received.
We don’t protect our peace so we can avoid people.
We protect the places where peace is restored so we have something genuine to offer others.
A question worth asking.
Maybe the question isn’t:
“Am I protecting my peace?”
Maybe it’s:
Who is helping fill my well?
And once it’s full…
Who needs to experience the peace Christ has given me today?
Because peace isn’t just something we’re called to preserve.
It’s something we’re invited to cultivate…
…and then generously give away.