The Peace Habit

Scriptures: Philippians 4:6-9, 2 Thessalonians 3:16, John 16:33, John 14:26-27, Isaiah 9:6

Hidden Peace

In the troubled world we live in, peace or the feeling of it seems hidden.  Isn’t it funny, we think we are content people but take away our comfort level and familiar routine and we go into panic mode quickly!  Everyone has been challenged in this area.

The Bible teaches us that God grows our character through testing and hardship so I wonder what it looks like to Him when we get frustrated over major disruptions or interruptions to our “normal.”

How do you find peace in those scenarios that leave you feeling aggravated and anxious?  Can we really claim to have peace, only to watch it dissolve because our expectations are met with uncertainty and ambiguity?

Peace can start small and grow. If anyone has a true reason to be discontent with life it would have been Paul, the apostle.  Not only was he beaten and ran out of town several times, God re-directed his missionary journey by sending him to a very remote island named Malta with a tribe of savages.  However, God used his precarious situation for the good.  Paul had peace and hosted his own island revival!

I’ve learned that having a peaceful mind is a perspective we overlook when we’re feeling anxious.  When I read all the controversy Paul endured, I can honestly say I’ve not experienced extreme difficulty like he did.  The peace Paul experienced was in his perspective of his circumstances.   Paul, spent a lot of time in high stress plus he made friends with disappointment.  From shore to shipwreck and chains to prison cells, in each encounter, he used peace like a weapon. 

As we’re deeply rooted in Christ, we can experience the same kind of peace.  By putting our trust and faith in God alone, we are able to endure any situation no matter how painful or difficult it may be. We are granted perfect peace in whatever life throws at us. 

Peace is Christ’s presence.  His plans for us are not based on how good life treats us. His presence gives peace and removes every fear and all anxiety.  So when life becomes a circus, or peace seems hidden, keep the habit of prayer a priority and put your concerns into God’s hands.  His peace guards you and keeps you in peace.  Seek God, for the Prince of Peace is in you.  

Janelle Keith

Scriptures: Proverbs 15:30, Proverbs 31:25, 1 Peter 5:7, Isaiah 32:17, Isaiah 26:3

Peace in Identity

She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future. Proverbs 31:25 

One of my favorite companies is Dove(R). Yes, they do provide great beauty products that I use from time to time. But the thing I love most is their branding—the way in which they celebrate beauty—in all shapes, sizes, and complexions.

As part of its marketing efforts, the company has released several thought-provoking short videos to prove its point.  One campaign was called Dove Mirrors.

The video begins with women primping in mirrors, cell phones, and window reflections—stretching out forehead lines, sucking in tummies, and frowning at their laugh lines. You can almost read their thoughts:  Well, this is as good as it will get…

Not too much laughing going on.

It then transitions to children catching their reflections in mirrors—making goofy faces, dancing around, laughing with pure delight at themselves. If you have kids, this will look very familiar. And it’s very striking.

When was the last time you smiled back at your reflection?

Many times we get caught up and overwhelmed by life:  finances, family, the fact that we don’t look like our 20-year-old selves anymore. You may feel that it’s no laughing matter. 

She laughs without fear of the future, Proverbs says.  Is your life full of difficulties and temptations? Then be happy, for when the way is rough, your patience has a chance to grow.  (James 1:2-3)

God makes it pretty clear in His word that we must have peace for the road He is taking us on.  It’s His plan and for His glory to live our purpose here on Earth. 

Whatever you are facing today, let’s take a cue from our younger counterparts, and most importantly from our loving, all-knowing Creator. He came that we might have life … and live it to the full … no matter where you are right now. God is smiling down on you.  

Why not smile back at Him today!  You can have peace in every phase of life, no matter your age.  Be mindful of who your loving and caring Heavenly Father is.  And because you are unique, you can smile and appreciate the way He made you, too.

Lori Clapper

Scriptures: Colossians 3:14-15, 2 Corinthians 13:11, Galatians 5:22-23, Psalms 85:10, Romans 12:10-13

Waving Kindness and Peace

In my community, there’s a kindness effort invading our city.  On many local street corners there are signs boasting kindness.  I love seeing these little signs waving in the wind back at me as if to say “Be kind today.”  It’s funny how my eyes are drawn to them. 

Kindness uproots a calm peace that is only given by love and understood by the heart.  A kind word is a seed, which often bears fruit in peace, love, and joy in others.  We don’t know what path they are walking nor do we know what is happening behind closed doors; we only know our own.  When pain has worn you down and you hold on to anger, shame, guilt, or rejection, our peace “tank” runs dry.   

People can wear their worry, pain, stress, and anger daily.  We wear our emotions whether we know it or not, and we can express unkind words, give cold looks, wear sad smiles, and breathe heavy sighs. 

Peace welcomes His presence into our lives.  God’s kindness and peace are fruit that He bears in and through us; how nice it would be to have more peace among men.  We ALL need peace in our minds, hearts and homes.  

What I’ve found is intentional kindness brings a unified peace. Try it sometime … you too will be amazed at the response.  Seriously, have you ever just thanked someone for doing something that they normally do?  Have you made them feel significant in any way? 

Peace is a vehicle for kindness.  You will be surprised what hurting people will do when met with kindness. Bringing peace into a situation is bringing the attitude of Heaven down to earth. Jesus is the example by how he simply helped the hurting even as He faced rejection and hatred. That kind of opposition didn’t stop Him from being incredibly kind and speaking peace to everyone.  Peace for his followers is always in His heart.  

Speak peace and be kind to one another.  Put negativity away.  Go over the top in spreading it like confetti as you would for a special occasion.  Be free with kindness and live at peace with everyone.  God’s peace waves wildly from Heaven with unwavering kindness!

Scriptures: Matthew 5:9, Deuteronomy 15:10, Romans 8:6, Psalms 29:11, 1 Peter 3:11

Peace in Giving

It was a great night’s sleep. One of those deep, peaceful sleeps where I didn’t want to wake up.  But early that morning, in my semi-consciousness, I was interrupted by a still, small voice.

“The voice” was telling me to give a certain amount of money to a dear friend who had once helped me in ministry, and now was pursuing a new venture herself. Her cheerful, “trust-God-to-work-it-out” attitude is the perfect balance for my deadline-driven, micromanaging self.

But trusting God with finances has never been easy for me.  

Is that really you, God?  I’ve heard plenty of stories about God’s economy and have even seen blessing in my own life. But at times when the budget numbers don’t balance, my natural instinct is to freak out.

God spoke it again. “Give.” 

I kept ignoring it.  That night I was shopping online. And was about to dump a decent amount of money on something that was certainly not a necessity. I tried several times to complete the purchase, but my computer kept freezing.

But … God spoke a third time. “You won’t think twice about spending money on these unnecessary things.  Do you love me more than these?  Then give.”  He got my attention that time. When God calls you to be a part of something, I guarantee He won’t let you forget.  For two days, I had wrestled with God.  My lack of trust put my heart in knots. But as it says in Deuteronomy 15:10, Give freely and spontaneously.  Don’t have a stingy heart. (MSG) … for the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do.  

I relented and realized I was being stingy by not giving!  I wrote the check and gave it to my friend the next night.  Blessing her brought unspeakable peace to my spirit.  The next morning, I let God deal with my lack of trust in His provisions.  As I remembered God’s blessings in my own times of need, I was filled with a greater peace knowing my gift was a small part of my friend’s new venture.  

What is God calling you to give today?  A bigger tithe or to a friend in need?  Perhaps he’s calling you to give of your talents and gifts in a new way.  Don’t ignore God’s gentle nudges.  Give with joy, even when you think you can’t. God will bless you with peace.

Scriptures: Psalms 34:14, Matthew 11:28-30, Psalms 8:4, Isaiah 26:12, Galatians 1:3

Peace In the Chaos

I looked around my house and there were  piles in  every room.  So I made a plan to bust the clutter that had built up in my house.  During the past month, jam-packed weekends and busy evenings left my family at home for just enough time to make messes, but no time to clean up afterwards.

I took a deep breath, rolled up my sleeves, and armed myself with cleaning spray and paper towels.  I started in the kitchen—where I knew I had a breakfast bar somewhere under the piles of mail and school papers.  I gathered everything— every last paper, bill, toy. and straggling nail polish bottle—and plopped them down in the back playroom. With the clutter out of sight, I then concentrated on scrubbing everything down until it sparkled.

It took hours, but I went from room to room, repeating that same exercise and making the visible area of my home as neat as a pin. My house hadn’t looked this great in what seemed like ages.

But the heaps of “miscellaneous” grew, along with toys that were already there.

Our heart and mind can fill with clutter, too.  We bury deeply hurt feelings, jealousy, anger, or perhaps actions done in secret such as an affair, abuse, or an abortion in the hidden places.

We are cool and collected, with our perfect makeup and coordinated outfit.  But, our inner wounds keep us in bondage up like a cluttered room that’s still there, harboring the hurt.  We keep it to ourselves, however in the meantime it impacts our lives emotionally, mentally, and physically.  Truth is, God is patiently waiting for us to give our struggles over to Him.  He never judges and always heals. Most of all, He guarantees the resolution and peace you seek.

Jesus never asks you to have it all together. He says to come just as you are…hurting, disappointed, overwhelmed, and cluttered with the stuff of life.  Speak God’s words of peace and confess your “clutter” to Him. Find a trustworthy friend and tell them about the challenges you face, pray over it together, and bring your clutter into the light. Then you will discover HIS peace that surpasses our understanding— even in the midst of your chaos.   God will meet you in your clutter. I promise you. But even more—He promises you peace.

Lori Clapper

Scriptures: 2 Corinthians 9:8, Psalms 23:4, Ephesians 6:15, Proverbs 16:3, Psalms 119:165

Peace Now, Not When

I’ve had a lot of laughs and good times throughout my life.  But buried beneath the outward smiles, there was always something missing.  The times when I’ve experienced a deep peace in the moment are few and far between.  

I thought peace would only come when….

…we could move to a bigger house.

…I got that better job.

…the holidays would come, and we had some shiny new things. 

…I could keep my house clean for more than an hour.

Quite honestly, these “whens” can kill your spirit and squelch any chance for peace to take hold. But I am realizing that now, in hindsight; God’s peace is something we must pursue. 

You can have peace in your life. Right now.

God designed us to have dreams and goals, and He wants nothing more than to incredibly bless us.  In fact, His word says He can provide anything we need, according to His riches. But don’t focus so much on “things’ when you are looking for peace.   There’s a better way to go about finding peace for now.   

You can have peace that surpasses your understanding, and this guiding peace can change the course of your life.  Right now, peace can:

1. Provide for your needs and desires.  
2. Empower your faith, and deepen your trust in God.
3. Accept God’s timing and notice Him working in your life and in the lives of others.  
4. Comfort you and keep you from grumbling.
5. Ease you into contentment with your current situation 

Instead of “now what” think “now that.”  Now that you have peace, you can set those worries of “when” aside, and put yourself into position to receive God’s overcoming peace.   There’s such a greater peace when knowing your prayers are somewhere with God.  

Knowing that God is on your side, working for you and looking out for your best interest, you can have the peace that surpasses your understanding when navigating through times of confusion, disappointment, and ambiguity.  You will take notice of how He is growing you into His likeness.  Put aside the distractions that tend to throw you off track.  And you can learn to be present in the “now that” moments with peace. You can experience peace, and then embrace the next thing without worry for the “now what.”  

Scriptures: John 20:21, Galatians 5:22-23, Romans 15:13, Psalms 28:7, Judges 18:5-6

The Peace Habit

Several years ago,  both of my parents health were declining.  My siblings and I had to make some tough decisions regarding their care in December of that year.  Those days were filled with lots of tears and talks as we all armed ourselves with wisdom in each decision.   It was enough to suck any form of peace right out of this girl.

Then the time had come for me to pack for a long awaited mission trip to Africa.  I questioned, “How could I go and spread Christmas cheer to children, when I was in the middle of a troublesome situation?”

Knowing my parental situation was ongoing, I had peace about going.  Once on the plane, there was more peace in leaving the stress behind.  It was a relief to think about something other than difficult decisions or concerns for another family medical issue.  By the time our team landed on the ground, I had left all my worries behind.  I sensed in my heart this trip was perfectly timed to see my situation from the other side of the world.

Upon return, I checked in with my siblings to find that my parents were basically in the same situation as they were before I left, no worse or better.  It wasn’t until I heard a sigh of relief from my brother did I understand how pressurized our family situation was and how much stress the three of us were under.  

While away, I experienced a greater peace as I left my worries behind, overcoming my anxiety.  I had a peace the entire length of the trip knowing God was looking out for the family’s best interest too.  Seeing God’s care over my parents in my absence gave me a different perspective to see I had let worry overpower me. 

Peace is an equalizing pressure that can bring your anxiety to rest.  We often want peace to present itself so that we know which direction or decision we should make.  True peace is found in the habit of trusting God and for doing what He says to do.  I have found that peace usually comes on the other side of obedience.

Peace is habitual!  We can leave every concern in God’s care.  You can experience a calming peace because true peace isn’t found in your circumstances; it is found in Jesus!  And it’s a companion to God’s love!