Peace on Earth (or at least in my mind?)

"If you stay stuck in the past season, or fixated on the future season, you will miss the one you're in." ~Maree Dee, Christian author

⛈ Ever had a day?  A season?  Elderly parents have some health issues.  The work demands seem to be especially heavy right now.  The car needs snow tires. Kids are being especially challenging because it's that testing time right before dinner where everyone's 'hangry'. And, don't forget that you promised to bring cookies to that thing tomorrow.  

Aaargh! 

⛈ Where can you go to get some peace?  

Go for a run?  Maybe, but that seems like it would require energy to put shoes on.  

Hot tub?  No thank you. The germs-ugh.

 Zone out with the TV?  But how many episodes of The Great British Baking Show will it take to make it feel better?  

Bake cookies?  Yes, of course, but then there's the guilt, so maybe just eat the dough.  I kid you not, there is an article that says eating chocolate chip cookies releases serotonin which actually does make you feel better.  Trust me.  The internet is always accurate.

⛈ We wonder if we'll ever get a break; how long it will last.  The act of counting time til "it" happens, or "it" is over.  Telling ourselves we just have to hold on until we survive "it".

⛈ Have you ever heard "You're either getting ready to go into a storm, you're in a storm, or you just got out of a storm"?  I think this is a pretty reliable statement.  While I don't think it's a timetable that contains a continuum of storms of life, I think it's an attitude of experiencing life and what it hands us, as we walk with God.  

⛈ As I look back at some of the storms in my life, though they were definitely not fun (some traumatic), I can say they had immense value.  I now realize that had I not gone through those storms, I would be a different person, with a different outlook on life.  I can see God's hand on my life in every single situation.  

So where do we find peace, and how do we weather these storms?  

⛈ The Bible, our source of truth and guidance, tells us in Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:

"For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven.  A time to be born and a time to die.  A time to plant and a time to harvest.  A time to kill and a time to heal.  A time to tear down and a time to build up.  A time to cry and a time to laugh.  A time to grieve and a time to dance.  A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.  A time to embrace and a time to turn away.  A time to search and a time to quit searching. A time to keep and a time to throw away.  A time to tear and a time to mend.  A time to be quiet and a time to speak.  A time to love and a time to hate.  A time for war and a time for peace." 

⛈ Certainly just about every season of life is covered in these verses.  Jesus has experienced all of those seasons as He was fully human while on earth, so He can help us to navigate these storms.  He specifically promises to give us peace. 

    "The Lord gives strength to His people, and the Lord blesses His people with peace."     Psalm 29:11

    "Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you."  1 Peter 5:7

⛈The Lord knows that we are stretched thin at times, at the end of our human ropes, and our soul needs to be restored.  As we pray for peace in our hearts & minds, look for the good we are gaining from these seasons.  He uses those sometimes tumultuous times to:

    - prepare us

    "I have told you all this so that you  may have peace in me.  Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows.  But take heart, because I have overcome the world." John 16:33 

    -give us security 

    "In peace I will lie down and sleep, for You alone, O Lord, will keep me safe." Ps 4:8

    -equip us

    "'Don't be afraid,' he said, 'for you are very precious to God.  Peace!  Be encouraged!  Be strong!' As he spoke these words to me, I suddenly felt stronger and said to him, 'Please speak to me, my lord, for you have strengthened me."  Dan 10:19

    -love on us,   

    "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." Matt 11:28 

As the poet Anne Bradstreet so eloquently put it, "If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we do not sometimes taste of adversity, 'prosperity' would not be so welcome."

 

⛈ If you aren't currently in a storm, use God's word to comfort and come alongside those who are going through it.  Offer to pray with them, send them a card, or bake them chocolate chip cookies. 😊 Here's a recipe from "Nestlee` Toolhousa, as Phoebe says.

✙ Dear Heavenly Father, 

You, and You alone are our true source of peace.  Sometimes our minds have a hard time understanding it, but Your Holy Spirit can wrap around our minds and calm our hearts.  We know the storms are calmed by You and they have a purpose.  Help us find the purpose You desire for us. Make us aware of when others need to be guided to Your Word for peace in their lives too. Amen.