When Lasting Peace Eludes You
What a blessing to write the 31 Days of Praise series, but it’s time to move on. If you missed any of the posts in that series, or want to reread them, just click here and enjoy!
“I don’t say this out of need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.”
Philippians 4:11
I love to read about the Apostle Paul. He fascinates me.
He writes about being content, yet his life circumstances defied such a claim. Shipwrecked. Stoned. Whipped. Beaten with rods. Imprisoned.
Just read 2 Corinthians 11:24-26 and your head will spin with all Paul endured.
Still, he claimed to have peace, and a peace that passed anything that was humanly understandable (Philippians 4:7).
I want that freedom. I want to be free from fear and anxiety. I want to have an underlying current of calm in the swirling eddy of life.
It sounds heavenly!
Elusive Contentment
So for years now, I’ve schemed for a calm and peaceful existence. I’ve planned for it, begged for it, and even paid for it.
Clean out enough drawers. Streamline enough tasks. Open enough space on my calendar.
Do it all perfectly and, wa-la!, perfect peace and perfect contentment.
I’m not saying doing these things isn’t good. It is.
But to this day, I haven’t purchased the right “peace” gadget, stumbled across the correct blueprint, or discovered the perfect steps to create a serene life. And you can bet I’ve tried!
Impossible Peace Possible
Honestly, sometimes it seems silly to even think peace is possible.
After all, look around! War, anger, fighting, character bashing, back stabbing, bullying, suicide, disease, accidents, busyness, disrespect…. It seems, discontent and chaos define this life.
However, Paul said…
Yes, he said, but for many of us, lasting peace remains elusive.
But what if living a peaceful existence, one of contentment, isn’t something to create, but simply something to receive?
What if living a peaceful existence, one of contentment, isn't something to create, but simply something to receive? Click To Tweet
Perhaps having lasting peace is not about perfectly completing a certain 10-step program. Maybe instead it’s about the perfect One who already completed the program for each of us.
Maybe we don’t need to create peace or find peace as much as we need to simply receive it.
Maybe we don't need to create peace or find peace as much as we need to simply receive it. Click To Tweet
And maybe, just maybe, experiencing a deep and lasting peace has nothing to do with the circumstances of our life!
This month, our focus will be on experiencing peace right where we find ourselves: right in the busyness, in the loneliness, in the unexpected, in the hard spots. Hope to journey with you.
Reflections: Where are you looking for peace? Are you trying to create it or simply looking to receive it?
More than 4 years of counting and I’ve surpassed 4,000 gifts in Ann Voskamp’s Joy Dare! What a blessing! Here are numbers #4,432–4,452. Read my entire list by clicking here.
- Freshness and beauty of deep Autumn; Healing power of a little fresh air; Working with others who love the Lord and want to glorify Him
- Surprise opportunity; Hard blessing of sharing in someone’s pain from a distance through prayer and tears; Keeping in touch with my guys across the miles through cell phones
- Rach excited to shop for the local Food Bank; Warm, dry home with popcorn and my girl and our high school playoff game on the radio=sweet!; Night’s sleep to gain a refreshed perspective
- Chatting with a new friend across the miles; Warm oven stew on a cool fall day; Rachel’s excitement for bed and cuddling with her Pooh bear (and it has to be “the” Pooh bear)
- Surprised by a yummy lunch that didn’t look so promising in the making or the serving; First fire in the woodstove (another reason to love this season); My boy wanting his mama to help him practice a few football moves (he can now run right over and by me–where have the years gone?)
- Rainy day inside completing many tasks; Seeing Zach and his roommate Wes in action singing via streaming from Wheaton College; Extra hour of sleep
- An afternoon spent with Mom and Dad (included card games with Mom and walk with Dad); Pleasantly surprised to see brother Jeff and sister-in-law Dianna; Perfectly beautiful night for an after-dark stroll
By His grace ≈ Julie
Find hope in your real-life struggles. We'll chase it together! I am a wife; mom of 4 (including a young adult daughter with special needs); miscarriage mom of 5; author & follower of Jesus Christ. I write, edit, speak and enjoy everything outdoors.
I’m looking for peace and sometimes trying to create it by finding quiet spaces and reading spiritual books and of course the Bible. It seems usually that I feel as soon as I get through this rough time I will have that peace. As soon as my daughter and 4 grandchildren’s apartment is available in the beginning of January it will be back to normal and I can set up my craft room and use it also for my quiet space with the Lord. Also start back into my art which relaxes me. But right now I can do some tangling or mixed media and try new things. As soon as my husband gets through his throat cancer surgery and radiation and all his cancer is gone and he gets back to being able to do the things he used to do and he will be his usual self again. It seems to be always something but these are big things and I try to decide whether to just go ahead and do my painting again. Right now all my supplies mostly are in flat plastic boxes under my bed and very difficult to get too and it’s just plain crowded. That’s 7 people in a 1’200 sq ft home! And one day I will get there, I’m an introvert and I love my privacy and being alone. But this is special and happy time to be able to spend with daughter and the kids I haven’t had the chance to be with this long in about 15 years with her living in MT and me in TX. I am blessed!