Have you ever heard someone say (or maybe you've even said this yourself).. "All I want is world peace." Hmmmm… we often make fun of that statement, while secretly wishing for it to come true. And the reason that we mock this statement is because deep down I think most of believe that it is an impossible dream. We watch the news, read the stories in the newspaper, listen to talk radio, or even hear sermons about how bad, and un-peaceful things are in this world. I think we become overwhelmed at the vast expanse of trouble we see. And it is very easy to become extra fearful-- to worry about how much worse things could possibly get.
And we, in our humanness try to take preventative measures. It's part of our nature to try to control that which we cannot possibly control. We take every precaution we can to prevent what we fear from actually taking place. For some, that comes in the form of stockpiling money. For others, they try to prepare for the worst by stocking up food or weapons. Some seek to gain control by going into the political field to help form the outcome. We take preventative measures to protect those we love from harm, i.e. making them wear helmets (I am guilty of being a helmet nazi), padding, seat belts, armor, etc…. My son once told me that I would probably bubble wrap him if I could ( and I actually thought about the logistics of how to pull that off).
Now, I do not think that all of this stuff is necessarily wrong. I just sometimes wonder if we might carry it too far. It is really easy to cross the line between being simply preventative and living in fear.
"The reason people find it so hard to be happy is that they always see the past better than it was, the present worse than it is, and the future less resolved than it will be."
Fear in of itself isn't always a bad thing. In fact, sometimes it's the only thing that prevents us from doing something that could cause harm or even death. So, in that case, some fear is healthy. God made us, he put within us the fight or flight response. I think it is unreasonable to think that we can live a life that doesn't have some fear in it.
However, there is a marked difference between having some normal, rational fear and letting your life be ruled by fear. A life ruled by fear is a very dark one. Look at this verse from the Bible:
"Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. If you put blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have." Matthew 6:22-23 the Message
Now, this is just my opinion, so take it or leave it. But I truly believe the greatest weapon that Satan uses currently is fear. Think about it. Fear can cripple you. Fear stops you from acting. Fear can keep you from doing what is right. Fear causes you to look for enemies, even when there are none to be found. Fear creates walls between people. Fear dampens joy. Fear focuses on the negative instead of the positive. Fear cancels out or negates blessings. Fear is often selfish, putting the individual first. Fear causes wars, ruins relationships, makes us doubt ourselves and God, feeds on and encourages helplessness, dampens love, crushes happiness, and eliminates peace. When fear is our focus, it crowds out everything else.
And I'm not saying that there aren't scary things out in this world. There are and will continue to be. So, how do we deal with fear? How do we not let it control us?
"Often times, the greatest peace comes of surrender."
The first step is to recognize who is in control and who isn't. Let's start by acknowledging the fact that we are not in control. Not really. We like to think we are. We spend a lot of time trying to be in control. But, we aren't. I don't know about you, but sometimes that realization alone makes my heart beat a little faster (and not always in a good way).
However, there is good news to be had here. We may not be in control, but God is. Now, I realize that if you do not have a relationship with God, that statement may not bring you any peace. So, if you do not know who He is, let me introduce Him to you. I'm going to do so by providing you the different names and attributes used for God and their definitions. And I'm sorry but I'm going to use a few "religious" sounding words here because some of the names are in Hebrew and Greek-- please bear with me and read this anyway.
God is:
Elohim: the plural form of EL meaning Strong One
El Shaddai: God Almighty
El Olam: The Everlasting God
Yaweh Jireh --The Lord will provide
Yahweh Shalom: The Lord is Peace
Yahweh Ro'i: The Lord my Shepherd
Yahweh Shammah: The Lord is There
Father
Yaweh Rapha: The Lord who Heals
Elohay Mishpat: God of Justice
Elohay Selichot: God of Forgiveness
El HaNe'eman: The Faithful God
Friend of Sinners
Comforter
God is Good
God is Love
God is Merciful
God is Wise
God is Grace
In fact I love this introduction that Steve Harvey did of God:
Now, that is the God I know. That is who I release the present and future to.
The next step involves something so simple that it can be done anywhere at any time and in any place. It's simply talking to God (often called prayer).
"Prayer is the passport to peace."
"Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life." Philippians 4:6-7 the message
I prefer to call it talking to or having a conversation with God because I think sometimes people get too caught up in "how to pray" or the right way to pray and they become stale and ritualized in their interaction with God. For me, prayer is more like a conversation. I don't know about you, but sometimes when I am fearful or worried, it helps me to talk about it. And let me say, that although God is not unaware of your fears-- he is longing to talk to you about them. He could just simply look at your problems and make them go away, but that doesn't allow for a real relationship to form. A real relationship takes interaction from both parties. So, simplistically put, prayer is interacting with God with the purpose of forming a relationship with Him. It's a give and take. The verse above lets you know that this interaction is not one sided.
And truthfully, not all of my prayers/conversations with God are pretty, well formed, grammatically correct conversations. Sometimes I simply cannot form a full sentence. I have prayed prayers that are composed entirely of one word, such as Help or Please. That's ok. Be assured that God certainly hears and understands those prayers. The only other thing I'm going to address here is that you make sure you build in time to listen to God, to open up your eyes and heart and actively look for his answers.
This last step is sometimes the hardest one. It involves focusing your attention on God. Not becoming distracted. Controlling your thoughts.
"Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-- think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me--put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." Philippians 4:8-9 NIV
"Better to lose count while naming your blessings than to lose your blessings to counting your troubles."
It is often said that hindsight is 20/20. Case in point, I have often read the story about how Israel was freed from Egypt and their long journey to get to the land that was promised to them by God. Now, I have a love/hate relationship with this story. You see, what I love about this story is the fact that God provided for them at every turn, and in some pretty amazingly fantastic and miraculous ways. But the part of the story that frustrates me is how often the people complained to God about their circumstances. How easily they forgot the miracles that God performed for them. I mean, really, what does God have to do for you to prove that He has it under control and that you have nothing to worry about! And yet, here I am in the present day, finding myself to be a lot like those "stiff necked" people in the story. How often do I myself forget all that God has already done for me. How often do I forget that I am not fighting this battle alone, but that I have a God who is Mighty and faithful and working for my good, going ahead of me, making my paths straight. How often do I get caught up in worry and fear? How often do sit back and think about all the things that are going wrong, making that my central focus?
This final step involves being grateful. Remembering all that God has already done. Remembering that God is in control, and that He is good.
"Let your faith be bigger than your fear."
So I'll end with this thought. I do not live in a bubble. I read about and understand what is going on around me both locally and globally. I acknowledge that sometimes I am fearful about where things are going. But in the end, I know the One who is really in control. I am actively seeking to have a relationship with God. I work to make Him the center of my focus. And I put my trust in God.
Have a great week! I'll leave you with a few "peaceful" photos!
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