Perfect Peace

Cast your care

Imagine

Soar

Do Not Doubt

All Made New

In Christ…

All Things

Thought Conditioner #28

Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you. Matthew 5:44, KJV

Make a list of all the people who have hurt and mistreated you or whom you do not like. Then pray for each by name and sincerely practice forgiving each one. Ask the Lord to bless them. Tell the Lord that you want to mean this. Repel the thought that after all you are “justified” in your resentment.

Then speak kindly about these persons to others. Go out of your way to help them. This will, in time, break down many barriers, but even if it shouldn’t, the effect upon you will be amazing. It will clear the channel through which spiritual power flows into you.

 ~ ~ Norman Vincent Peale

 

There is freedom in forgiveness. God’s peace won’t enter a bitter, vengeful heart. So many physical ills are alleviated by forgiveness. Holding on to hurt eats away at our bones, tissues and our very soul. If you harbor unforgiveness let it go. Do as the Proverbs say, laugh, joy is healing to the bones. It’s hard to remain unforgiving when you’re full of God’s joy.

If you harbor unforgivenss let it go and pray “Lord, forgive me as I forgive those who have hurt me. Just as you forgive my transgressions I forgive those who have transgressed against me.”

Reflect:
Step one – who do you need to forgive.
Step two: Forgive. Forgive repeatedly until it’s no longer an issue with you.

Thought Conditioner #27

If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink. John 7:37, KJV

Every now and then, deep unsatisfied longings well up within us. We may seem to have everything our hearts desire and ought to be perfectly satisfied. But still these vague dissatisfactions diminish our happiness.

 When you notice such feelings, try saying this verse a few times. As you do so, try to imagine how Jesus looked when He said these words: the kindness, the understanding, the peace on His face. Try picturing yourself as receiving from Him a drink of cold water—symbolic of the water of life that completely satisfies thirst so that one never thirsts again. Affirm that you receive from Him the ultimate in soul satisfaction. A deep inner peace will gradually grow upon you.

~ ~ Norman Vincent Peale

 

So many times since I left my life on the road, I’ve felt dissatisfied with my life. It’s hard to beat the freedom you feel living the road-trip lifestyle. Once I taught college. Now I homeschool a preschooler. Once I had enough money to take care of my car and my needs, now many of those needs must wait and I’ve been waiting over four years for a car. Once I traveled cross-country having adventure after adventure. Now a trip to Wal-Mart every few months is a treat.

I have been called to serve my family, my grandson, and my Lord through my blog. I really do have a blessed life, but there are times I wish there was more, especially travel, silence and solitude. I remind myself what I’ve been given is so much greater than what I’ve lost. Once I had the freedom of a life live on the open road. But now there’s nothing on this earth that could tear me away from this life. I’m so grateful God has entrusted me with caring for my family, for training Kai to be a man after His heart. When thoughts of dissatisfaction pop up I dwell on those words, to seek the one who gives real satisfaction. Jesus, fill my soul today with your water of peace.

Reflect: Are there any areas in your life that succumb to dissatisfaction? How do you deal with this?

Thought Conditioner #26

In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:37-39, NIV

These words mean that no matter what happens, nothing can separate you from God’s love and protection. The secret is to build up in your mind, day by day, the knowledge and realization of God’s presence and His love for you. Dwell on this mentally until it becomes an unshakeable fact.

~ ~ Norman Vincent Peale

 

These words may seem like mere words. You believe but don’t really believe in. Internalize them; claim them for your own. Memorizing this verse will help you internalize the meaning and help you put it into practice. Ask God to show you ways that he is protecting and providing for you. How He’s demonstrating his love. When I realized he had always been there fighting for me he gave me the little arrowhead you see in the header. It reminded me though no matter how hard the journey would get he was always there protecting me, proving for me and loving me.

Reflect: Where do you see God’s love in your life?

Run to Win

Thought Conditioners #25

I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead,  I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. Philippians 3:13,14, NLT

Every person, if he is to have mental health and live successfully, must move away from past failures and mistakes and go forward without letting them be a weight upon him.

The art of forgetting is absolutely necessary. Every night when you lie down to sleep, practice dropping the day into the past. It is over, finished. Look confidently to the future with God.

~ ~ Norman Vincent Peale

 

Do you remember the story of Sodom and Gomorrah? When Lot and his family fled they were ordered by the angels not to look back. Lots wife did and she became a pillar of stone (or salt depending on the version). Looking to the past, either in shame or longing for the days before you came to Christ, hinders your progress with Jesus. It will turn us to stone. Harden our hearts. Even if it’s a good thing, if it has a hold on you it has power over you. Let go of what lies behind and you will gain power to move on to the new thing God is doing.

Reflect: What are you holding on to?

Faith & Fear

The power within

Renewal

Your Calling

Inspirational Quotes

I’ve been nominated by Jennifer Nicole Wells to participate in The Quotes Challenge. Thanks so much. I do love quotes and as I see Jennifer does too. Jennifer’s quotes were all about LOVE, I’ll take a more generic approach and just pick a few I love.

Here are the rules:

• Post 3 of your favorite quotes each per day for 3 recurrent days. The quotes can be of any other people or it may come straight from your own heart. [due to time constraints I’ll be posting all in one post and I’ve thrown in an extra]
• Nominate 3 bloggers with each post to challenge them.
• Don’t forget to utter a thankful word to the person who nominated you.

This is the theme of this blog and my favorite quote. It came to life in me December 23, 2010. This is when I learned the depths of truth in these words.

Here’s just a few of my favorite quotes. For more check out the inspirational quotes category or the Inspirational Images Gallery page for more.

I’d like to encourage the following people to take up this quotes challenge and encourage the rest of us with their favorite quotes:

My Success is Your Success

Prayers and Promises

Family Love Does More

Jake Sprinter’s Inspirational Quotes

Self Reflection

Advocatemmmohan Aksharaalu

Rest

Thought Conditioner #11

For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7,  NLT

Your fears can be healed by this text. It tells us, first, that fear is overcome by power. What power? There is only one force more powerful than fear, and that is faith. When fear comes to your mind, counter it with an affirmation of faith.

Second, love overcomes fear. By love is meant trust, confidence, complete dependence upon God. Practice this attitude and fear will diminish.

The third element is to attain a sound mind in which there are no complexes, quirks, and obsessions. Live with the thought of God, and you will develop a sound mind where no shadowy fear can lurk.

Whenever you are afraid, verbalize against the thing that you fear, using the words of this text.

~ ~  Norman Vincent Peale

Mr. Peale uses the term from the King James Version “a sound mind”. I have chosen the New Living Translation of “self-discipline. I like it because it implies action. That we should actively encounter fear – with God’s power and love. That we should actively control our own behaviors so that we don’t have need to fear.

Bottom line: God never meant for us to live in fear but faith in him, trusting him and ultimately taking responsibility for our own actions.

What is discipline? What does discipline do? We gain strength against the enemy with discipline – self-discipline that helps us to act with self-control.

Reflect: Do you conquer your fears with the power of faith, with trust in Gods’ love? How well do you self-discipline, or control you mind to not let fear overwhelm you?

Quotes for a Peaceful Attitude

CS Lewis	God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.
Francois Fenelon	Peace does not dwell in outward things, but within the soul; we may preserve it in the midst of the bitterest pain, if our will remains firm and submissive. Peace in this life springs from acquiescence to, not in an exemption from, suffering.
Robert J Sawyer	“Learning to ignore things is one of the great paths to inner peace.”
Joel Osteen	“God wants you to have a good life, a life filled with love, joy, peace, and fulfillment. That doesn’t mean it will always be easy, but it does mean that it will always be good.”
Joyce Meyer	Many people feel so pressured by the expectations of others that it causes them to be frustrated, miserable and confused about what they should do. But there is a way to live a simple, joy-filled, peaceful life, and the key is learning how to be led by the Holy Spirit, not the traditions or expectations of man.
Norman Vincent Peale	Be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind. Talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet. Make all your friends feel there is something special in them. Look at the sunny side of everything. Think only the best, be as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
Francois Fenelon	Resign every forbidden joy; restrain every wish that is not referred to God’s will; banish all eager desires, all anxiety; desire only the will of God; seek him alone and supremely, and you will find peace.
Thomas Watson	God sweetens outward pain with inward peace
Joel Osteen	“It’s vital that you accept yourself and learn to be happy with who God made you to be. If you want to truly enjoy your life, you must be at peace with yourself.”
Joyce Meyer	“ We don’t have to work at trying to get rid of every stressful situation. We need to learn how to embrace peace. ”
Norman Vincent Peale	“I truly believe that if we keep telling the Christmas story, singing the Christmas songs, and living the Christmas spirit, we can bring joy and happiness and peace to this world.”

There is a Peace

There is a peace, through kingdoms fall and crumble,
A peace amid this hurricane of war,
A quiet peace that “passeth understanding”
While chaos rages at our very door.

There is a peace, not brought by worldly honor,
Nor at the price of many millions slain.
But by the blood of One, God’s Son, who suffered,
And even now, he did not die in vain!

There is a peace deep down within the Christian,
A rock on which to lean in time of storm,
A lasting peace that will outlive the ages,
In spite of those who ridicule and scorn.

There is a peace! Let’s cling to it and hold it
In life or death, in days of peace of war,
That quiet peace which “passeth understanding,”
Through chaos rages at our very door.

Alice Hansche Mortenson

 

Christmas magic

Often you hear people talking about Christmas it’s the magic of miracles. It’s a reminder of a time long ago when all was right in the world. The Christmas season is often portrayed as a magical time where anything can happen.  So if Christmas’ magic could change lives what would change? What miracle would we want? What are the deepest desires of our hearts?

 

A few of the most common themes of Christmas magic include:

• Finding a soul mate
• Healing rift between friends
• To have an estranged spouse come home
• Physical and mental healing
• Financial peace
• Peace of mind
• Business success
• A child in the military to come home for Christmas
• For our dreams to come true

This list could go on and on as every person would have a different answer. But what is the thread that connects these themes?

Everyone has an idea of what life should be like and they believe that this is the one time of the year when prayers are answered, lives are restored, families reconciled and fairy tales comes true. There’s sadness in this season because the magic doesn’t hold up, the season passes and we’re left feeling more broken than before. I know this was true for me for many years. I have watched the Hallmark movies, gazed into the twinkle lights and found my nostalgic past in the beautiful reds and greens. I admit I was one of those who sought Christmases magic in this season. My wish was to find my estranged father of 45 years (read about my Hallmark Christmas).

But how many heartbroken souls are still out there, still waiting. Still watching the movies and hoping that happy ending will be theirs. That they too can have the miracle they’ve been secretly hoping for this Christmas season.

There is a magic in the idea of Christmas but it’s not found in the greenery, twinkle lights or holiday movies.  There is a white knight out there that is willing and ready to rescue you and make all your dreams come true. Many celebrate Christmas as the birth of Jesus. But the season isn’t about a little baby but a grown man who fell to earth so that we may be restored. He came to fill our hearts with the magic of a little child.

The real miracle of the season is the miracle that happens in our hearts, the miracle that only Jesus can do. Christmas is about second chances, Jesus died to give us a second chance. It’s about reconciliation to our true father. It’s about letting go wrongs and love each other as Christ did for us.

This Christmas remember the miracle maker and ask him to make a miracle in your heart and mind by restoring and renewing all of you.

If you could have a Hallmark Christmas what would it be?

 

Next week: Quotes on a peaceful attitude.

Peace in All Things

Faith endures as seeing Him who is invisible (Heb. 11:27); endures the disappointments, the hardships, and the heart-aches of life, by recognizing that all comes from the hand of Him who is too wise to err and too loving to be unkind. But so long as we are occupied with any other object than God Himself, there will be neither rest for the heart nor peace for the mind. But when we receive all that enters our lives as from His hand, then, no matter what may be our circumstances or surroundings—whether in a hovel or prison-dungeon, or at a martyr’s stake—we shall be enabled to say, ” The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places” (Ps. 16:6). But that is the language of faith, not of sight nor of sense.

—Arthur W. Pink

How to Have a Peaceful Attitude

We create situations that lead us into being nervous, high-strung and upset but we can also create situations that lead to a peaceful attitude. Peace results from a continuous flow from God through us and then back to God. This is the process for our renewal both mentally and physically. It’s impossible to have peace with an accelerated life because the faster we go the less flow there is from God. He’s not going to try to keep up with your pace.  Most people today wouldn’t be comfortable moving at God’s slower pace.

Here are some ideas to help you create a more peaceful attitude:

• Fill your mind with a peaceful experience from your past then make a planned and deliberate excursion there in your mind. (I listen to music I heard on my journey, especially songs that remind me of when I was in the wilderness – deserts and mountains)
• Reduce your life’s tempo or pace. Norman Vincent Peale says that “many people are destroying their physical bodies by this pace, but what is even more tragic, they are tearing their minds and souls to shreds as well.” He wrote this in 1952 and today it’s only gotten worse. (this is a big challenge for me)
• Delegate authority, say no nicely and set up boundaries (another biggie for me, my family doesn’t understand the concept of a shut door)
• Develop the disciplines of silence and solitude
• Learn to live in the now because God only gives us enough grace for today
• Make the decision everyday to rejoice and be glad in that day
• Don’t strive to live without stress but aim to live in peace
• Be selective with how you spend your time and resist the temptation to procrastinate
• Modify your life, find ways to save time, avoid trouble and eliminate distractions
• Listen for the promptings of the Holy Spirit, He will guide you into peace
• Take on unseen partner in all your life’s endeavors – God

When you need peace concerning a decision you need to make try these steps:

1. Think of your decision the first way…how do you feel. Is there peace, a knot in your stomach or nothing at all?
2. Think of your decision in the alternative way… how do you feel. Is there peace, a knot in your stomach or nothing at all?
3. The way you should turn is the way you find peace. If there’s no peace don’t do it, if you’re anxious run the other way, if you feel nothing at all pray asking the Holy Spirit for guidance.
4. If you still can’t decide ask God to decide for you. Ask Jesus to create the conditions that either aid in your decision-making or to allow the decision to be made for you.

Many years ago I wanted to move. I found a bigger, warmer house. I loved the house and the price was much cheaper. It seemed to be an easy decision but I had no peace. I didn’t know why but I didn’t feel God in it. I just couldn’t make the decision, I had already made a verbal commitment and as a Christian I felt strongly about keeping my word. I prayed and asked Jesus to cause me to not get the house or I would believe my lack of peace was because of another reason. The next day the owner called and the deal fell through. I was relieved. I wouldn’t use this as your main way of decision-making but the Spirit is there to help in all of your ways and walk.

Attitude Challenge
Practice the discipline of silence. Spend at least 15 minutes of absolute quiet everyday. Don’t talk, write, read, think or anything that engages your mind. Put your mind into neutral and let it coast.

Book on finding peace
The Book of Mayuri: Why We Can’t Have Peace and How We Can Have Peace by Osundara Mayuri
The Way of Serenity by Jonathan Morris
Finding Peace: God’s Promise of Life Free From Regret, Anxiety, and Fear by Charles F Stanley

Bible Verses on Peace

Philippians 4:6 (ESV)	Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
2 Thessalonians 3:16 (ESV)	Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all.
John 16:33 (ESV)	I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Isaiah 26:3 (ESV)	You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.
1 Peter 5:7 (ESV)	Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
Romans 12:18 (ESV)	If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
Matthew 5:9 (ESV)	“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
Hebrews 12:14 (ESV)	Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.
Romans 15:13 (ESV)	May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
1 Corinthians 14:33 (ESV)	For God is not a God of confusion but of peace. As in all the churches of the saints
Psalm 4:8 (ESV)	In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.
Proverbs 16:7 (ESV)	When a man’s ways please the Lord, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.
Galatians 5:22 (ESV)	But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness
Romans 14:19 (ESV)	So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.
Colossians 3:15 (ESV)	And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.
Isaiah 32:17 (ESV)	And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever.
James 3:18 (ESV)	And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
Philippians 4:7 (ESV)	And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Romans 5:2 (ESV)	Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Job 22:21 (ESV)	Agree with God, and be at peace; thereby good will come to you.
Isaiah 9:6 (ESV)	and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Back to: A Peaceful Attitude
Next: Quotes for a Peaceful Attitude