Hold your peace! – Cultivating your inner peace
Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: Hebrews 12:14 NKJV
Recently I had a chat with my specialty trainer about family conflicts and struggle parents of teenagers go through when they disagree with each other which may result in parents losing their peace due to constant arguments and the children feeling exasperated. She told me she learnt to relax and let go; now her teenage kids want to talk to her about those things that would have been an argument previously. Meditating on the above scripture, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart that, “You cannot have peace with all men until you have peace with yourself first” .
The world and the activities around us make people to be in constant state of restlessness. There is a rat race for accomplishments and fulfilment which are not bad in themselves but if not properly managed, may make one lose peace in the process. Paul says in 1Timothy 6:10 that some have wandered from the faith due to the cravings for money and have got their hearts pierced with many sorrows.
Oftentimes, I have met parents who cannot get along with their children, siblings, co-workers who are in constant conflict. Many times the root of the problem lies in unmet expectations trying to achieve some satisfaction from the other person rather than from ourselves. However this seems elusive because desiring peace from others without first settling your own restlessness only leads to pressure hopelessness and helplessness. This is because you cannot totally control or determine how other people will treat or respond to you. The fact that you smile at people does not mean they will smile back at you or that you do good to them does not mean they will respond to you with good. In fact they will do the opposite many times which can make you rethink or regret your good actions.
A man of God once said something that stuck with me: “Being happy is a choice.” No one can make you unhappy except you allow them. This made me actively protect my joy. I love the way Moses puts it to the Israelites in Exodus 14, “Hold your peace!”. Your peace is yours to hold, so hold it tight, don’t let go of it.
Peace is not a state of inactivity rather it is a quiet confidence and assurance trust in God that refuses to let the circumstances around you determine or control your response. The 3 Hebrew boys refuse to let the threat of the fire make them lose their peace. Paul says in 2Corinthians 4:8, they are hard-pressed on every side by troubles, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed. No wonder he said in Philippians 4:6 that when we let go of anxiety through prayer and thanksgiving, then the peace of God that is beyond human understanding will cocoon/envelope our hearts and minds through Christ. This is real, no gimmicks attached. We have peace as believers in Jesus Christ.
Are you burdened by many worries, anxieties, or even depressed? It may be about relationships, finances, health, economics, accomplishments or just a fear of the future. It’s time to cultivate your inner peace.
Some of the ways to do this include:
Learning to shut out the noise and take out the solitary time in prayer and meditations. Sometimes you may want to take a fast away from the distraction of people and technology to reset your mind. Remind yourself of what God has told you about you or that life’s situation; Confess the word of God over that area of your life. Sometimes it may mean to seek counselling or pray with other like-minded believers.
If you ever feel you need more help, you can send a message to our pastoral care team and we will reach out to support you as well. Guard your heart and hold your peace!
Discussion question
Have you been in any overwhelming situation in life? What steps did you take or are you taking to guard your peace and overcome?
Please remember to click on the topic to type your response. Looking forward to hearing from you.
- 9 Replies
Thanks, @michael, for these words of encouragement. For me, I usually take out time to fast and pray and go over my journals to remind myself of the words God had spoken to me about my life.
Peace can be elusive to many especially if they are going about it the world’s way. Paul admonishes us to put out confidence in God and His supernatural peace will guard our emotions. It means that peace is not a natural life force but a supernatural experience that only God can give to us. Therefore, we must seek God’s approval not men’s approval. God is the only one that can truly give us the love, relationship and friendship we desire and until His love has flooded our hearts, we may never be able to give or receive love from others.
Personal victory precedes public victory. We must first be the change that we desire to see around us. Currently, I am starting to quieten my soul and clear my schedule to take some time to focus on God because I am feeling anxious about my life and my purpose lately and I know it’s time to press into God’s internal peace.
Thank a lot @phil4krist for sharing. I love it as you stated it : personal victory precedes public victory and you must be the change you want to see around you. Sometimes people go around criticizing and complaining about others when they are the problem themselves. Jesus said to deal with the log in our own eyes first so we can see clearly to deal with the speck in others.
Absolutely. You made a good point about not seeking peace in the way the world seeks it, ie trying to do attain the right status or family or house or degree or job for the sake of “security” and peace of mind. That is the rat race that we so easily get caught up in, trying to convince ourselves that we are “good enough” and that other people will esteem us highly. Reminds me of John 14:27 where Jesus reminds us that He gives us peace not as the world gives. The “peace” of the world is a gimmick – it’s like smoke and mirrors, but the peace of God is real and eternal and absolutely worth pursuing.
Thanks for this discussion post and word of encouragement, @michael. There seems to always be something that robs me of my peace and half of me thinks it’s the enemy and half is just the culture/society/media that constantly inundates us with so much negativity. For me it’s passing the board exam, my parents’ issues and feeling not up to par with where I’m “supposed to be” in life at this age. Comparison plays a huge role in this. I think also feeling like I should know more, do more, and feel more specific to what is going on in the world and in the news can also be overwhelming. But as believers, I’m grateful that our position is to be in this world but not of it. I agree with @philip that peace os a supernatural gift and that it’s a state of the mind, regardless of what’s happening around us. It can only come from intimacy with the Lord and specifying quality time with Him. I’ve come to realize that the more I spend time in His Word and in worship, the closer I am to Him and more at peace I feel because my gaze is fixed on His presence and not in my circumstances.
Thanks @feng for sharing. I can very much relate with this feeling because we want to constantly strive to achieve more and more. One of the things I noticed in my life especially having spent probably the last over 10years of my life writing one professional exam or the other, is that the pressures don’t stop. I am now learning to enjoy where I am today while planning for the tomorrow. I have a couple as friends who had no child for many years after marriage but we usually spent time together and they were quite lovely with my family. I usually tell them to enjoy their free time now (though challenging) because when a child comes they won’t get those again. Last year, God blessed them with a baby (they named the girl after me😊) and now we hardly get the time for outing as before😃. Lets not forget to appreciate God for the things we have today, be contented and enjoy them while striving for the great tomorrow. Paul says that he has learnt to be contented in whatever state he finds himself. Its another way to cultivate our inner peace.
Thanks for sharing @Feng! It’s good to recognize the specific circumstances and troubles that come to distract and worry you. One of my old mentors used to remind me not to ignore when I feel overwhelmed or just try to “push through it” because it’s an opportunity to stop and repent, to let go of whatever has distracted me, and refocus on God’s Word. That’s how we overcome. Like you said, staying in the Word and in worship is what actually helps us keep our peace.
Hey @feng, I agree with you. Comparison plays a huge part in robbing us of our peace and that’s why Paul said we are not to compare ourselves with another. And like you said, when we fix our gaze on Jesus, our circumstances diminish and we are emboldened by the vision of the glorious life that He shows us.
@Michael, I loved this post! Such a timely word. As you explained the importance of inner peace, I was immediately reminded of Psalm 131 where David says, “I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother is my soul with me.” I think of all of the drama that David faced or got himself into, and yet he knew the only way to endure the crazy circumstances in life was to cultivate inner peace. And I love the imagery of a weaned child with his mother – not a child who is nursing and dependent on his mother’s milk, but a child who in some ways could choose independence and even defiance, but desires to stay in the safety and protection of his mother’s embrace. If only we could realize we are ALWAYS in the safety and protection of God’s embrace! That ought to inspire us to calm our souls and remain at peace… how many times does God remind us in Scripture not to be afraid because He is with us?
When I am overwhelmed, I turn to God’s promises, recite them out loud or listen to audio Bible to encourage myself. I’m very sensitive to sound and I’ve noticed that what I put in my ears is critical – so listening to the Bible or worship music makes a huge difference for me. And hearing my own voice declare Scripture is powerful. But all of this just helps me to maintain consciousness of God’s presence and the Holy Spirit inside of me which ultimately brings peace.Thanks @purposefaith that scripture says a whole lot. its great to imagine ourselves as babies in God’s nursing arms. Babies have no cares because they know their supply is not their responsibility so they can rest assured in their carer’s arm. Jesus said for us to cast our cares on Him because He is our carer. How comforting to know that God has our future planned out and no need to worry.
Log in to reply.