Month: June 2021

Three ways to keep your peace…

Peace

Why is keeping your peace so important? What does it mean to keep your peace? What robs you from peace? These are a few questions we can explore and learn from. I began writing this yesterday morning and I have been thinking about how to keep our peace since then.

What is peace? According to the dictionary Peace is, “freedom from disturbance, tranquility 2) a state or period in which there is no war, or a war has ended.”

Looking at peace from ‘freedom from disturbance’ can be said keeping your peace is not allowing the disturbances to get within your mind and heart. Keeping your peace does not suggest that you just be quiet and never speak up. The first way in keeping your peace involves understanding how to live in a state of trusting in God and overcoming personal annoyances.

Trusting God is easier when we are not faced with personal annoyances or outcomes outside our control. Those are the circumstances that can cause us to lose our peace if we are not aware of it. I choose to speak the truth with the Word of God concerning situations. Find a scripture that you know and remind yourself of God’s care and concern for you. Speak it out loud so you can hear it this builds your faith as you go through the disturbances that try to rob your peace.

Tranquility means “the quality or state of being tranquil; calm.” Looking at peace as tranquility clearly is referring to being calm. Being calm under pressure is doable. The second way to keep your peace is submission to the God’s leading, He gives us the grace to handle all types of situations that we are faced with daily. Since we are submitted to Him, we are surrendering our aggravations to His word and ways. This helps us to learn how our reactions can be turned into responses. Once again God addresses issues and speaks up, but His ways are higher than ours He uses the right amount of pressure and directness.

The Hebrew word for peace is Shalom “this word means peace, harmony, wholeness, completeness, prosperity, welfare, and tranquility.” This peace has a deeper depth to the understanding of peace. God’s peace permeates our well being and produces wholeness in spirit, soul and body. Our minds and hearts are connected if we do not have peace of mind, we will not have peace in other areas of our being. Understanding of the word shalom helps us to realize that God is interested in all areas of our lives. The third way to help keep your peace is, understanding that your total well being is important. One aspect of our being can affect other aspects of spirit, soul and body. Remembering this helps one to keep their peace. Sometimes we lose peace because our lives get out of balance. Recognize physically, mentally or emotionally these three areas will affect our lives when they are out of balance. If you’re running on empty, it will finally catch up to you and your peace will be lost. We only get one life and body, so it is important to take care of it.  

For example, when my ankles are painful, I do what is necessary to help relieve the pain such as rest, elevate, ice or put a pain cream on them. When I was younger, I would push myself and make it worse but through age wisdom has taught me to notice and deal with the symptoms. I have learned it’s ok to rest, give myself permission to not over do, and then I stay peaceful.

There are many ways we can lose our peace but if we become aware of them, we can rely on God’s grace, and overcome them, and keep our peace.    

Why Forgiveness is a key?

Forgiveness

Why don’t we forgive? What is the benefit of forgiveness? In my blog post ‘the three things about Mercy” I wrote on forgiveness being an aspect of mercy. As I was in prayer, I sensed writing on forgiveness again. I think we need to go deeper in our understanding of forgiveness.

Forgiveness is not agreement with the offender. Forgiveness does not say it was ok to hurt me. But what it does do is release you from the hurt of the offense, pain or suffering emotionally and mentally. When we stay in the offense in our thoughts we are captured by the painful memories, and we tend to replay them repeatedly. This just causes more pain daily. You could call it beating yourself up with mental replays of events concerning the offense, hurt and pain. Eventually it will be more difficult to stop replaying the hurt unless you repress it which opens the door to more inner problems tormenting you.

I know that forgiveness can be difficult for traumatic events, rejections and suffering. But forgiveness is a key that opens the door to freedom in your mind and body. The key to forgiveness must be turned to release you from the mental anguish. When we hold onto people that have hurt us and we pretend it did not hurt it just plays revolving thoughts of the hurt in our minds.

But forgiveness is still a key of choice. We choose to forgive when we willingly process the hurt and ask God to heal our the mind and heart. Forgiveness is the blessing that releases you from the suffering and thoughts of turmoil. Real or imagined pain and hurt must be let go of to move on and be healed.

This does not imply you have to stay and be abused or violated. In no way does forgiveness mean any person has the right to abuse, torture or hurt another person. It simply means the mental aspect of it which lingers after traumatic events can be healed. It starts with dealing with the trauma and getting the pain out so that you can process it, forgive and be free.

Today is the day to choose to forgive and be free. Should I forgive? The Rejection Connection

What are three things about Mercy?

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.”

What does it mean to be merciful? Why should we be merciful? How can we extend mercy to others? Have you ever been in a situation where you could either give mercy or revenge? Obviously, revenge is never a clever idea, because the Bible says, “vengeance is the Lords” not ours.

The Oxford Dictionary says mercy means, “compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm.”

Although these definitions are long it is important to understand what mercy is. The Revell Concise Bible Dictionary states, “Mercy, merciful “A compassionate response that moves a person to one who is helpless and in need.” “In the OT 1) a feeling of compassion, normally translates as ‘love’, 2) the active help, motivated by love, that is offered to a person in need, often rendered ‘to be gracious or ‘to show mercy.’ “The NT 3) Gk, eleos, originally the deep emotion of concern aroused by suffering, which in the NT implies the giving of active help. The biblical use of eleos, portrays God as one who is deeply moved by human suffering and who has chosen to come to our aid despite the sin that makes us his enemies.”

So, with these definition’s the first thing we’re seeing is, mercy is an action in motion to meet someone else’s need. The need for mercy may be hands on physical help or a verbal response of love and concern. Mercy goes outside of yourself towards another.  When we reach out to help another it is for their betterment. Mercy wants to help another. The motivation is to ease the suffering.

The second thing we’re seeing about mercy is, sometimes it also an act of forgiveness. When someone offends, hurts or despitefully uses us our natural man wants to defend ourselves or get even. But mercy extends forgiveness to the person. When we are willing to forgive it is a process we go through. Saying I forgive you can be difficult when it is a traumatic event, but the forgiveness releases you from the event your mind wants to hold onto.

Forgiveness is a choice and God will walk through the process with you. Being merciful doesn’t mean you stay in harm’s way, but it does mean your releasing yourself from the hurt and pain through forgiveness. We choose to forgive, process the hurt and let God bring in the healing for it.

The third thing we could learn about mercy is God is merciful. He extends help to those who are in need. He is “gracious, longsuffering and abounding in goodness and truth.” God loves us so much sent His only begotten son Jesus to die for our sins and so his sacrifice would purchase redemption for us. Even though we deserved the penalty for our sin, His mercy was extended to us through Christ Jesus. His forgiveness of our sins is because of His mercy on mankind. His compassion, longsuffering and goodness can be seen in His love towards us.

Therefore, mercy is a powerful action of love.

What is The Difference Between Positivity and Trusting God.

Trusting God

What is positivity? How does it differ from trusting? Is it a good thing to always be positive? How do you know if your being just positive when it comes to trusting God?

What does positivity mean? The dictionary states, “Positivity: The practice of being or tendency to be positive or optimistic attitude.” I believe the practice of being optimistic is helpful to support and endure opposition. Being positive can be helpful unless it is unrealistic and not based in truth. Being positive and speaking truths to yourself is helpful in many ways.

What does trust mean? The word trust means “1) firm belief in the character, strength or truth of someone or something. 2) a person or thing in which confidence is placed. 3) confident hope: I waited in trust of their return.”  Trusting God is placing your belief in His existence, character, and Word. It is placing your confidence and hope in God and relying on His Word as His truth. This is trusting God.    

When I first got saved it was in the late 70’s and I was introduced to what is called “name it and claim it.” This period was a part of the charismatic movement. I’m not sure where it originated from but I believe it was taken out of context, with the bent towards having a ‘positive attitude’ where you only ‘spoke positive’ and never talked about the symptoms you had.

If you were prayed for ‘you should say I’m healed’ whether you felt it or not because that was considered a faith statement. Although the healing movement was supernatural and powerful healings and miracles were taking place and still do by God. I believe also individuals took statements made by some preachers out of context and decided you could have whatever you said. It was out of balance.

It is wisdom to pray, call things that are not as though they are when God leads you to. But just saying ‘I claim that or this,’ isn’t always based in scriptural context or inspired by The Holy Spirit. If it is not inspired by God, the Holy Spirit then it’s not happening.

I was a young wife and mother and thought I was believing God for a miracle in my hips. I was left disappointed in the early 80s after I had to have open heart surgery and two hip replacements. Because I confessed, ‘I was healed.’ As a young adult I was left disappointed and bewildered. Because back then my own experience was if you did not get a miracle, healed or were not blessed financially you were considered ‘to not have enough faith.’ This fallacy caused me hurt and I began thinking ‘that something was wrong with me.’ Unfortunately, I pulled away from God at that time for several reasons. Eight years later I became born again, He delivered me from marijuana, cigarettes and anger. He set me free, my heart was renewed, and He baptized me in the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit taught me the way to keep my deliverance.

He showed me my faith was not really on God concerning a healing, it was on a method I was taught. Just because you say ‘I’m healed’ if it is not based in Him and by Him and His Word there is no power in it.

I have seen God miraculously heal people. I have experienced His healing and delivering power in my life. I have learned you do not have to say ‘your healed’ if you do not sense it, you can say I’m believing for a healing, I’m trusting God for a healing, today I hurt thank you for praying. I’m still believing God for the manifestation of healing. This will continue to build your faith and trust in God. Basing your faith on God Almighty, because of Jesus’ sacrifice and atonement for you, to be healed. Trusting God’s Word about healing builds your faith and trust in God.   

I tend to be more optimistic than pessimistic, but I believe it is important to speak truth about where a situation is so that you can receive what you really need. Going around saying everything is ok when it is not only isolates you from receiving help. Although if you lean toward the negative that too can be a problem. It affects your outlook on situations. If I am hurting, I tell God and ask for healing and grace and if I need prayer, I text or call a friend. 

I know that we can speak His word over situations, ourselves, and loved ones. He watches over His word to perform it the Bible says. But I personally seek His way and His mind for a situation. And I base it on what The Holy Spirit is leading me when I am praying for others or myself. It is important to line up your prayers and petitions according to the Word of God.

This is the way to place your trust in God and not in positivity. Are You Quieted by His Love? Rest = Faith

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