Finding Peace in the midst of life’s storms

“What’s wrong?” My friend asked when she saw me in the foyer at church Sunday morning.

I quickly explained a situation that seemed as if it would never change.

She listened, as a serious look crossed her face, “You need to declare the word of God over that situation.” She hugged me, and continued, “There’s no reason to be down in the dumps, that’s what I have to say.”

I knew she was right. It’s not always fun when you’re having a bad day, and someone comes and tells you what you need to do. Sometimes you’d rather continue in your pity party for a while, collecting sympathy instead of advice.

But I was glad my friend spoke the truth. I had gotten my focus off Jesus, and was looking only at what I saw, not what Jesus could do. I was walking by sight and not by faith.

For we walk by faith, not by sight. ~2 Corinthians 5:7 KJV

So, how do you keep Jesus front and center when everything around you seems so big, so giant, so discouraging, so unfavorable?

Find Promises of Peace

You can find promises of God’s peace and about your situation in the word. If none come to mind right away, search on a site like Blueletterbible.org or Biblegateway.com.

Commit a few scriptures about those promises  to memory. If you don’t know how to memorize scripture, I have written out directions in another post.

Click here for that post.

Practice His presence

Practice getting into the presence of God by entering into a time of worship. Pick a time and place where you can be alone and undisturbed.

Photo Credit Nighthawk7

Do you have a favorite worship album you listen to?

If not, one of my favorites is:

 Worship by Michael W Smith

At first, if you can, just close your eyes and sit in God’s presence while the worship washes over you. Invite the Holy Spirit to come and minister to your heart.

One of the songs I have been singing at the beginning of my devotional times is

Holy Spirit you are welcome here

When you are ready, lift your voice to the Lord in song.

Something physical you can do while you worship is lift your hands to the Lord.

Psalm 141:2 says

Let my prayer be set before You as incense,
The lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice (NKJV).

Lifting your hands is only an outward sign of what’s going on in our heart.

Surrender

One of the greatest things to do is surrender.

A pray I have prayed is this:

Lord, I surrender this person/situation into your hands. I declare that Jesus is Lord over this person/situation, and I refuse to hold onto it anymore, it is your burden and not mine. In Jesus name, amen.

I have prayed this prayer every time the situation comes to mind, sometimes several times a day. If you need to, write this prayer on a card and carry it with you, continuing to surrender every time the person or situation comes to mind. Sometimes there can a stronghold, and it’s like you can’t stop thinking about the situation. As you continue to surrender and declare the verses you’ve memorized out loud, this stronghold will be broken.

Conclusion

Isaiah 26:3 says You will keep him in perfect peace,
Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You (NKJV).

When you keep your mind stayed on Jesus by reminding yourself of His promises, by being in his presence through praise and worship, and through your prayers of surrender, peace will make its way into your life.

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. ~ John 14:27 NKJV

In His Love,

Carolyn

Action Step: Share one thing you are going to do today to keep your mind on Jesus.

Copyright Carolyn Rice 2018