“I’ve just got to find peace from all the worry I am carrying about the virus, violence, and politics,” a young desperate woman said.
When asked about what she used to find relief, she listed a litany of things: thinking positive thoughts, eating foods that would not make her guilty (such as chocolate brownies, which were an addiction), walking when she could find enough energy, driving in the country, trying not to yell at her children, practicing good hygiene. She had even begun reading self-help books and practicing yoga. She also spent a lot of time staring into space.
However, none of her interventions were working, and her neighbors wondered whether she had lost touch with reality. Her children began leaving the house, poking her, and spraying her with water. She did not know what more to do.
This young lady represents the approach most seem to use to find relief—the approach of self-effort.
Recently, I discovered the cornerstone that provides safety and relief when we are over-whelmed. As I prayed one morning, needing relief from this tumultuous world, my heart grew warm with what felt like a breath from God’s Spirit that said: “Peace from the Father comes by coming.”
Trying to understand this declaration, I was reminded that both Jesus and God’s Word tell us to go to Jesus for peace and that this peace will be one that surpasses understanding (Matthew 11:28, Philippians 4:7).
A light came on, and I realized peace comes not from doing, but from going. I felt relief as I stopped struggling and opened my heart to the Lord who loves me and wants me to rest in His love and in the victory His beloved Son accomplished on the Cross.
Peace does not come from doing but from daily going to the Father through His Son.
Go to the right place to find your peace.
(Photo courtesy of pixabay.)
(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)
The Rev. Dr. Bob Segress served as a licensed psychological clinician for twenty-five years. Upon retiring, he served for fifteen years as a prison minister. Retiring again, he began writing full-time after a period of boredom. He has written: The Biblical Approach To Psychology while serving as a college educator, The Shelton Series, and, in 2012, Ten Years Inside Shelton Prison. Currently, he writes for several publications such as Halo Magazine.