Wanted: Personal Peace

I need cataract surgery this year. I met the surgeon and his assistant, and I was told to call her with any questions.

After calling her two days in a row and leaving the required details, there was no reply. After my third try, I decided to let it go. I read their information packet, listed my questions, and made the required appointments with my primary care, EKG, and labs.

Friday night, I shared my anxiety with my local Goddaughter.  Even positive reports from those who had experienced it did nothing to calm my fears.

After we watched a DVD, I talked about surgery again. She said, “You’re worrying and not trusting God.” The next thing I knew, she was praying, asking God to calm my fears and give me peace.

God answered that prayer in three different ways:

(1)    Later that night, she sent a scripture. It was *Isaiah 26:3: You will keep in perfect peace the steadfast of mind, because he trusts in you.

(2)    The next morning, I opened my Bible, and a colorful scripture card fell face up. John 14:27: Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you . . . Do not let your hearts be troubled; do not be afraid.

 (3)    Sunday, I listened to a favorite TV Bible teacher. His text was Philippians 4:6-7: Be anxious for nothing . . . present your requests to God. And the peace which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.  

I received a call from the head of the surgery center a few days later. She was very pleasant and answered all my questions. I started to feel better about this up close and personal eye surgery! But God, in His love, had one more message of peace!

In a weekly study, the verse for the week was Psalm 56:3-4: When I am afraid, I put my trust in You. In God whose word I praise . . . I will not be afraid . . .    

I finally got the message! “Lord, I trust Your word, and I trust in You!” I don’t have surgery dates yet, but it doesn’t matter. I now have God's peace.

*All scriptures are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible, BSB, Copyright 2022 by Bible Hub, Used by Permission, All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

Pixabay: Woman, Girl, Freedom Image; JillWellington.

How to Defeat Fear

No one I know would choose to live in fear. But even the most gifted or wealthiest among us do not have all good days, or only sunshine and no shadows, no troubles.

One way to defeat fear is to face it . . . not try to dodge it, or run away from it. Let’s see what Psalm 56:1-13 has to say about it.

David prayed honest prayers while fearing for his life. He told God he was being pursued by men who wanted him dead. They were relentless, planning his demise, lurking about, and always watching him!

Notice three important steps to facing fear: First, he poured out his heart to God and asked for help. Then he declared he chose to trust in God and His word. Last came a decision to control his thoughts; he would not concentrate on his enemies or their evil plans (Psalm 56:3-4, 10-11).

I don’t know where I heard this, but someone said, “When fear knocks at your door, send faith to answer it!” (Perhaps they were familiar with 1 Peter 5:8-9a).

Faith includes trust in God’s word. How well do you know it? Hopefully, you pursue it daily. Read it, make notes, highlight verses that speak to you. That’s when it becomes personal!

What do you do when God answers prayer? David said, “I will praise His word, give thank offerings to God, and walk before Him in the light” (Psalm 56:10-13).

Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.” And Psalm 40:8 says, “I delight to do your will, O my God; Your law is within my heart.”

We can defeat fear.

Thanks to the internet, we live in a connected world, full of reasons to fear. Some are up close and personal, while others come on the news from far away.

Would I want to return to days without cell phones or internet capabilities? No, and I doubt you would either.

What I want to do is defeat fear by following David’s example: (1) Know God’s word, (2) Trust in it, (3) Pour out my heart, (4) Ask for help, and (5) Control my thoughts.

 Pixabay: Man, Head, Scared Image; PublicDomainPictures.

Break Time

My next inspirational blog will be Sunday, September 22, 2024.

I’ve been re-reading the Mitford Series by Jan Karon. She usually gives credit to the creators of her inspirational quotes. But this week I read one that she didn’t know who to credit. I wrote it in my journal. Yes, it's simple but so worthy of serious consideration.

Fear knocked on the door;

*Faith Answered.

No one was there.

*For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control. 

2 Timothy 1:7 (BSB)

I’ll be looking forward to connecting with you again in 3 weeks!

*All Scriptures from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible (BSB), Published by Bible Hub, Pittsburg, PA, USA, Copyright 2022; Used by permission.

Pixabay Illustraton: Break, Time Out.

 

 

What's New?

That’s an interesting question. I think the answer is “not much.” I’m basing that on words by wise King Solomon in his Book of Ecclesiastes, which is dated close to his death in 931 B.C.

Have you ever heard “There’s nothing new under the sun?” Did you know that was written by Solomon? I find Ecclesiastes 1:9-10 quite interesting (BSB):

What has been will be again,

And what has been done will be done again;

There is nothing new under the sun.

Is there a case where one can say,

“Look, this is new?”

It has already existed in the ages before us.

Mankind has certainly created, or invented, some marvelous things since Solomon’s time. But when you think of people and their basic human characteristics, not much has changed.

That’s why, to me, the Ten Commandments make so much sense. Can you believe living out only ten good things can create a desirable society? Review the ten for yourself in Exodus 20.

It doesn’t take much Bible reading to discover man’s historic tendency toward evil. The flood in Noah’s day came about for that very reason (Genesis 6:5-7). And, according to Matthew 15:18-19, mankind hadn’t changed much in Jesus’ time.

But this week I came across a scripture that could have been written for today’s news. I Peter 3:14 had a cross-reference to Isaiah 8:12 (BSB): Do not call conspiracy everything these people regard as conspiracy. Do not fear what they fear; do not live in dread.

There’s nothing new in the fact that people have always conspired secretly, creating plans and schemes that suit their agenda. But today we hear a lot of conspiracy theories. That puts a different twist on it because theories are things yet to be proved.

I’ve heard Joyce Meyer say, “FEAR is false evidence appearing real.” She didn’t know who coined the phrase and neither do I, but it makes sense. And we do have a choice: will we walk by fear or faith?

I want to live by faith. That’s why I try to read God’s word daily. Make your choice today . . . then live by it.

Illustration: Detective, Searching Man by GraphicMama-Team on Pixabay.

Peaceful Sleep

PEACEFUL SLEEP

To me, the words peace and sleep go together. In my lifetime, I've had my share of sleepless nights, even restless nights. Sometimes it was due to a physical condition. Other times it was due to stress of some kind. One scary night I discovered a helpful solution.


It was after midnight when I heard angry voices in the street outside my bedroom window. My husband had taken a part-time job with a custodial service, and it was my first time to be home alone until early morning.

We were living in a church parsonage in Phoenix, Arizona. There was a driveway between the house and the church that led to a parking lot in back. This made the house feel more public than private to me.

I got up carefully and pulled the curtains back to peek out the window. The shouting continued, then the car door opened and a woman was pushed out. As the car sped off, she gained her balance. Then she started walking in the same direction as the car.

What's Happening Out There?

I found this unsettling as an observer. In our family, you might argue but never shout, and physical abuse was not in any way an issue. Having never had children I was used to being alone at night when my husband was busy with ministry. But having him gone on an all-night job was different from seeing him walk in the door at nine-thirty or ten o'clock after a church event.

When he worked, I would stay up as late as I could, then go to bed hoping to fall asleep. But sleep eluded me. It was nice to have a streetlight outside, but still I was very uneasy alone.

Psalm 23 was a favorite chapter in the Bible, but I didn't feel it was exactly what I needed. I wondered if I could find a scripture that applied specifically to sleep.

I Found a "Keeper!
My Bible's small concordance did not list many scriptures, but I found exactly what I needed in Psalm 4:8 (KJV): "I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for Thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety." Later I found it just as comforting in more modern translations.

Psalm 4:8 (NIV)In peace I will lie down and sleep,
for you alone, LORD, make me dwell in safety.

Here was the promise of two things I needed: Peace and Sleep! I wrote the verse down and started to memorize it. Every night as I went to bed, I would quote this scripture and turn my fears over to God.

I believed He would keep His word. My faith was based on an ancient scripture that says God will not let His word "return empty." He will make sure it achieves its intended purpose (Isaiah 55:11).

Over the years, there have been other times and places I have needed to quote that scripture to get a good night's rest. I'm happy to report that I have shared this verse many times, and I'm not the only one who has applied it by faith and found it true.

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