Tag Archives: peace

3 Steps to Releasing Worry and Fear

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Fear and Worry

Do you find yourself in a place of fear and worry right now? The stress is building, and you can’t seem to find a way out. There are real problems in life, and things that are absolutely out of our control. Sometimes, it builds to an all-time high, and we feel like we’re drowning.

It’s during these times, that we need to find God’s peace. We need his peace to wrap around us like a warm hug, reassuring us and comforting us.

Finding Peace

We all want to find peace; we crave peace. But sometimes it seems impossible to find. There are just too many pressures. Paul understood this. In fact, he gives us a formula in the book of Philippians to use to find peace.

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6,7

Here’s the formula Paul lays out:

Don’t worry about anything.

Pray about everything. Tell God what you need.

Thank Him for all he’s done.

Then…

You will experience his peace, and his peace will guard your heart and mind.

The Protection of Peace

It’s not just that we get God’s peace. It’s that his peace provides protection for our mind and our hearts. Why is it that sometimes we can forget about our deepest pressures? The burdens are so heavy, and yet for a few hours we forget about it. Maybe we have company over; maybe we grab coffee with a friend. In those times, we’re not thinking about our worries because something else has taken the focus of our attention.

That’s how God’s peace works. It creates a buffer around my minds and keeps us from feeling the stress and pressure of whatever it is that’s taking away our peace. I think of a security guard, guarding a priceless heirloom at a museum. Their job is to protect that heirloom at all costs. Nobody’s allowed to touch it, mess with it, or go near it. That’s how God’s peace works. It creates a wall of protection around our mind, keeping us from thinking and stressing about it. He calms us when we get worried and scared, and he helps us to focus on something else instead.

So, if you’re struggling today with worry, fear, frustration, anxiety, and you can’t seem to get any victory, use this formula. Choose not to worry. Talk to God about it; then find something to be thankful for.

A Thousand Times

Then let God’s peace wrap around your heart and mind. Don’t fight against it. Don’t force yourself to keep worrying about it. Just release it and trust that God will get you through today as he’s done a thousand times before.

One of my most favorite new songs right now is A Thousand Times by We are Messengers. If you get a chance, listen to it. It will encourage your heart so richly. I just love the words to this song. These are the words to the chorus.

You can count on that, you know what He’s like
You’ve seen Him do it a thousand times
Yeah, even in the dead of night
There’s never been a mornin’ when the sun don’t rise
He’ll never let go, you know that it’s true
He’s still that good and He’s still got you
You can count on that, you know what He’s like
You’ve seen Him do it a thousand times

Aren’t those words such an encouragement? God’s been faithful before; there’s no doubt that he will be faithful again. So find courage in that today and let his peace wrap around your mind and heart.

For More Encouragement

For more encouragement, check out our devotional, He Still Calms Storms or read my post, Peace in the Midst of Life’s Hard.

12 Fall Things that Create Breathing Room for Your Soul

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12 Fall things that Create Breathing Room

Fall is the best time to enjoy nature! Sometimes when life gets too heavy and the burdens are too much to bear, the best thing we can do is take a break from it all and get out into nature. We had the chance to do that this week. We drove about three hours away on Tuesday of this week for a conference. The conference was in Central PA, and it was absolutely gorgeous! The leaves were already starting to turn, the mornings were crisp and cool, and the sunrises and sunsets were amazing.

My Fall Video from Yesterday

I made a quick video yesterday that I shared to Facebook. I wasn’t planning on doing a video, as you can tell from my look, but Matt talked me into doing it. It’s just a short clip, but I wanted to share with you what I was seeing.

Nature is like a balm for my soul. When I get stressed, when the burdens get too heavy, when I just need a break, nature gives me that. Fall is the absolute best time of year to get away and enjoy nature—to watch the leaves change, enjoy the cooler weather and crisp mornings, and enjoy pumpkin coffee, apple cider donuts, and all things fall.

12 Fall Things You Can Do

I just wanted to share a few things that I do in fall that brings peace and enjoyment into my fall season and help me to enjoy the beauty of fall.

  1. Go on an overnight somewhere. It doesn’t have to be expensive, and it doesn’t have to be long. Even just 24 hours away can be such a huge blessing. Pick a place that’s surrounded by beautiful nature.
  2. Get up early and go see a sunrise. Grab a coffee so you can be awake to enjoy a beautiful fall sunrise.
  3. Go for a nature walk. Getting out in nature even for just an hour or two can make such a difference. Go somewhere that has lots of trees, that’s away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Find a place that’s quiet, where you can reflect and have quiet time. I’m all about spending time with people and getting together with people, but sometimes you just need some peace and quiet.
  4. Go apple picking. Our family loves doing this. It’s so fun and easy. It gets you out and into nature. You spend time as a family; and when you’re done, you get to enjoy delicious apples.
  5. Grab a pumpkin muffin, apple cider donut, or a coffee and go for a drive. This is so easy and something that we do all the time. It’s especially great if you have little kids and need a break. Put everybody in the car, buckle them in, and give them a device to watch, a book to look at, a coloring book and crayons, or a toy to play with—whatever will keep them busy, so you can enjoy the drive. Drive somewhere that you can see the leaves changing, that’s beautiful to look at, and just enjoy the scenery. Listen to some good music or a podcast.
  6. Pick a Saturday morning and spend some time baking. Bake some pumpkin bread, apple crisp, spice cookies…something that you love for fall. Make extra to take to your neighbors. We’ve done this, and it’s such a blessing. It’s encouragement to your neighbors, but it’s also great for you. You get to spend time as a family doing something for other people. We put on good music and just enjoy the time in the kitchen together.
  7. This one may not be for everybody, but some of you may really enjoy it. Pack up some art supplies and go find a quiet soothing, place that has beautiful nature. Do a chalk pastel drawing or a painting and just relax and enjoy creating art. There are so many free tutorials online. We love Nana from You Are an Artist. She has lots of free fall chalk pastel drawings. They’re not hard; anybody can do them, and they’re fun and easy. If you like creating, if you love art, this one’s for you.
  8. This one is for my fellow book lovers. Go to Barnes & Noble or go to your favorite bookstore and treat yourself to a book. I mostly read books on my Kindle, but there’s something about having a book in hand. Treat yourself to a book, get a coffee or a snack, and go someplace to read. Find a beautiful place and just enjoy some quiet, peaceful time reading.
  9. Go buy yourself a beautiful fall journal. Take it somewhere quiet in nature. Take a good pen, grab a coffee, and just sit and journal. Here’s some questions to answer in your journal: What am I frustrated about right now? What’s going right in my life? What is God doing in my life that’s working for good right now? What am I thankful for? Sometimes journaling gives us perspective and helps to bring clarity when we need it. It helps us figure out where we want to go and what we want to change. It helps get your thoughts down on paper so you can clear your mind and bring breathing room to our soul.
  10. Go to a Panera by yourself and get a nice warm bowl of soup. Take a book to enjoy, a laptop to work on, a journal to write in… anything that brings life to you. Enjoy some good and some quiet time to yourself.
  11. Buy some apples and some blocks of caramel and make caramel apples. It sounds complicated, but it’s really not. It’s nice and easy and something the whole family can enjoy. Making caramel apples doesn’t take a lot of money and doesn’t take a lot of work; so it’s a win-win.
  12. Create a new family fall tradition. It may be discovering a new farm, a new fall treat, pumpkin carving, going to a new area, or discovering a new nature park. Find something new that you can start doing year after year that you can look forward to as a family.

So those are just a few ideas to get you started. Pick a few to try and add to this list. Let me know what you end up doing to bring more peace and breathing room into your fall.

More Encouragement

For more encouragement on this topic, read my post 10 Things You Can Do to Combat Burnout or check out my book: Finding Free: 5 Simple Steps to a More Peaceful, Content, and Happy You.

Find Freedom From the Burdens Weighing You Down

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What Burdens are You Carrying?

Do you have burdens that you’re carrying right now? Is there something that you really need an answer from God for? The best thing we can do is to take those concerns and worries to God, instead of trying to shoulder them ourselves. Paul tells us this in the book of Philippians.

Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns.

Philippians 4:6a MSG

Releasing Those Burdens

Instead of worrying, we need to talk to God and tell him about those worries. Tell him all of our concerns. Too often, we carry around the weight of the burdens we carry, burdens God never intended us to carry.

Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

I Peter 5:7

Turning Those Burdens into Prayers

It sounds good, but how do you do that? How do you stop worrying or stressing about those pressures or burdens that are so heavy on your heart? Paul gives us the answer in the second half of the verse.

Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns.

Philippians 4:6b

We take those burdens and turn them into prayers. Maybe you need to take out a journal and write down your burdens. Write out a long prayer to God, telling him everything you feel. Write down every emotion you’re feeling and the pain and pressures you’re experiencing.

Finding God’s Peace

What happens after that? Paul tells us in the next verse in Philippians.

 Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

Philippians 4:7 MSG

Can you feel that peace, even just in reading those verses? It’s a call to releasing those heavy burdens you’ve been carrying. It’s a realization that you don’t have to shoulder them alone anymore.

I don’t know about you, but I needed to hear these verses today. I have been carrying around some heavy burdens and have felt so overwhelmed by the weight of them. When I read those verses during my morning time routine, I stopped right then and prayed. After I told him all my concerns and worries and relinquished my hold on those burdens, I felt his peace.

Does that mean that my prayers were immediately answered? No. The burdens are still there, but I no longer have to shoulder them on my own.

What burdens, worries, frustrations, fears, and concerns are you carrying today that you need to relinquish your hold on? What would happen if you could let go of them and leave them with Jesus?

He’s waiting for you to do just that today. You were never meant to carry your own burdens. Give them to Jesus today. Let him do the heavy lifting; then feel God’s sense of wholeness wrapping around you—that feeling of everything coming together for good.

For More Encouragement

I just heard Great You Are by Jordan Smith for the first time the other day and absolutely loved it. It was such an encouragement to my heart and is one of my new favorites.