"How Can We Find Peace?"

Last night, I was thinking about some things... Things that I've had to deal with my entire life, things that I've had to deal with for several years, things I'm dealing with now, & things I believe I'll have to deal with for a very long time... Some of them are personal, that I go through alone, and some of them are shared & struggled with others in my life.

Peace is one of my favorite words. It finds its way into so many realms of our existence. And I find myself longing for it almost every day, in one way or another. I found the following, quoted on a website about finding peace, & I couldn't leave it there, without sharing:

"The answer to this question depends in part on how you define peace. One way to define peace is simply the absence of conflict. If you can resolve whatever conflict you are facing, then you can have peace.

But when conflict rears its head, peace runs out the door, and it won’t return until the conflict is settled. This notion of peace is a good start, but it is also fragile, because it is totally dependent on your circumstances.

A stronger definition of peace is one that allows you to rise above your circumstances and remain calm despite the storm raging around you. It is a sense of assurance that no matter what happens, things will eventually get better, and that somewhere, someone trustworthy is in control.

This sort of peace is not dependent on circumstances. Rather, it allows you to see beyond your surroundings and fix your eyes on a point in the distance, that allows you to hold steady on your course and ride out the storm.

How can you find this sort of peace? By putting your trust in the one person who transcends all of our trials and struggles: Jesus Christ."

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How can we not realize that God is always in control? He knows us better than we know ourselves. We don't know the end of the story. But He does. And if we can somehow just hold on... hang in there... and live each day the very best we can, then He will make everything ok.

I have to remind myself of this every day.

I believe that each of our stories will end with peace, if we can just hold on & have faith. And I believe that we can all be at peace while living our individual stories, if we can just remember that everything happens for a reason, and He will not leave us alone.