Tag Archives: peace

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The Place Of Contentment!

We tend to focus our energy on outward pleasure and the satisfaction of our senses at the expense of vision and the inner work of our lives.  The sad reality is that this produces a life of illusions, where appearances leave us empty and wanting more.  The wise writer of Ecclesiastes teaches us that “Everything comes and goes, there is nothing new under the sun.”  

The material world can only bring temporary satisfaction, because the stuff of the temporary world is – temporary.  When all we see, taste, touch, hear and smell is of the material world, we limit ourselves to only what exists in this world and cause ourselves to miss out on the vast blessings that exist in the spiritual world.  We often so focus on the creation, that we fail to know and appreciate the Creator.

The biggest problem with our trying to satisfy our senses is that our focus becomes the chase and attainment of that which is limited and temporary.  We get locked into a game of continuously striving, because there never seems to be enough.  We all know what it is like to live in this place of craziness, but most of us, are not willing to do life differently.  We keep doing the same things, making the same mistakes and expecting different or better results and that is just plain insane!  
 
Peace and inner satisfaction come from within.  Jesus teaches us to be in the world, but not of the world.  My satisfaction does not come from this world, because this is not my home, I am simply a spiritual being passing through a human experience.  When we learn to live life from the inside, then there is not much that is required from the outside for our happiness and peace,
 
We need to learn to look and see beyond the here and now.  We know that a flower is much more than just a flower.  It is even more than what our senses tell us it is.  It is more than color, taste, feel, smell and sound.  It is creation unfolding in a different way, unique and beautiful.  Evidence of something greater, someone with a greater plan.  It is in front of you for you to enjoy and be blessed by and when it ceases to be, there will be something else, but you don’t have to go out and find it, because it will find you.
 
Learn to relax.  Enjoy the gift of this moment.  Instead of being consumed by a focus on the search for what you can find outside of yourself, instead take some time to journey inward and discover awe, wonder, excitement and appreciation for the things that make your senses alive to appreciate and enjoy the gifts of the outside, physical, material world.
 
Allow life to flow in the natural order of “come and go” and avoid getting caught up in the tyranny of the urgent.  This moment is a seed, plant it, cultivate it, observe it from the inside out and you will enjoy it’s growth for ages to come.  You are a seed, your Creator has planted you, is cultivating you, observing you from the inside out and enjoying your growth.  When you get that you are created in the image of the Creator, then you will discover a power that allows you to live from the inside out and this is a big part of what it means to live blessed.
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The Blank Canvas Of A Day!

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You Can Do This!

I love how a new day is almost like a clean slate, a blank canvas just waiting to have some brush strokes added.  At the beginning of the day, I am excited about the potential and possibilities that stretch out in front of me and then all of a sudden, I find myself in a hurry and the next thing I know I am halfway through the morning of my brand new day.  It does not take long for something to go wrong, not at all what I had planned and my beautiful blank canvas, rather than being a work of art, has turned into a big ole mess.

What do we do with days like this?  The truth is:  Most days are like this.  And on these messy days, there is really only one thing we can do.  We need to trust in our Creator, Who gave us our days to begin with.  Trusting in Him, allows us to be filled with peace that flows from some where deep within us.  This inner calm is a gift that assures us that regardless of what happens today, our Creator has a plan, because that is what Creator’s do.

You do not have to let a messy day distract you from the gift of peace that Your Creator has breathed into your life.  Don’t let what is going on around you in this world cause you to be shaken, because you are not of this world.  You, “who you really are”, your inner most being is rooted and established in Eternity.

When the stress of living begins to catch up with you, simply decide that you are going to use your supernatural power to detach yourself from these distractions.  Don’t waste your limited human energy on trying to maintain order and control of the chaos.  Instead, take a deep breath, relax and remember the peace of your Creator that resides within you.

Look within and see the face of love and open your mind to hear the things of the Spirit.  You will find that this enables you to see with more than physical eyes.  And with this spiritual insight, you will begin to see things from a high and holy perspective, which will further grow this great gift of peace.

When it is all said and done, you will look back at what used to be a blank canvas and discover that the Master has helped you to turn your day into a MASTERPIECE!

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Living Love!

“If we love our Christian brothers and sisters, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead.”  I John 3:14

What Is Love?
What Is Love?

I have talked about this before, in a several different places.  There are many different definitions and ideas about what love is.  Most people in our world now a days, seem to have made themselves very comfortable with the idea that love is something that we fall into and can fall out of.  This idea believes that love is some magical feeling we get when we meet the right person.  If this is what you think of when you think of love, then you are probably right about it being something that we can fall into and out of.

A better word for that magical feeling that we get when we meet that person that makes us feel really special is probably attraction.  Love, real love is appreciating the goodness in another person.  When the Bible speaks of God’s love for us, it is God appreciating the goodness is us.  You may think, but there is nothing good in me compared to God, and you would be right, but we can’t forget that God created us and we are made in His image.  God sees what we can’t see and His attraction to that good in us allows him to appreciate the good that he can see and that is love.

Love is active and we can create it, just by appreciating the goodness that is in another person.  This is why love really is a choice.  A choice that each of us make many times and in many different ways every day.

There are in existence, what I like to think of as different flavors of love.  There is “eros”, where we get our word erotic.  When we accept and appreciate the beauty of the physical in another person, we experience this “eros” love.  Eros love is often the next step after attraction, but it does not have to be.  “Eros” love is about physical passion, gratification and fulfillment.

There is a love called “storge”.  This is the love that parents share with children and children share with parents.  It is only natural to look at your blood and appreciate the goodness, often of yourself that is in them.  This is a love that flows almost naturally and without effort.

There is also “phileo” love.  Philadelphia is the city of brotherly love.  This is a love of affections, a love that takes delight in being in the presence of another.  This is often that warm feeling that seems to come and go.  This is a love that cares about another as if they were blood.

And then there is “agape” love.  This is the love that our Creator loves us with.  This is love that seeks the welfare and blessing of the other person.  This is a love that flows regardless of the feelings or emotions that we often get tangled up in.  This truest of loves is a choice that we make, regardless of how we feel and that is why this love is so powerful.

When we love others, it is proof that the love of God has found its way into our lives.  Proof that we are not dead, but alive to Him and His power that flows into and through our lives. We should seek this love and share this love, because it means that we are alive and being alive, really alive is a good thing!