Be at peace…

June 3, 2016

“A peaceful heart finds joy in all of life’s simple pleasures.”  (Franklin Cider Mill sign)

I tried to look up that quote, but it is unattributed anywhere that I found it as written. The closest that I found was by Clyde L. Pilkington, Jr –  “A peaceful heart is a joyful heart in all of life’s circumstances.” Pilkington is a pastor, author and radio host.

I’ve written here before that local pastor Doug McMunn, of the Milford United Methodist Church, is one of my favorite people and often uses the phrase “Be at peace” when discussing topics that might otherwise boil over with passion or emotion. He is also thebe at peace best listener that I’ve ever met.

The concept of being at peace with the world around you and with yourself is a tough one for many people to understand. How can one be at peace while living in a sometimes tumultuous world? I think the secret is to find peace within yourself and with your situation first. I’ve posted here a few times about being able to like/love yourself first, before you can even try to like/love others. Once you get to the point that you can honestly say to yourself, “I like me and I’m happy with where I am in my life, with what I have”; you will find yourself to be at peace and ready to share love or friendship with others.

Some are able to get to that state of self-acceptance and peace through meditation and some use the power of prayer. One way or another one must peel back the layers of concern and fear and anger and envy and self-destructive negativity that burden us in life and expose the very core of your being. You will not find there any of those bad things; just hope and love and trust and acceptance. If you can get back in touch with that innocent, peace be with youinner child-like being that was once so blissfully happy playing with its own toes you may come to realize that everything that you have stripped away to get back to that state is basically meaningless. You can be at peace with yourself. Once you get to that state of having a peaceful heart, the rest of today’s quote takes over and you can begin to really enjoy life’s simple pleasures.

So, for this weekend, if only for a moment – be at peace.


Don’t sleep on the problem…

June 1, 2016

“When something’s troubling you, before going to sleep, jot down 3 things you can do the next day to help solve the problem.”  (H. Jackson Brown) – as seen on the Jack’s Winning Words blog.

restless sleepSo, to be complete, today’s post headline should say, “Don’t sleep on the problem, sleep on the solution.”

We often hear the phrase, “Let me sleep on it”, usually in association with a decision that must be made or a problem that must be solved. Today’s saying by H. Jackson Brown is good advice because it is telling us to put ourselves in a positive frame of mind before going to sleep by thinking of things we can do tomorrow to solve the problem at hand and not just to continue worrying about it.

Perhaps there is another thing that you can do before you drift off to sleep and that is topraying pray about it. When you pray about a problem you aren’t really asking God to make the problem go away, but rather to give you the strength, courage and wisdom to deal with the issues that constitute the problem. You are also asking God to be with you through the problem resolution. Sleep will come easier when you drift off knowing that you can now say “We’ve got this” instead of feeling alone in the thought that “I’ve got this.” After all, what problem stands a chance when you have God in your corner?

However, don’t expect that your prayer and faith will turn you into a spectator as God solves your problems. Remember that God acts through us, not instead of us. You still have to take the necessary actions to resolve things; but, now you have an unbeatable ally sleepingon your side. Maybe that will make jotting down three things that you are going to do tomorrow a lot easier.

Have a great night’s sleep – you are ready for tomorrow.