Practicing Peace
If you are like me, you love having peace of mind. However, sometimes in life, keeping your peace is difficult because the brain can easily gravitate towards negative thinking. We need to remember that our spiritual mind (which resides in our soul) is separate from our physical brain. As a result, we can actually keep and practice Jesus’ spiritual peace of mind, despite our circumstancs.
Jesus’ peace, according to Paul in Philippians 4:7, will surpass our brain’s understanding and guard our emotional health. Therefore, I want to share from God’s Word and personal experience the best way to keep and practice God’s peace in your life!
SERIES TEXT
Isaiah 41:10, “Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”
DEFINITION
- FEAR: A distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or not.
- DISMAYED: To be discouraged and anxious.
- FEAR OF THE LORD: An awareness of the greatness of God and that one day He will judge the human race in righteousness and with finality, Proverbs 8:13. For the Christian, they do not fear punishment because they know God loves them, but they still respect God’s laws and honor Him, 1 John 4:18 & Revelation 15:4. For the sinner, they should fear God’s punishment because they are without Jesus, Romans 1:18.
- FEELING FEAR vs. ACTING IN FEAR: It is natural in many circumstance to “feel” fear. For example: in war, sky diving, or in other kinds of danger. However, “acting” in fear by shrinking back, running away, or being unable to perform a positive action is not beneficial.
- FAITH: Faith is the opposite of fear. Faith is trusting God in the midst of troubling situations, no matter what others may think or how your body feels, Hebrews 11:1-6.
ROOT OF FEAR
FEAR-O-METER
CYCLE OF FEAR
*Taken from Rhonda Britten’s book, Fearless Living. (Note: Though she is not a Christian, she has many good insights.)
LIVING FREE FROM FEAR BY FAITH, “PRACTICING PEACE”
PRACTICING PEACE
- RECOGNIZE YOUR TRIGGERS: Take some time to journal and pray about the biggest things that cause you fear, Psalm 139:23-24.
- PRESENT YOUR BODY TO CHRIST: Determine that you will fear God more than your fears and thus submit and surrender to His ways, Romans 12:1-2.
- PRAY, THINK GOD’S WORD, & GIVE THANKS: Don’t ignore your fear, give them to Jesus in prayer, and then replace them with His Word and thanksgiving, Philippians 4:6-8.
- ACT ON THE WORD: Do everything that is physically possibly, despite your feelings of fear, so you can train your body and brain to learn new habits, Philippians 4:9.
GREAT RESOURCES
- Joyce Meyers books, Do it Afraid!, Straight Talk on Fear, and Straight Talk on Worry. Also, her T.V. shows.
- John Osteen’s youtube videos on fear (he is totally different from his son Joel), Facing the Future Without Fear, Results of Fear, and He Hath Said.
- Freedom From Fear, by Neil Anderson.
- Chicago Christian Counseling Center, a great place for Christian based support.
- The Fear Not website and Facebook page releases a “fear not” related verse 365 days a year!
Isaiah 26:3, “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.”