God's Infinite Love Gives Us Peace

Amid the sorrows of life, God's perfect love gives us solace and peace. As we feast on His words, bask in His love, and focus on His loving qualities, He enfolds us in His arms of love. Because He has suffered all, He understands all of our suffering and knows how to succor us. These descriptions of God's unfailing and infinite love for each one of us can help us find peace amid sorrow:

But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God's unfailing love for ever and ever (Psalm 52:8).

But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger,abounding in love and faithfulness (Psalm 86:15).

Give thanks to the God of heaven for His steadfast love endures forever (Psalm 136:26).

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future" (Jeremiah 29:11).

The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness" (Jeremiah 31:3).

The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing" (Zephaniah 3:17).

Shout for joy, you heavens; rejoice, you earth; burst into song, you mountains! For the LORD comforts his people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones. But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me.” “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands (Isaiah 49:13-16).

He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities;the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed (Isaiah 53:3-5).

Listen to me,...you whom I have upheld since your birth, and have carried since you were born. Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you (Isaiah 46:4-6).

I will tell of the kindnesses of the LORD the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all the LORD has done for us—yes, the many good things he has done for Israel, according to his compassion and many kindnesses. He said, “Surely they are my people, children who will be true to me”; and so he became their Savior. in all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old(Isaiah 63:7-9).

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love (John 15:9).

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him (1 John 3:1).

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins (1 John 4:9-10).

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you(1 Peter 5:7).

Today, as you reflect on God's perfect love for you personally, let that love remove all worries, fears, and concerns from your heart. Today, as you bask in His love, allow Him to give you peace.

© Carol Brown

Biblical Tips for Finding Inner Peace

The Bible contains powerful ways that can help anyone experience greater peace of mind. God wants each of His children to be happy, and in the Bible, we find helpful tips to find peace amid the sorrows of life.

• Listen to the Lord. “ I listen carefully to what God the LORD is saying, for he speaks peace to his faithful people “ (Psalm 85:8 NLV). We hear God’s voice when we read His words and heed the promptings of the Spirit. God’s word helps us to feast on God’s perfect love for us and teaches us how to become more like Him, which promotes inner peace.
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• Trust in God. “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!” (Isaiah 26:3 NLV ) When we focus on thoughts on Christ and trust that He loves us and cares for us, He eases our burdens and binds up our broken hearts. God knows us and understands the challenges, trials, and sorrows that we experience. We are HIs precious children, and He will strength and bless us as we trust in Him.

• Don’t fear. Before He was crucified, Jesus told His disciples, “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid” (John 14:27 NLV). Shortly before He was crucified, Jesus’ counseled His follower to love others as He loved them. When we live in a spirit of love, that love casts out fear.

• Do good. “Glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good….for God does not show favoritism” (Romans 2:10 NIV). When we serve others, make good choices, and keep the commandments, God blesses us with inner peace, which is a gift of the Spirit.

• Be spiritually minded. “For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace (Romans 8:6 KJV). As we center our thoughts on the Savior and on things that are good, virtuous, and lovely, we are spiritually minded. Then the gifts of the Spirit--which include love, joy, patience, kindness, goodness, and faithfulness-- can fill our hearts with peace.

Centering our hearts on God creates peace. As we think about Him, follow Him, love Him, and obey Him, He gives us the gift of peace—even when our lives are filled with suffering and sorrow. He asks us to come to Him when we feel burdened and overwhelmed and promises that He will give us rest, peace, and comfort. What a wonderful promise!


© Carol Brown

Peaceful Living

Since last year was a particularly difficult one for my family, I am seeking to create a more peace-filled life this year. Although I was coping well with my own health challenges, when one of my children faced significant health struggles, I found it easy to become worried, anxious, and depressed. When I failed to meditate, live in the moment, and express gratitude, I discovered life became very difficult for me.

Here are a few tips that will make this year more peaceful for me and for each of us.

1. Peace is a priceless gift which God gives those who focus on His love and walk in His light. When we center our thinking on a Higher Power rather on worldly worries, we experience greater peace. Reading the Bible or other inspired literature daily can enhance our ability to experience serenity.

2. Choose your friends wisely. Some people are peace-zappers. They live with chaos and contention and want you to experience the same distress. Seek out friends and mentors who walk in peace and learn from their examples. These people do not seek addictive substances or habits to dull their senses but enjoy the everyday beauties of life.

3. Set appropriate boundaries. Don’t try to run faster than you can walk. Turn off your phone when you want to spend quality time with your family. Say “no” nicely when people ask you to overextend yourself or do things that steal your joy. Turn off television programs and music that do not enhance serene living.

4. Seek the Spirit. God wants you to have peace, but you cannot experience it if you lack the Spirit in your life. Paul teaches us that the fruits of the spirit are “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.” Live in such a manner that you invite the Spirit into your life. Wholesome thoughts, literature, entertainment, and music enhance our spirituality and our peace.

5. Live in the moment. As we live in the moment, we do not worry about the future or fret about the past. We experience the present gift of life with gratitude and joy. Mother Teresa said, "Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We only have today. Let us begin."

May this be a peace-filled year for you and your loved ones. Hopefully, one--or more--of these ideas will help you experience greater serenity as you face the challenges and joys of everyday living.


© Carol Brown

8 Attitudes that Create Peace of Mind

Someone once said that our attitude determines our altitude. It also determines whether or not we experience peace amid suffering. The following are eight ways we can find peace even when life presents us with challenges.

1. Ask yourself, “Is this something I can control, or do I need to release myself, this person or situation to a Higher Power?” If you are trying to change someone, you may be creating stress for yourself. You can change yourself, but you cannot force another to change.

2. Ask yourself, “Will this matter in a hundred years?” Some things won’t matter next month, let alone next year. We sweat a lot of small stuff that doesn’t really matter. Use your energy to make a positive difference in the world and to strengthen your relationships.

3. Decide to focus on more on your blessings and less on your troubles. Everyone faces challenges, and we can learn from them or feel overwhelmed by them. Attitude is everything.

4. Do one kind thing for yourself each day that doesn’t involve food, money, or anything that is addictive in nature. Watch a sunset; take a long bath; read an article; call a friend; visit a neighbor. Do something that brings you comfort and joy.

5. Do one kind thing for someone else. It may be nothing more than smiling at a neighbor, complementing a coworker, or hugging your child. When we share our love with others, it releases endorphins that calm us and help us feel happier.

6. If you feel you must worry, schedule a time for it and keep it to fifteen minutes or less. Don’t allow yourself to worry continuously. It drains your energy and increases your stress.

7. Instead of asking, “Why me?” ask, “What can I learn from this experience, trial, suffering?” When I was caring for my dying mother, I felt deep sorrow as I watched her body fail her, but I also realized that there was something I was learning from our suffering. Now, I realize that I have greater compassion for those who suffer and greater appreciation for life.

8. If you err, err on the side of mercy. Accept yourself and others for who they are, realizing that each person, including yourself--is a child of the Divine.

Trials and troubles can either make us bitter or better. Our attitudes--which begin with the thoughts that we choose to hold onto--determine whether we will be happy or hopeless, joyful or jealous, calm or contentious. As we choose thoughts of love, peace, compassion, and forgiveness, we can find peace amid the sorrows and stresses of life


© Carol Brown

Enjoying Everyday Living

When we’re worried about the future or anxious because of the past, we don’t enjoy the present. It’s so easy to remember our past mistakes or offenses we’ve experienced, but when we focus of them, we can’t enjoy everyday living.

We need to move outside of our thoughts and evaluate how peaceful they are. Sometimes we stay stuck in the past. Our thoughts reveal if this is happening. We live in the past when we're consumed with thought such as “Why didn’t I__________?” “How could they have done that?” “Why was I so stupid?” “How could I have done that?”Of course, we need to learn from our past mistakes and avoid dangerous people, but if we continually rehearse past failures, we cannot enjoy present happiness. If we use all of our energy to berate ourselves and others for bad behavior, we are too tired to live peacefully in the now.

We can turn away from bad choices and turn towards good ones without condemning ourselves as worthless human beings. When we catch ourselves remembering past problems, we can choose to focus on present blessings and defeat the enemy. Gratitude and guilt cannot dwell in the human heart at the same time.

It’s great to plan for the future, to have a rainy day fund, to set goals, and to pray for ourselves and our loved. However, when we fear the future, we cannot enjoy present happiness. Doomsday thinking is destructive. When we worry about future calamities, trials, or problems, we can’t live joyfully today.

Jesus said, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

""And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself."

So today, celebrate the beauties of everyday living. Savor the beauty of flowers, clouds, birds, children, the elderly, and yourself. Remember, you are a priceless child of God. He loves you more than you can imagine. Experience His love so that you can more fully enjoy the journey.
© Carol Brown

How to Stop Worrying and Enjoy Everyday Life

As the pressures of life increase, it is easy to become overwhelmed with worry. Many struggle with anxiety and fear on a regular basis. Thanks to the research of Jeanne Segal, author of Raising Your Emotional Intelligence, there are six tips that can help us stop worrying and start enjoying everyday life.

First, Dr. Segal suggests that we accept the fact that life is uncertain and that there are many things that we can't control. She encourages us not to focus on worst-case scenarios and to instead accept that although we may cannot predict the future, we can enjoy the good things we have in the present.

Next, she advises us to set a time for worry each day. Write down any worries that we have and then review during during that time. (I had a friend with serious health problems who allowed herself a half-hour of worry time each day. She said any more than that make her very sick.) during the worry time--preferably in the afternoon or early evening--we can go over our worries. If we accomplish this is less than 30 minutes, good for us!

Then, Dr. Segal suggests that we challenge our negative thinking.We can ask ourselves if our worrying is helping or hurting us. We can also consider what we would say to a friend who had similiar worries.

Relaxation also helps reduce worrying. Progressive muscle relaxation in which we tense and then relax groups of muscles can reduce tension. Deep breathing and meditation can also be very helpful.

Dr. Segal says that research shows that taking good care of ourselves also helps. Healthy eating, regular exercise, limiting caffeine and sugar, eliminating alcohol and nicotine, getting enough sleep, and reaching out to friends for emotional support reduces anxiety and worry and helps us face stressful situations.

Finally, she suggests that we "stay focused, flexible, and creative in bad times as well as good. The capacity to recognize your emotions and express them appropriately helps you avoid getting stuck in depression, anxiety, or other negative mood states."

In addition to her suggestions, I would add that reading inspirational literature, prayer, and an attitude of gratitude greatly reduces our worries and allows us to enjoy everyday life. If you have any others suggestions, please comment. And today, may we take time to enjoy the journey and enjoy our abundant blessings.

© Carol Brown