I ran across the article I had written some time ago, when thumbing through an old notebook.  I realized I very much needed the reminder of this right now.  Today.  I could see I have been focusing on my troubles, letting little worries and big concerns overwhelm me and stomp my joy.

“Give them to me,” my Savior seemed to say, “put them all in my hands and RELAX.  Relax and enjoy the day.  I have given this day to you.  Live in it, lean on Me and let Me handle everything.  I will give you strength for the day.”

“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in You, all whose thoughts are FIXED on You!
Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock.
But for those who are righteous, the way is not steep and rough. You are a God who does what is right, and You smooth out the path ahead of them.
Lord, we show our trust in You by obeying Your laws; our heart’s desire is to glorify Your name.
In the night I search for You. In the morning I earnestly seek you. For only when You come to judge the earth will people learn what is right.” Isaiah 26:3-4, 7-9 NLT

PERFECT PEACE

Is there such a thing on earth? Perfect peace. Can we even attain it in our trouble filled world? With our worry riddled minds? No WE can not. But GOD CAN.
God’s peace is not the world’s peace, His peace goes beyond anything we can understand. God gives me peace, I don’t attain it. Trust is the key to perfect peace. Did you catch that in the verses above?

God will keep me in perfect peace IF I trust in Him and IF my thoughts are fixed on Him.
Focusing on God, on His presence, is the key to trust. Fixing my thoughts on Him all day, every moment of the day keeps my mind off my circumstances.
I need to keep my mind on Him. Talk to Him. Tell Him my troubles. Pour out my heart to Him.

When I begin to worry—which I do all the time, sometimes silly things, sometimes legitimate worries—but when I start to worry, I need to give it to Him, every time. EVERY time.

I shouldn’t even let those worries take root. I should say immediately, “God has this. He will take care of it. He is mighty. His strength is bigger than my worry. I trust in God.”
I should not say, “How much can a person take?” I can take as much as He gives. I should not look at difficulties and weigh my strength against them. Its NOT my strength that carries me through.  I should ask, “How much can my Jesus take?”

Jesus walked the path of loneliness, hunger, poverty, rejection, homelessness, and betrayal on this earth. He withstood excruciating pain and great suffering on our behalf.
His power is great. In His short life on earth, Jesus turned water into wine, even this a minor miracle, boggles my mind. He healed the sick and dying, walked on water, stilled the raging storms and raised the dead. Every single sin of the world was laid on Him, when He died on the cross. Jesus has a very strong back. He is, after all, the Son of God.

God the Father controls the universe and all that He created. He keeps it in place with His word. He is supreme, God All Mighty, Keeper of the stars and Ruler of Heaven’s armies.

This is the power and strength that I can call on, that will carry me through troubles. God can handle it no matter how wide the problem, or how deep the sorrow or how high the wall. He will enable me to get through it, to tread waters of grief or climb steep cliffs of adversity. Its God’s strength NOT mine.

Worry is a joy robber and a peace stomper. I don’t need to worry. I don’t need to fret, I don’t need to be anxious, not even for a minute.
I need to run to the Peace Maker.

Steps to fixing your mind on God.

1. Focusing on God keeps your mind from fretting. To focus on God, be aware of His presence. Talk to Him, give Him your problems, your worries. Talk to Him about any thing and everything, even seemingly trivial things. Nothing is too small, and nothing is too big for our God.
“Happy are those who hear the joyful call to worship, for they will walk in the light of Your presence, Lord. They rejoice all day long in Your wonderful reputation. They exult in Your righteousness. You are their glorious strength. It pleases You to make us strong. Yes our protection comes from the Lord.” Psalm 89:15-18 NLT

2. Praise Him! Praise opens the gates to His presence. Praise makes us aware of Him. Bask in His presence. Sit quietly in His light. Soak up His radiance. Literally open your mind to Him. Let His love and peace flow into your mind and heart.

“Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!
Worship the Lord with gladness.
Come before Him, singing with joy.
Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us, and we are His. We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter His gates with thanksgiving. Go into His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name.
For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever! His faithfulness continues to each generation!” Psalm 100 NLT

3. Thank Him in all things and for all things. Be grateful. It’s hard to fret and grumble when we are giving thanks. Sometimes we don’t feel like thanking Him for anything, much less the undesirable things in our lives. Like snow in October! That’s where the sacrifice of thanksgiving comes in. We lay our thanksgiving on the alter. We bind them with cords of praise so they don’t fly away, and grumbling takes over once again.

When we thank God for some undesired circumstance we are submitting to His will in our lives.  Even when it seems all wrong.
Thankfulness is not a feeling, it’s a choice. This is God’s will.

“Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in ALL circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” I Thes. 5:16-17

4. Refuse to worry. Refuse! Don’t allow anxiety to enter your being. This is easier said than done, I have found. As I get older, anxiety slithers into my mind and I am totally unaware of it until I find myself gnawing on the bone of worry. Suddenly I am fretting over some small thing. Often, big worries overwhelm me. I must always, every time, lay them at the feet of Jesus. Give them into His capable hands. Thank Him ahead of time for taking care of my problems no matter how big or how small. Praise Him for answering the way He knows is best, even if it seems all wrong.

It’s a constant fight. Prayer, thanksgiving, praise and His Word are weapons against worry.

“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food or drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food and your body more than clothing?
Look at the birds they don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your Heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to Him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?
So don’t worry about these things, saying, “What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear? These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your Heavenly Father already knows all your needs.
Seek the Kingdom of God (His presence, His Will in your life) above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need.
So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” Mathew 6:25-27, 31-34 NLT (that’s what I always do, worry about what might happen, when it may never happen.)

5. Trust Him. Take His hand. Lean on Him. Hide in the shelter of His wings. Focusing on God leads to trust. Knowing Him through His word helps us trust Him. Remembering what He has done in the past in our lives and in lives of others keeps up our confidence.
When worry comes, say, “I trust You. You will take care of it.” All the time. Lay everything at His feet. If you take it back, lay it down again. And again. Every time you start to fret or worry, give it to Him. EVERY TIME.

Trust Him no matter what happens, no matter how bad the situation, no matter how dark the night. Trust Him when trusting is the hardest thing to do.

“Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper.
Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires.
Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust Him and He will help you.” Psalm 27:3-5 NLT
“The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust Him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving. The Lord gives His people strength. He is a safe fortress for His anointed king.” Psalm 28:7-8 NLT

His peace is unworldly, out of this world, unnatural, super natural. His peace goes beyond understanding, beyond human explanation. His peace does not depend on circumstances but it depends on the God of the universe. The Mighty One.

He gives perfect peace only when I trust Him. When I worry, when I look at my own strength, when I depend on my abilities, when I forget that Jesus walks with me and holds my hand, peace evaporates like mist in the air. Worry stomps peace.

Jesus is the one who holds my hand. He lifts me up with His strong arm. I need to give it to the Peace Maker and the Joy Giver every time.

Stand on the Rock. He is bigger than you. He is stronger than your problems. He is mightier than the entire universe. He fights for you. He stands beside you. He holds your hand. He gives perfect peace. He is the Peace Giver.

“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged , for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.
For I hold you by your right hand—I, the lord your God. And I say to you, “Don’t be afraid, I am here to help you.” Isaiah 41:10,13 NLT

“The Lord is my light and my salvation, so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble?
Though a mighty army surrounds me, my heart will not be afraid. Even if I am attacked (which I am by my enemies of fear, anxiety, doubt, worry, anger ect. All the time) I will remain confident.
The one thing I ask of the Lord—the thing I seek most—is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, (in His presence) delighting in the lord’s perfections and meditating in His temple.
For He will conceal me there when troubles come.
He will hide me in His sanctuary.
He will place me out of reach on a HIGH rock.
Wait patiently for the Lord.
Be brave and courageous.
Yes wait patiently for the Lord.” Psalm 27:1, 3-5, 14