In need of peace...

I've met several individuals lately who are so in need of peace. Life has hit them hard in various ways, and they just don't know where to begin to find the peace they long for each day. One young woman came yesterday for a spa treatment. She is out of a job, can't pay her rent or car payment, and she suffers from mental illness of some sort. At 8, she was diagnosed and medicated for bipolar disorder only to find last week that she does not have bipolar disorder and has taken meds for 12 years for nothing. She is off those meds and on to others now that the "experts" have decided she suffers from another disorder. Her family calls her constantly - both out of concern for her not doing what she needs to do each day and for the fact that they are paying most of her bills. She said the word suicide last week and ended up in a psych unit for a few days. I assured her I was no doctor but that I knew Jesus healed many people who seemed to be suffering from mental illness. I told her how He has healed my varied disorders in life and how satan works to get people to kill themselves. He authors all lies and constantly seeks to lie to us about ourselves.

How much of our problems are simply born of our failure to apply truth to our lives and walk in responsible ways? A large dose of self control is needed in her life. She calls people any hour of the day and has accepted that she just does that. She sleeps thru the day and is amazed that she cant' sleep at night until the wee hours of the morning. Hello.....get up early and you'll be sleepy that night at bedtime. Just say no when you have an impulse to do something that takes no account into how it will affect others. How could such simple answers allude someone? Because there is so much noise coming from her mouth and the mouths of those around her that she doesn't have an ear to hear what is so obvious.

What about me? What about you? Do you ever dread a task that needs to be done and in your sane mind you know you are going to be the one to do it yet you don't take the needed action? I was recently feeling not so motivated to make salads for my husband's lunches that week. I just did not want to do anything. Yet at some level, it was pressing on me to do. I had bought the good ingredients and had everything I needed to make those lunches I wanted to make. I decided to just get up and do it. Within 20 minutes, I had 5 great salads made for the week and the mess cleaned up in the kitchen. And the "I don't want to go do that" feeling was gone. How simple was that? How simply could all of our non-peaceful thoughts be solved by simply taking action to do what we need to do?

Not so lofty thoughts, but life changing conclusions. The Spirit of God who lives in every believer in Jesus Christ waits to give us peace about even the smallest things in life. Are you listening to His guidance for you? He is called the Comforter for a reason. Listening to Him and following His lead brings comfort....and joy!