no ordinary days

Angela Howard

Peace—Embracing a Life of Hope, Wholeness and Harmony

By: Angela Howard

peaceHave you ever felt like peace was just an elusive idea meant for inspirational quotes or holiday sentiments? What would it be like to experience Peace for a Lifetime—real peace in our relationship with God, with our emotions, and with our relationships? This might seem like a far off dream, but it is possible!

After receiving Christ as our Savior we experience God’s grace working in and through our lives in an instant, but our sanctification happens overtime. Oswald Chambers defines sanctification as being “intensely focused on God’s point of view… to secure and to keep all the strength of our body, soul, and spirit for God’s purpose alone.” I don’t know about you, but I often feel impatient with the process. In the past I’ve been sucked into the fruitless efforts of trying harder to be sweeter, more patient, and less selfish. If you are anything like me than you know this never works for more than a few days…ok a few hours!

1 Thessalonians 5:23 encourages us saying: May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (ESV)

God Changes Us!

It is God who changes us, and for that I’m grateful. As God does the heavy lifting we have the opportunity to submit to His grace as we find healing and transformation by the Holy Spirit’s power. A big part of that is slowing down long enough to discern the areas in our lives that need His healing touch. Sometimes it’s our relationship with Jesus, our relationship with others, or even our relationship with ourselves.

You might be surprised to learn that many of the changes we desire in our relationships begin by understanding our emotions. We need to develop what author and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Lisa Murray calls, Emotional Abundance, the ability to “…[F]eel our emotions, to reason through our emotions, to understand our emotions, and to effectively manage our emotions so we can appropriately respond to the people and circumstances around us.”

As we release our way for God’s way we will see big transformations. We can be confident that God will do what He promised.

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. Ezekiel 36:26 (NIV)

Redefine Success

So as we jump in 2017 let’s redefine what it means to be successful. In the world, success looks a lot like working hard to achieve more for our own glory. In the kingdom of God, success is all about the incredible transformation of our hearts to love the way Jesus loves, to share His message of hope and peace—all to the glory of God.

Peace is not a vague or ambiguous ideal. It’s not based on our circumstances, and it doesn’t need to be temporary. Our peace with God is the foundation of all other areas of our lives. Through that incredible foundation we can start addressing peace in our emotions, our bodies, and our relationships with others.

Don’t believe the lie that this year will be full of the same worry and fear that has robbed you of the peace you are longing for. God is offering you healing, abundant life, and lasting peace!

For Further Reading on Peace:

Peace for Lifetime—Embracing a Life of Hope, Wholeness & Harmony Through Emotional Abundance by Lisa Murray

Can I ask you a quick favor? If today’s post has impacted you would you share it on your social media sites? When you do, it helps me get my blog in front of more wonderful people just like you! I’d be very grateful.

Special Note: This post also appeared on the I am Her blog.

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Comments

  4. Cheryl Gerou says

    Hi from your neighbor at RaRa linkup. What a great post. It is easy to get frustrated in the sanctification process, God has His perfect timing and it is so hard for us to understand. Thank you for sharing these encouraging words. May your soul be refreshed with His peace as you grow in His grace.

    • Angela Howard says

      I appreciate your comments Cheryl. God definitely sees beyond what we see and for that reason alone I know we can trust Him–even when we don’t understand. Blessings!

  5. Horace Williams Jr. says

    As I continue to go through the process of sanctification, I am thankful for the peace that God offers. We must look beyond our circumstances and trust the Perfecter of our faith. Thanks for sharing this poignant and inspiring post Angela. Blessings to you and yours in 2017.

  8. Tiffany Parry says

    What wonderful insight and encouragement, Angela. We can get so wrapped up in chasing peace that we forget it’s a beautiful byproduct of authentic relationship with Jesus – of trusting Him more than anything else. Thank you for sharing – I’ve tweeted it too!!

  9. Brandi Raae says

    Ooh, I really like that Oswald Chambers quote about sanctification! One of the things I’m praying for this year is FOCUS, so that goes along perfectly. :) Thanks for linking up with Literacy Musing Mondays. Pinning to my faith pinterest board!

  10. Lori Schumaker says

    Hi friend! This book was one of my top 2 favorite books from 2016! Such life-giving-hope-filled information tucked between those pages! Thanks so much for sharing it with us at #MomentsofHope! It’s so good to stop here again ♥
    Hugs,
    Lori

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in my posts are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”