Today I read a friend’s blogpost The Salve of Heaven. It was about actively, consistently seeking peace. She reiterated how all of our days should be peaceful, even in the face of storm. I know. I said “how?” too. Her answer was simple. So simple I would’ve never thought of it. You choose peace – choose being the key word here.
How many times have all of us reacted to the latest storm with kicking and screaming? How many times have we grabbed that phone or keyboard and unleashed a tirade that left us exhausted and upset? For me? Too many times. During my three year pursuit of peace and healing I’ve shut down that kind of behavior. In disagreements with my husband and kids, when I feel that angry response to something I deem unjust, I stop. I have learned to become sensitive to that “incensed” feeling and when it strikes, I immediately stop. I don’t give in to the person. I don’t back down if I feel I have a legitimate point to make. I just stop. Stopping has saved me from slinging out that cutting or hurtful comment that would just deepen the altercation. Stopping enables me to proceed in a calmer, more rational manner. Stopping has kept me from jumping in and solving a problem my child has, when they are more than capable of solving it themselves because I stopped and listened. Both of my daughters will call me and rant for thirty or more minutes, and then just say thanks for listening and hang up.
My friend, in her blog, put it very simply:
For once we have tasted the heart benefits of peaceful response to any and every situation we might encounter, once we choose peace rather than agitating passions, once we step out on the authority and absolute reliability of God’s word and surrender to trusting in Him unconditionally – we have placed ourselves on the path of eagerly pursuing that continuous state of peace that will nurture us, sustain us, and utterly defeat any attempt by “the world, the flesh, and the devil” to shatter that “heart calm”! ~ Merrilyn Grodecki
The part of this quote that resonated with me was: “choose peace, rather than agitating passions.” When I read that I thought “Yes, yes! That’s it exactly!” Stop, and CHOOSE peace instead of partaking in incensed agitation, leaving you stressed, and in most cases, so sorry you said what you said.
And so, as another day goes by, let us learn to exercise our option to “choose peace, rather than agitating passions,” and…I have written.
Linda,
Feedback is so wonderful!! And what you wrote about your own experiences and discoveries so beautifuuly speaks to the heart stand we are all to situate ourselves in. Very nicely explained – very nicely written. And thank you so much for acknowledging the post. Merri