God’s Word is the ultimate way to keep your peace. However, many times you can rob yourself of peace, simply because of the faulty choices you make. Here are fifteen good choices to make to help keep God’s gift of peace!
Spiritual
- Spend time with Jesus.
The most important way to keep your peace is to allow the Prince of Peace to influence your life. Though He has given you His nature of peace, consistent communication with Him allows that peace to manifest in your life. Peace alone is in His presence.
- Repent quickly.
The devil will bring condemnation and anxiety to your mind when you have sinned and are unrepentant. Being quick to repent when you have done wrong will shut down his lies, and allow your conscience to rest because you know you’re forgiven.
Entertainment
- Choose encouraging, peaceful music.
Music has a powerful way of influencing your mood, both by the message and the style. Negative lyrics and aggressive instrumentation can plant seeds of unrest in your mind if you listen to it consistently. Inspirational, Bible-based lyrics will fill your mind with positive messages that inspire peaceful thoughts. Soothing, happy tunes create an atmosphere that welcomes and creates peace.
- Watch only encouraging, peaceful TV programs and movies.
What goes in your eye gate is just as important as what goes in your ear gate. When you watch negative programs – especially those with violence or stressful drama between people – it impacts your soul and drains your spirit. Choosing peaceful things to watch shuts the door on stressful emotions and invites happy, peaceful ones.
Time Spent
- Take time to relax.
If your body never rests, neither will your mind. Taking time to relax the body goes a long way into inviting peace into your daily routine. Getting a good night’s sleep and sitting down for a few minutes helps the body and the mind to unwind.
- Take time to have fun.
“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” is a true statement! Constantly feeling the pressure of work but never any pleasure can bring on stress that robs peace. Stopping to have pleasure once in a while with some of your favorite hobbies or friends can help lift stress and make a way for peace.
- Don’t overschedule.
Many times the lack of peace you feel is because of a hectic schedule you were never meant to have. When you prioritize and only get involved the things you were meant to do – not what others demand you do – you are more able to maintain a peaceful mind and life.
Relationships
- Choose peaceful friends.
The people you hang around is a huge factor in whether you experience peace or stress. People influence us with their behavior and attitudes. They will eventually rub off on us by either making us like them, or by bogging us down with their own concerns. Choosing Godly, peaceful friends, on the other hand, will help sustain peace.
- Walk in love and forgiveness.
Where there is frustration, anger, or unforgiveness, there will be no peace. Rather than wallowing in offense, you can nurture your peace by walking in love. When you are quick to forgive, you are quick to protect and keep your peace.
Health
10. Exercise.
Exercise has been medically known to relieve stress. It also strengthens the body and gives more energy to do what you need to do. With more strength and health to assist you in your daily routine, it is far easier to keep your peace.
- Avoid foods and drugs that affect emotions.
Foods and drinks that contain caffeine, sugar, and alcohol will give you a temporary burst of energy and happiness but will drop you later into lethargy. The momentary emotional high is not worth the hangover or lack of energy that follows. By choosing wholesome foods and drinks instead, you assist yourself in living in peace.
Lifestyle
- Avoid spending outside your means.
Much stress in life is caused by money issues. One common money issue is debt, a bondage that can rob you of your peace. You lose your peace when you are consistently worried about how you’re going to get out of that debt. Rather than choosing to spend outside your means, you can be a good steward and choose to live responsibly with what you have.
- Stay in God’s will for your life.
Peace never follows the choice to do things your way instead of God’s. God only supplies grace, peace, and favor to His will. When you step out of that will, those gifts from God disappear. However, the moment you agree to stay in God’s perfect will, God’s peace is back in place!
- Declutter and clean your home.
Living in chaos and dirt never inspires peace! By surrounding yourself with cleanliness and organization, you can shut out some stress that can appear simply because you’re in an atmosphere of chaos.
- Write down things to remember.
Oftentimes you can lose your peace simply because you are trying to remember too much! By writing things down, you can place the weight of remembering onto a piece of paper rather than your own brain. You can rest at night knowing the list is there for you to see in the morning!
If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.
Romans 12:18
Christa Madrid 