7 Ways to Practice Peace

God has blessed me with the capability to enjoy life so much more than I used to. And so my new goal in life is to help whoever I can to experience that same joy. And I believe a big part of joy is peace. Just think about it...If you don't have peace you most likely you aren't enjoying life very much. That just no bueno, my friends.

So I want to share with you a devotional I came across today. I copied it into my phone's notes a couple years ago. It lists 7 ways to practice peace. It's funny because I may have copied this down years ago, but I realized that God has me practicing them now through the BootCamp I'm doing, which is why I'm even more grateful that God lead me to it (You can read about it here).

 Here's what the devotional says --   

"Living in God's peace is vital to enjoying life. I believe that one of the keys to living with peace in your life is taking small steps toward peace every day. Here are a few tips you can use to develop a more peaceful lifestyle.  

1. Be selective with how you spend your time. You may be trying to do too many things and end up doing none of them well. Hurrying is the flesh trying to do more than the Holy Spirit is leading you to do. Be led by the Spirit.    
2. Be prepared to say "no" nicely. Sometimes we take on things we shouldn't because we're uncomfortable saying no. Ask God to give you the words to say no when you need to. 
3. Resist the spirit of procrastination. God's Word tells us to exercise self-discipline. Do what you know you need to do now so you can fully enjoy your times of rest. 
4. Eliminate key distractions. If you know you are prone to certain distractions, such as watching TV, set some guidelines for yourself. 
5. Set appropriate boundaries for interruptions. Life is full of interruptions, but you can learn to set boundaries that help you manage them in healthy ways, such as scheduling times when you are "off limits." Schedule time to give yourself a break. 
6. Modify your life. Ask God to show you out-of-the-box ways to save time and trouble. For instance, when I don't have time to do the dishes, I use paper plates! 
7. Pray and listen. If you can see that your plan is not producing peace, go back to God, pray for peace in the now, and for the wisdom to make changes that will benefit your life. 

The bottom line is to make peace a priority, take practical steps toward it, and let God lead you every day into His perfect peace that passes all understanding.  

Prayer Starter: God, lead me into Your peace that passes all understanding. Show me the daily steps I can take to walk in Your peace for me."

There's an amazing and unexplainable peace that only God can give us, if we let Him. But in addition to that, these are simple, tangible tasks for us to do in order keep us from causing our own chaos and sucking the peace and joy out of our lives. So let's puts these words into action and start practicing peace. And don't forget the more we practice the better we get. So don't get frustrated if you don't have perfect peace right away. Just take it one day at a time!


Here's a passage of scripture that the devotional included: 

Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:5-7 NLT)