Disrupted peace?

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Romans 15:13

What methods do you use to calm yourself? How does the Holy Spirit utilize His fruit of peace in your life? Have you asked Him how to have more of His fruit of peace in your life? What really is the fruit of peace? The Greek word for peace in Galatians 5:22 is eirene (i-ray-nay) which means properly “wholeness”, where all the essential parts are joined together. Peace= God’s gift of wholeness. Peace is where harmony prevails in a peaceful mind. (think of Jesus asleep in the boat in a major storm)

What are the major disrupters of your peace? Fear? Doubt? Believed lies? Reminders of your past failures and sins? Diminishing hope? Have you set ‘alarms in your life to keep your peace from being disrupted? How does your anxiety destroy your peace?

When you feel anxiety or fear building in you what to you usually do? Allow it to build? Feed it with worry (allowing your mind to dwell on it)? Try to stuff it down and ignore it? Have you tried giving it to God? Have you confessed to Him your own inability to cope and asked for His help?

Our habits that include how we cope with fear, doubt, and anxiety must change! We must learn to engage with the Holy Spirit in the moment and ask Him to re-program our reactions. How do we deal with emotions and thinking patterns when faced with day-to-day things that stir these dark emotions within us?

What habits of yours destroy the fruit of peace of the Holy Spirit that He is attempting to plant and grow in your life? Have you asked Him directly? Are you working on changing those habits?

Do be naïve – the enemy of your soul wants your peace disrupted. They will use every dirty trick and weakness you have to disrupt your peace. Are you determined to ‘walk in His peace’? Paul talks about spiritual armor in Ephesians chapter 6, and what item we need in applying His ‘peace’. Keeping your peace is part of the spiritual battle. Read Ephesians 6:18-20.

A person who maintains the fruit of peace – is a beacon of God’s wholeness and harmony. What are you going to do today when your peace is challenged and disrupted? Think it through and be ready.