Peace – You Can’t Give What You Don’t Have

Notes From This Episode

Getting quiet and reconnecting with Our Creator, God, is an important component in keeping our peace.

They say that “Be not afraid” or “Fear Not” is in the bible 365 times – I don’t know if that’s true, but it’s enough to know that Jesus referred to not being afraid many, many times.

But we can’t depend simply on ourselves to not be afraid.

Dealing With Fear

When I coach women who are dealing with fear, I help them see that fear is just an emotion that comes from something we think.

Our brain likes to think things – especially things that cause fear – over and over again.

We can certainly tell ourselves, “There’s nothing to be afraid of” but it is much more effective to find proof.

And we, as Christians, have the luxury – really the luxury – to find proof that God will take care of us from the words and actions of Jesus that we read in the Gospels.

In fact, for all your Martha’s of the world – I’m one of them! – we recount from the Gospels that Jesus was told that his friend Lazarus, Martha’s brother, was dying. 

Jesus waited two days before going to Lazarus –

Why?

Why did he not hurry off to see Lazarus maybe before he died or to be there to comfort Martha and Mary as their brother was ill and dying.

Faith Brings Peace

Jesus didn’t hurry off because he knew what he was going to do.

And in his delay to come help his friends, Martha’s faith was tested.

“Lord, if you had been here,
my brother would not have died.
But even now I know that whatever you ask of God,
God will give you.”

She had matured in her faith to the point of believing that Jesus could take care of anything – even bringing her dead brother back to life.

And He did.

You don’t have that kind of faith without having a close, intimate relationship with Jesus.

Developing Our Relationship with Jesus

And close relationships – whether with people in our lives that we can see and touch, or our relationship with Jesus – doesn’t just happen.

We have to work on it – tend to it. 

I have rose bushes in the front of my house that my husband tenderly takes care of for me.  He waters them, feeds them, and protects them from disease and pests.  They are beautiful and  periodically he cuts some and brings them in for me.

But they’re not just for me – these massively beautiful roses that cover the front of our house are a source of God’s beauty for our whole subdivision.

Everyone who drives down the street can see the beauty and elegance of these roses – bringing to their life, a small consolation in what may be an otherwise difficult day.

That’s what we’re called to be to our families and friends – really anyone we meet.

That small consolation of beauty – of God’s creation.

What Happens When We Don’t Tend to Our Interior (Faith) Life

Michael and I go on a nightly walk with our “small blonde child” Daisy our golden doodle and we walk by a development of villas.

They’re expensive villas – the pond is well taken care of with little ducklings.

The lawns are manicured and trees are trimmed well.

Yet, they didn’t take of their rose bushes at the entrance gate.

And those bushes – the same kind I have – were decimated by a disease that went through the area at the beginning of the summer.

Every blossom died.  Every leaf fell off.

Those bushes are struggling to come back with the second round of growth – but having so much trouble.

My bushes are strong, healthy, blooming, and beautiful.

Because they have been tended to.

Tend to your interior garden.  Nurture your relationship with Jesus through time in prayer.

What To Do During Prayer Time

Bring to him your worries, frustrations, and fears.

Take time to see your gifts and prayers answered and thank him.

Read the Gospels in the New Testament for 10 minutes and ask God how you can live that message better in your life.

It’s good for you.  With consistent time of prayer – even just 10 minutes a day – you will nurture and tend to your relationship, which will produce a spiritual life that looks like my rose bushes – healthy, strong, and able to withstand contradictions, drought, and pain.

And that interior beauty will radiate to all you care for and meet in your day.

Here’s How to Help Your Children Grow Up With an Active Faith Life

So many young moms ask me how they can make sure their children grow up loving and living their faith.

The answer is simple – love and live it consistently in your life.  Teach them to care for their interior garden – their relationship with Jesus.

Help them to understand the consequences if they don’t.  The feelings of anxiety, fear, and loneliness.

But mostly, teach them to love for the beauty of love – not because they must, or they’ll go to hell if they don’t.

But for the joy and peace that a well-tended interior garden brings.