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Have you ever had your peace disrupted? You know that was really a leading question. We have all experienced numerous times in our lives when our peace has been jolted. There are times where you cannot control what comes your way and attempts to disrupt your peace. There are other times when we ourselves are the culprits of forsaking our own peace.
The other day I woke up to do my typical morning quiet time. It’s a routine of reading the Bible and sitting in a time of stillness with Jesus. But instead of digging right into the Word I did something I had done more times than I would like to admit. I picked up my phone and started scrolling. Within seconds I felt my peace leak out being replaced with anxiousness, and a feeling of uneasiness creeping in. As I was “harmlessly” flipping through people’s social media updates I inadvertently started comparing my life with theirs. It was unconscious but I became astutely aware when my barometer of peace dropped, and negative thoughts started pelting me like hail on a stormy day. Thoughts of unworthiness and inadequacy flooded my mind. “Who do you think you are?” “You are not good enough or qualified enough.” “That person is way farther along and more accomplished than you. “You do not have what it takes.” I could feel myself sinking fast and it was my fault. I did not guard my mind. I sacrificed my peace for a few minutes on my phone. I let the enemy have a foothold in my mind and disparaging thoughts ran rampant.
Proverbs 4:23 warns about being intentional about protecting your peace when it says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it..”
The Passion translation says it this way: “So above all, guard the affections of your heart, for they affect all that you are. Pay attention to the welfare of your innermost being, for from there flows the wellspring of life.” The word heart is translated from the Hebrew word meaning mind, knowledge, thinking, consciousness.
If your mind and heart are infiltrated and polluted with comparison and thoughts of incompetence, insufficiency, or inferiority, the enemy will have a field day force feeding you lies, and your peace will be compromised. You have a choice on what you fill your mind with. So, the next time you are tempted to grab your phone instead of meditating on the Word of God remember this: Scripture before screen time! Let the Word of God dwell in you richly before compromising your peace with comparison and social media.