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Presented by Lauren Stibgen
Work is only one element of our life that can bring stress. Marriage, children, family, health issues, and anything else we add into the mix of our days can make us anxious too.
Honestly, thinking about how to find peace from all of this can be yet one more thing we add to our mix. Is seeking fleeting peace only adding to your anxiety?
We can feel anxiety as we are waiting for this elusive moment for peace. Maybe you have even tried to plan it out. We experience anxiety in our waiting when our perceived outcome doesn’t happen within the perceived time we have set in our mind. If you have blocked out a time for peace on your calendar each day and it keeps getting run over by life, I can imagine this can make you more anxious!
I have felt all of this. In fact, there was a large part of my professional and mom life that I told my husband I felt like I was wearing a high heel and a gym shoe at the same time. Try walking like this—a heel on one foot and a gym shoe on another—unbalanced, kind of messy, out of sorts! I was consumed by so many things and not turning to where I truly could find the peace I needed: Jesus.
Jesus promises us trouble here in this world. He knows we will be experiencing the feelings of being consumed, out of balance.
I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace (John 16:33).
Jesus is clear. In him I can have peace. I know this sounds silly, but when I think of the peace of Jesus that gives rest, I think of my most comfortable, fluffy house slippers. I am not fancy; I am not running anywhere. I am keeping a slow pace and finding rest.
Too often we are trying to plan our own peace when we need to be turning to Jesus. While some of the ways we seek peace in this world aren’t “bad,” they will never be a complete salve for the anxiety we feel.