Taking the Path to Peace

I’m always interested in hearing what other people have to say about determining God’s will, and this week, I came across something that makes the most sense yet!

“I simply proceed by faith on the path of greatest peace (not the path of least resistance).” (Can You Hear Me?, Brad Jersak)

© 2014 jacinta lluch valero, Flickr | CC-BY-SA | via Wylio

That stuck, the moment I read it. It just made sense to me. And then I had the chance to try it out right away!

I’ve been stressed over the last couple of weeks. We’ve had some big decisions to make, and my brain generally gets a lot more mileage out of these situations than Ben’s does. He is perfectly content to wait and see what happens, and he just trusts that things will become clear with time. But once again, I was putting a lot of energy into making decisions, and trying to figure out the very best solutions to each of the situations we were facing.

When I read the quote about the path of greatest peace, I put it to the test. I brought the situations to God, and I asked, “What would bring the most peace? I don’t care about what’s easiest, I just want peace.”

And immediately, I knew what needed to be done.

It became perfectly clear to me.

One situation had an easy solution, and the other actually seemed to call for the more difficult choice, but Ben and I both felt complete peace about that choice – it was not “the path of least resistance”.

It brought a lot of joy to me when I realized once again that seeking God’s best will bring peace, even if it’s the tougher option. Only He can do that, hey? It makes me wonder why I’m afraid of what His will might be – I can slip into thinking it will seem hard or horrible. And yet it will always be what brings the greatest amount of peace, even if it’s the tougher option.

So on this beautiful Friday, I wish you a wonderful weekend, filled with His peace!

Where is God in This?

I’m still slowly making my way through the amazing book Can You Hear Me? and loving it more all the time. I definitely recommend this book!!

What I’ve been loving recently is a little prayer exercise of asking God where He is (or was) in a situation.

For example, a painful memory from the past – “Where were you when this happened, Father?”

Or a Bible story – if I were in that story, where would God be? I tried it with the story of the Israelites crossing the Red Sea, and immediately got a picture in my mind of walking through those walls of water with Jesus right by my side. It was such an incredible reminder of His presence beside me in any situation.

I prayed that prayer for a friend’s little girl who was facing some health issues, and saw a picture in my mind of God holding her in His hands.

And another time, for a friend’s little boy, and this time, it was a picture of God following that little boy, watching him with pride as he ran ahead.

He is there in everything, but it’s hard to remember that, when we feel afraid or alone. I love this idea of asking Him to show us where He is.