During my morning walk today, I was pondering this word. I believe PEACE is something every human being is longing for. We search for it in everything we do, and even through things we acquire. We say things like, "If I could just get that new dress, that will make me feel much better about myself." Or, "If I could work for that company and earn more money, then I know we'd be happier." And how much of our time is spent wishing our general circumstances were different? We want PEACE. We want quietness in our souls. We want our minds to be free from disturbances.
During the recent month, I have been experiencing several disturbances. I want to do something about them...now! I think that if I can remove them, then my inner PEACE will return. I want the nagging feeling of frustration to go away.
It began last month with the "death" that I talked about in this blog. The smell eventually dissipated, however there continue to be signs of critters on our property. Lately we've confronted oppossums at night. HATE those things! They leave droppings and I dread the walks from our car, through the back yard, into our house at night. Mosquitoes have made their return as well. We're doing our best to formulate a plan of attack so that we can enjoy our outdoor spaces. Ants seem to like the one corner of my kitchen. We have to exterminate them every morning! In addition, the full time job I've held during the last four months has allowed me little time to tend to the basic housekeeping tasks I actually enjoy. And there are a few more frustrations that I could name but I'll end there...
Then, one day, a good friend posted a short statement on Facebook. "Frustration is an expression of selfishness." hmmmmm. I went quiet inside...my journey towards humility continues.
Lately, I've been praying a specific prayer: "Father God, You created me. You know me. You know my future. So I trust You." I've prayed this many times out loud. It's been good to hear myself say those words. When my circumstances are not delivering PEACE, I must remember to run to Him. It was interesting to me when I later discovered that this same Facebook friend posted another short statement, "Godly PEACE and calm is trust in action."
"Lord Jesus, thank you for showing me where I still need to trust you. I want more of You and less of me. Fill me with your PEACE so that in all things others see You instead of me. You've created me and know me. You even know my future, so I trust You. Amen"Yet, I still like to do everything I can with my physical surroundings to promote PEACE for the soul. My surroundings definitely affect how I feel. Perhaps I can illustrate this with a few things we are currently working on around the house...
(so many projects, so little time)
DOES NOT BRING PEACE...
.......MUCH BETTER!
NOT PRETTY....
the old front taken off revealed 100 year old dirt...
...and now mid phase; FEELS BETTER ALREADY.
And then there were the radiators; 3 of them just sitting on the 3rd floor. We finally scheduled a day to do the dreaded task of hauling them down 2 flights of steps and out the door.
Hard work, but so glad they are out of the house. Now we can finish renovating the room on the 3rd floor. In a few weeks we'll decide how to get them out of the yard.
Oh yeah...the back yard! Green space and dirt is good therapy for me. I can't wait to have an urban garden. We are currently in the planning phase of designing a larger patio space and flowerbeds. But right now it's just a space to walk through on the way to our parked cars, dodging mosquitoes while watching your step on uneven bricks. FRUSTRATING!
We've torn down an old lattice fence so that we can plant a green border...MUCH BETTER.
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