Peace that Surpasses All Understanding
I grew up in a Catholic family and there was a part of every Sunday service where we would say “Peace be with you” to the other congregants sitting near us. They would say the same to us. I didn’t really understand a lot about the meaning of those words. To me, it was like saying “Hello, I hope that you’re doing well.”
That phrase came up recently and I started to think about the value of peace in our lives. I want you and everyone in our world to realize peace in their lives. It’s in that state of peace that we’re able to connect deeply to Spirit and be guided and directed to live in accordance with our desires and the divine plan for our lives. The idea of peace is wonderful, but I understand that many are not in a peaceful state. Many people are experiencing a tremendous amount of stress in their lives.
The stress that results everyday with work, relationships and finances are concerning. And, what about the turmoil outside of our immediate families and communities? We’ve been learning about a serious worldwide virus that is spreading and killing people, large fires in other parts of the world, fighting among our politicians in the US and abroad, and challenges in our work, our environments and our world. You might ask - how can we experience peace in the midst of all of this? It comes down to your choice. You can choose peace.
Philippians 4:6-8 in the bible says “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things.”
Peace beyond understanding sounds great, but what does that passage actually mean? Following is a practical and metaphysical meaning that I get from this scripture:
- - “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
You have the power to choose. You can choose to be anxious for nothing. You can choose to define what outcome you’d like to experience instead of the stressful situation that you’ve been focusing on. To make requests for something different, use gratitude statements each day to proclaim that your desired outcomes are completed and manifest. Present your clear desires to your spiritual Self. e.g. If you’re concerned about homelessness, create gratitude statements like, “I’m grateful that all peoples in our world including me are living healthy, happy and safe lives with all of our needs met in lawful ways. All of us treat each other with respect and live together in our world in peace, safety and harmony.” Or, for conflict, “I’m grateful that I experience harmony and peace in all of my relationships. I express love to all. Only those people who are for my highest and greatest Good are in my life and I am happy to be part of their lives. All others find their Good elsewhere.”
You can create gratitude statements for any situations that you feel stressed or worried about. Choose what you’d like the outcomes to be and express gratitude for that experience in your life. Don’t describe how you’ll get to that experience, just that you are already there experiencing that Good. As you put these words and thoughts out there in the Universe, two things happen. First, your subconscious will filter data that’s available for you to notice and bring to your attention those things that are in alignment with your statements. Second, your spiritual intuition will illuminate possible steps that you can take to realize your desired Good.
As you remain focused on what you are “for” and you stop looking for what you’re “against”, you will begin to notice more Good coming into your life and have a new sense of peace and hope. It’s remarkable and can be experienced easier that it can be explained. Your heart and mind will be guarded from anxiety. Shift your focus and receive a greater sense of Peace.
- - Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things.”
Expand your gratitude to things that are part of your Good experience every day. Rather than complain about what’s wrong with others, our world, or yourself, choose to search for something to be grateful for multiple times a day; a sunny day, clean water to drink, a deep breath with clear lungs, a kind interaction with a stranger, a story about someone doing something to improve our world, an opportunity for you to love someone, etc. As a result of these actions, the things that you are grateful for will grow in value, and you will experience even greater peace in your life. As you experience more peace, you will demonstrate to others that they can do the same. Peace expands. It starts with you.
To solidify these ideas into a morning ritual to prime your brain for peace, do the following each day to invite the Peace that Surpasses All Understanding into your life:
- 1. Choose to wake up each morning 25 – 30 minutes earlier than normal. Go to a chair or couch in your home and focus on the Good outcomes that you’d like to experience in your life.
- 2. Write down a gratitude statement for each area of concern in your life. Describe what you’d like the outcomes to be as though they are completed with gratitude. Let spiritual intuition guide you to take actions and realize the outcomes.
- 3. Speak your statements out loud and carry them with you throughout the day. If you find that one of the concerning issues shows up, repeat your gratitude statements about your desired outcomes that relate to that topic at least 10 times out loud. Peace will replace your stress.
Remember, you always have the power to choose. Make a commitment to choose to do what’s necessary to experience more peace in your life. If you practice the tips above daily, you will realize more peace. If more of us do this collectively, our world will be affected and a peace that surpasses all understanding will expand and prevail. May you be blessed on Your Path to all that is Good and Peaceful in your life!