Your Peace Is Your Responsibility

The day and time in which we live are unprecedented ones. I often say that "Change is inevitable." Regardless of how a person may oppose, argue, or combat change, it's still going to happen. Despite how uncomfortable, painful, or grievous, change is an aspect of life that we all must face and experience. Change is that part of life that no one can avoid or exempt.

A quirky yet aggravating trait of change (if it were a person) is its appearance at the most inopportune time. Have you noticed that change doesn't forewarn or check your availability before showing up? It just happens! Suddenly, death, financial deficit, news of an unplanned pregnancy, a violation of some sort, and now life as you've known it has changed. What I've discovered throughout my life is that change warrants decisions. Though we can't prohibit change in most instances, we can control our response and reaction to it.

In the past two years, the country, nation, and the world experienced change like never before. Culturally, politically, economically, institutionally, and domestically, modifications were all around us and even forced upon us. As a result, many are anxious, emotionally unstable, and full of fear. Does this describe you? Have you so conditioned your mind with propaganda, assumptions, and fallacy that your peace has been left unguarded and defenseless?

Understand that your peace is your responsibility, no one else. If you're going to possess and access the peace of Jesus in John 14:27 and Philippians 4:7, passivity must not be your posture. You can't leave your peace to chance; instead, you must be intentional about what the mind conceives, imagines, and considers.

"Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things." (Philippians 4:8, NKJ)

What we constantly think (meditate) about either strengthens or weakens our peace and determines the level and degree of God's involvement to assist in guarding it.

Isaiah 26:3 says it so clear, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee."

So don't let change, whether welcomed or unwelcomed, dictate your reaction. Instead, choose to respond per God's word, ensuring your peace is intact. Doing so gives you the advantage over Satan and his tactics. Remember, your peace is your responsibility, so guard it at all cost, and it will in turn guard you.