Sunshine in the Haze

My world recently came crashing down, but I have never felt more at peace. The breaking led me to something far greater than I have ever experienced.

Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t immediately feel at peace. No, I sobbed. It took weeks for me to regain my strength. At first, I thought nothing would be the same—that my world would forever be broken. 

I was right about one thing: My world is not the same. It’s better than it was before. Now, I understand what true peace looks like and how to find it.

My Discovery of True Peace

I have always been a little uptight. Worldly emotions (fear, worry, anxiety, etc.) have always consumed me. You have probably felt this way at some point or another.

For the longest time, I thought these emotions were a good thing. “I’m just prepared,” I would say as I held my breath and waited for all my fears to come true.

But there is a difference between being prepared and living in uneasiness.

Psalms 43:1-3 says, “God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear,
Even though the earth be removed,
And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
Though its waters roar and be troubled,
Though the mountains shake with its swelling.”

All throughout the Old Testament, we see a name given to God that testifies of this. He is the Lord of Armies–the One who is with us when war breaks out and everything is falling apart.

But I spent everyday worried and fearful even when my life was fine, asking every what if under the sun. I thought this was what it looked like to be prepared, but every time trouble would strike, I was left reeling. 

It’s one thing to cry out to God and lean on Him in the hard times, but to experience the fullness of God and His gift of peace, we must lean into Him even in the good times.

This is something I have been trying to prioritize more in my life, but I didn’t realize how much it would help me until my life started to fall apart.

I sat there with heartache and disappointment racing through me, yet I also felt a strange sense of peace. I had no clue what was coming, but I knew I could navigate it with God.

I believe that is the definition of true peace. 

I used to think that peace meant that all my worries and fears would disappear. In the midst of trouble, I would ask God to remove all my anxious thoughts. This isn’t a bad thing, but I was placing my peace in my circumstances, not God.

Without realizing, I was saying, “God, remove me from these circumstances, and then I will have abounding peace.” Come to find out, that’s not what peace is about. Real peace is abounding even in the midst of breaking.

Peace is discovered in weeping.
It is found in disturbance of the soul.
It runs rampant when life drives us to our knees.

God-given peace isn’t circumstantial; it is rooted in our God who is greater than our circumstances. Allow that truth to sink in. No matter how scary and terrible your circumstances are, peace can flow through you like a rushing river.

Satan tried to use my circumstances to break me. The joke is on him—God used them to make me stronger than ever. 

Over and over, I repeated, “Satan is coming against me, but I am not going to let him win.” Then I would run to my prayer journal and write out my praises and concerns.

How to Find True Peace When Your Life is Falling Apart

Ultimately, I have learned that to find true peace, we must be willing to put our fearful and crushed spirits into God’s hands.

To be filled with more of God and more of His wonderful peace, you must be willing to embrace daily prayer and praise. Not just pleas sent heavenward but praises also. Thank God for who He is and what He is going to do through your circumstances!

It may take 10–maybe even a hundred–prayer and praise-filled moments throughout the day to get you through this hard season, but it is worth it.

When you lean into God, the pot will be stirred. The Lord will prompt you to ask hard questions and do hard stuff, but, in the long run, these things will bring you comfort.

The first step to finding peace is choosing to lean into the Lord of Armies. This is where God-given peace will start to grow within you.

When I chose God and more of His peace, I sacrificed a lot of my time, but I would have never survived my broken circumstances without sacrificing myself—my thought patterns, fears, concerns, and doubts. 

True peace requires sacrifice, but it leads to a joyful life.

A Prayer for Peace

There is peace to be discovered in your circumstances through the God Almighty. He is bigger than what you are facing.

When you are steadfast in God, peace will come. You must simply learn how to embrace it.

To end this blog post, I send you out in a prayer. Pray it word-by-word or change it to fit your circumstances. Whatever you do, pray it with boldness and faith.

Lord, I am approaching you with confidence. You are my Lord and Savior. You have been good and gracious to me even when I fail to see it. Hear me, God! Listen earnestly to me. I’m breaking! Satan is trying to use my circumstances to consume me with [list your emotions, thoughts, etc.} I call his schemes into the light! I’m bringing them to you. Help me. I’m asking for more of You. You never say no to someone asking for more of You, so here I am. Please fill me with more of your Spirit. More wisdom, hope, freedom, joy, and peace. You are my Comforter, my Strength, and my Helper. Thank you for walking through this with me. I thank you for all You have done for me and all You will do through me in the future. In my rising and falling, You are my peace. Hear my cries and soothe me! Speak your love over me. Let it rush through me. In Your powerful name I pray, all these things will be done.

Thank you so much for reading! I hope this blog post has helped you. If you would like to read more uplifting content, please subscribe to my monthly newsletter. Yes, I only send it out monthly! I try my best to be respectful of your email storage. 😉

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Recommended reads:

• If you want to read another article about peace, check out Leah’s post Peace In The Midst Of Chaos on The Grace Haus.
• How Can I Have Peace When the World is So Overwhelming on The Rebelution is also a great piece worth looking into.