My Inner Peace

Sometimes in life you can feel trampled upon. Not listened to. The others opinion is louder, more aggressive than yours and you don’t like confrontation.

Actually, you are quite capable of talking about your beliefs, but you are not going to stuff them down someone’s throat like they do theirs.

There was a lady I knew that was very forthright in her opinions, contrary to mine. She was not a good listener and did not value others having a different opinion. And so, I tried to avoid her.

It was a more peaceful day for me.

I was reading through the book of Psalms and found this delightful one… Psalm 56 which described oh so well how I often felt around this woman.

¹ Be gracious to me, O God, for people trample on me;
    all day long foes oppress me;
² my enemies trample on me all day long,
    for many fight against me.
O Most High, ³ when I am afraid,
    I put my trust in you.
⁴ In God, whose word I praise,
    in God I trust; I am not afraid;
    what can flesh do to me?

Psalm 56:1-4 NRSV

But it also showed me the solution to this oppression and feeling of being trampled upon.

Verse 3 – Turning to God to help me. I put my trust in Him.  And then the last line in verse 4  – What can flesh do to me?

We so often forget this. It can do me no real harm if I don’t let it. My inner peace can still be at peace. My love for God and my fellowman should not be diminished.  (If I’m honest, maybe this fellowman.)

My purpose in God should still be my focus.

⁸ You have kept count of my tossings;
    put my tears in your bottle.
    Are they not in your record?
⁹ Then my enemies will retreat
    on the day when I call.
    This I know, that God is for me.
¹⁰ In God, whose word I praise,
    in the Lord, whose word I praise,
¹¹ in God I trust; I am not afraid.
    What can a mere mortal do to me?

Psalm 56:8-11 NRSV

Verse 8 describes the emotions and tears that I have cried and felt but yet reminds me again my Hope is the Lord.

Verses 9-11 – I need to remember to call upon God to help me for He is the one I trust. He will come to my aid. That way there are less tears, less stress and less confrontations with this person.

Where do you need help with confrontational relationships, with family members where you can’t avoid them?

God is for us. God can help us. God can alter situations and change people.

Maybe you need to read and pray Psalm 56.

God has solutions for everything in our lives.

May these jottings from my journal inspire you to believe in and fall in love with Christ- the hope of the world, as stated in Jeremiah 17:7, ‘Blessed is the man who believes and trusts in and relies on the Lord and whose hope and confident expectation is the Lord!’

Love

Rosemary

Every week groups of ladies meet together to chat about the things I raise in my weekly blog post and to chat about life in general. We call these ‘Heart Connect’ groups.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

How do you cope with those in your life who frustrate you?

How could you ask God to help you with those in your life who are difficult to work with?

Is there a way that you are able to keep your inner peace?