8 Contributors to Peace of Mind

Duke University did a study on “peace of mind.” Factors found to contribute greatly to emotional & mental stability are:

1. The absence of suspicion & resentment. Nursing a grudge was a major factor in unhappiness.

2. Not living in the past. An unwholesome preoccupation with old mistakes & failures leads to depression.

3. Not wasting time & energy fighting conditions you cannot change. Cooperate with life, instead of trying to run away from it.

4. Force yourself to stay involved with the living world. Resist the temptation to withdraw & become reclusive during periods of emotional stress.

5. Refuse to indulge in self-pity when life hands you a raw deal. Accept the fact that nobody gets through life without some sorrow & misfortune.

6. Cultivate the old-fashioned virtues - love, humor, compassion & loyalty.

7. Do not expect too much of yourself. When there is too wide a gap between self-expectation & your ability to meet the goals you have set, feelings of inadequacy are inevitable.

8. Find something bigger than yourself to believe in. Self-centered egotistical people score lowest on any test for measuring happiness.

- (ministry127.com)

Ps 119:165 (CEV): “You give peace of mind to all who love your Law. Nothing can make them fall.”

“Is the peace of God in the soul disturbed by things down here? No, never! If waters break in stormy currents against a rock, the rock is unmoved; it is only the waters that are disturbed.” - G.V. Wigram.

BEARING THE NAME OF SOMEONE GREAT

Alexander the Great, one of the greatest military generals who ever lived, conquered almost the entire known world with his vast army.

One night during a campaign, he couldn't sleep & left his tent to walk around the campgrounds. As he was walking he came across a soldier asleep on guard duty - a serious offense.

The penalty for falling asleep on guard duty was, in some cases, instant death; the commanding officer sometimes poured kerosene on the sleeping soldier & lit it.

The soldier began to wake up as Alexander the Great approached him. Recognizing who was standing in front of him, the young man feared for his life.

"Do you know what the penalty is for falling asleep on guard duty?" Alexander the Great asked the soldier.

"Yes sir," the soldier responded in a quivering voice.

"Soldier, what's your name?" demanded Alexander the Great.

"Alexander, sir."

Alexander the Great repeated the question: "What is your name?"

"My name is Alexander, sir," the soldier repeated.

A third time & more loudly Alexander the Great asked, "What is your name?"

A third time the soldier meekly said, "My name is Alexander, sir."

Alexander the Great then looked the young soldier straight in the eye."Soldier," he said with intensity, "either change your name or change your conduct."

We who carry the name of Christ & call ourselves Christian must live up to the name. We are ambassadors for Christ, reconciling the world with God. Let's represent Him!

- Dr. Guy & Ilke Peh (aksermonillustrations.blogspot.com)

2 Cor 5:20 (CEB): So we are ambassadors who represent Christ. God is negotiating with you through us. We beg you as Christ’s representatives, “Be reconciled to God!”

ANGER

A great man injured by anger was Moses. When the people murmured & asked for water, Moses was commanded to strike the rock at Horeb.

Out of all patience with the people & their waywardness, Moses struck the rock twice, crying out as he did so, "Hear, ye rebels!"

This burst of rage cost Moses the Promised Land, because it was for this transgression that Moses  - in spite of his grand service & his pathetic pleading at the end of Israel's long wandering -  was not permitted to go into the land of Canaan.

That was not the first nor the last time that a land of promise & of happiness was lost through anger.

- (moreillustrations.com)

Js 1:20 (ICB): “Anger will not help you live a good life as God wants.”

“No matter how just your words may be, you ruin everything when you speak with anger.” -  John Chrysostom.

 “Is it any merit to abstain from wine if one is intoxicated with anger?” -  Augustine.

APPLAUSE

Dr. Ernest Mellor wrote how he & his wife: "Sat charmed at an outdoor performance by young Suzuki violin students. After the concert, an instructor spoke briefly on how children as young as 2, 3 & 4 years old are taught to play violin.

The first thing the children learn, he said, is a proper standing posture. And the second thing the children learn - even before they pick up the violin - is how to take a bow.

'If the children just play the violin & stop, people may forget to show their appreciation,' the instructor said. 'But when the children bow, the audience invariably applauds. And applause is the best motivator we've found to make children feel good about performing & want to do it well.'”

Adults love applause too. Being affirmed makes us feel wonderful.

Meaningful applause - whether by hand clapping or with our words - is one the most effective & easiest ways to encourage one another.

1 Thess 5:11 (TLB): “So encourage each other to build each other up, just as you are already doing.”

- Ps Dick Innes (aksermonillustrations.blogspot.com)

“Let the lips of the poor be the trumpet of thy gift, lest in seeking applause, thou lose thy reward.” -  Francis Quarles.

JEALOUSY

Hawthorne, in his tale "The Bosom Serpent" illustrates the power of jealousy to destroy a soul.

The man, who had been separated from his wife because of jealous suspicions, would sometimes hold his hand to his chest & exclaim:

"It nibbling! It’s chewing!"

For this reason he was known to the people in the town as the man with the snake in his breast.

Sometimes he would create great alarm when he stopped other men on the street & asked them how their serpent was.

At length, after all kinds of remedies had been tried, his wife appeared & pleaded with him to forget himself & show his love for her. At that the man fell on the ground & there was the sound like the passing of a serpent through the grass.

Thus the man was cured of the bosom serpent of jealousy.

What about the serpent in thy breast? Oh, beware of the bosom serpent of jealousy!

- (moreillustrations.com)

“You are still not spiritual. You have jealousy and arguing among you. This shows that you are not spiritual. You are acting like people of the world.” 1 Cor 3:3 (ICB)

“Too often we think of being tempted as being enticed to do big things like stealing, murdering or committing adultery. But most often we're tempted to be impatient, stingy, jealous, greedy or any number of other things that we consider lesser sins.” -  Joyce Meyer.