When You're Stranded On The Side Of The Road With No Help In Sight

It was an earlier night than usual.  Thankful to be leaving the office ahead of schedule, I began to pull down the driveway and head for home.  I still had a few minutes before the sun set.  It was a warm, yet lovely evening.

I hadn't driven more than a few feet when I realized something was wrong.  Instinctively I stopped, got out, and began to walk around my SUV.  When I rounded the back corner I noticed it - a flat tire.

It wasn't just a little low on air, it was completely flat. 

Weird, I thought.  I just drove back from lunch a few hours ago and everything was fine. Now what?

I reached for my phone and dialed.  As soon as my husband answered and learned of my distress, he was on his way.  When he arrived, he immediately shined his lights on my car so he could see to change the flat tire.

He began to assemble his tools and went to work as the light around us quickly dimmed.  He not only changed the tire, he gently walked me step by step through the process, teaching me how to change one, if I were ever in a situation where I needed to.

As the sun finally slid beneath the horizon and the beautiful countryside went dark, we finished up, put on the spare tire, and headed home.  He followed me the entire drive home through the winding country roads with their steep embankments.  The light from his car was never far behind.  What care and protection I felt in that moment.

The next day as I thought through the events of the night before, I suddenly realized, Isn't that the way God is with me?  Isn't He always ready to rescue me in my mess, in my need, in my despair?

The moment I call, He doesn't put me on hold, He doesn't ignore my plea.  He is always present, always available, always ready to meet me wherever I am, whatever my need.

2 Chronicles 16:9 (NKJV) reminds me that, The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.

He is ever-present for any of His children.  He loves us.  He waits for opportunities to care for us in the needful moments of our lives, to show Himself strong on our behalf.  There is something so comforting and reassuring about resting in someone's strength.  About exhaling our weakness and surrendering the weight of our world to someone utterly powerful, and willful, someone muscular, safe, and strong.  He is strong.

I love that whenever He comes, He not only comes with strength, He also shines His light brightly wherever He goes, whether He shines it on my circumstances, whether He shines it on my path, or into my heart.  His light is ever-present to reveal my pain, to heal my dulled, deep wounds, and to remove my darkest shame. 

John 1:5 (NIV) reminds me that, The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

[clickToTweet tweet="John 1:5 (NIV) reminds me that, The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. " quote="John 1:5 (NIV) reminds me that, The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. "]

Isaiah 58:8 (NIV) adds, Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.

His light shines into each moment as He guides me, teaches me, grows me up to be more and more like Him.  He never leaves me stranded.  He never leaves me helpless and unsure.  He graciously and lovingly instructs me so that I can be prepared for whatever purpose He is calling me.

I love the end of Isaiah 58:8, when He says, the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.  Just like my husband following behind me down those dark and winding roads, God, too will always be shining His light, His glory, His protection from behind. 

If you feel today that God has lost sight of you, that He's left you stranded and alone, He is waiting.  He is present with you.  He sees you in your distress.  He stands there waiting for you.  You can pick up the phone and call.  He ran to my rescue, He will run to your rescue, too.  He will bind up what is broken and heal what seems wounded to the core.

[clickToTweet tweet="He will bind up what is broken and heal what seems wounded to the core." quote="He will bind up what is broken and heal what seems wounded to the core."]

Have you called out to Him?  Perhaps today is the day you ask Him to come save you from your sin, your pain, your hopelessness.  Perhaps there is a struggle so dark and heavy, you feel like it just might swallow you whole. 

Here's one thing I know - even when you're stranded on the side of the road and it feels like there's no hope in sight, your healing is just a simple call away.

How has God rescued you in your distress?  How has He shined His light and followed you out of a dark place?  I'd love to hear!

Blessings,

Lisa

About Lisa

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, author, coffee lover, and wife. My online community lisamurrayonline.com provides a compassionate place in the midst of the stresses and struggles of life. At heart, I am just a Southern girl who loves beautiful things, whether it is the beauty of words found in a deeply moving story, the beauty of a meal cooked with love, the beauty of a cup of coffee with a friend, or the beauty seen in far away landscapes and cultures. I have fallen passionately in love with the journey and believe it is among the most beautiful gifts to embrace and celebrate. While I grew up in the Florida sunshine, I live with my husband just outside Nashville in Franklin, TN.

---

About Peace for a Lifetime

In my new book, Peace for a Lifetime, I share the keys to cultivating a life that’s deeply rooted, overflowing, and abundant, the fruit of which is peace. Through personal and professional experience as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, I've discovered how to take the broken pieces of life and find indestructible peace with herself, God and with others. Through my story and other’s stories you’ll realize that you can experience the life for which you long. You can experience abundance beyond anything you can imagine. You can experience peace, not just for today, not just for tomorrow. You can experience peace —for a lifetime!

Peace for a Lifetime is available on Amazon.com.

www.lisamurrayonline.com

Facebook: Lisa Murray

Twitter: @_Lisa_Murray

Book Trailer: https://vimeo.com/155392891

---

 [yikes-mailchimp form="1" title="1" description="1" submit="Submit"]

What To Do When You Are Waiting For Your Miracle

 Last week we watched as our oldest crossed the stage to receive his diploma from college. For our family, this moment was so much more than just a rite of passage, an academic accomplishment. For us, this was a moment of redemption.

It had been six years since we had seen him. That was certainly not our desire, but things happen along the way of life where the enemy gets a foothold of untruth. Where relationships are destroyed. Where there is no say, no control. Where all hope is lost, it seems. Lost, at least for a season.

But then God…

Breathes life into the deadest, driest places…

Binds and heals the deepest wounds…

Builds anew what seems permanently destroyed…

Blesses things that once felt cursed…

That’s just what He did in our lives and in our family. No, it didn’t happen overnight. Nor did it come tied in a pretty package with a pretty ribbon. Yet it still happened. It is still happening.

The more I get to know Jesus, the more I realize that is exactly what He is all about. He takes the ugliest of situations, the most beaten down of hearts and He buys them back. He’s not afraid of dirty, smelly situations. He seems quite at home with the impossible. He reaches down with His all-encompassing love and He claims them back from the clutches of the enemy.

That’s the love He has for you and me. Nothing is beyond His grasp. Nothing is beneath His watchful eye. Nothing is bigger than His grace and love to heal, redeem, restore. Nothing.

The Purpose of Waiting

We all have places in our lives where we have lost hope. Situations that are helplessly out of our control to manage, to fix, to do anything but watch as the world crumbles around us. We wonder if this relationship, this circumstance is too broken, too diseased, to ever be put back together again.

There is something purposeful about these seasons. We will either use these seasons wisely to prepare our hearts for God’s redemption, or we will remain stuck in our pain. It is easy to grow comfortable with our wounds. Tempting to ruminate in our resentment and resist letting go of our rights. Yet we can never heal as long as we’re holding onto hurt. We must choose.

[clickToTweet tweet="We can never heal as long as we’re holding onto hurt." quote="We can never heal as long as we’re holding onto hurt."]

Like the ten virgins (Matthew 25) who didn’t know when their Bridegroom was coming, we cannot foresee, nor can we foreknow when God will redeem our situation. We can’t. Our choice is whether we, like some of the virgins, are lazy with our healing and are caught off guard when the moment of redemption comes, or we will be prepared in our waiting so we can enjoy the wedding feast when that day arrives.

Waiting is never a passive posture. Waiting is an active decision to focus our energies on healing so we can be prepared for whatever lies ahead. It means we choose to release our pain and our plan to God. It means we simply learn to bring ourselves to the Healer to sit with Him while we are healed.

[clickToTweet tweet="Waiting means we release our pain and our plan to God." quote="Waiting means we release our pain and our plan to God."]

Somewhere in the yielding we recognize our utter helplessness and allow ourselves to grieve. Perhaps that is the purpose of waiting – to prepare our hearts to grieve, to heal, to grow, to make us ready for the moment everything comes full circle, for the arrival of His redemption.

In these last six years, I am not the same person. Had I not surrendered to the healing process, I would not have been ready for this miracle, this gift that stands before me today. I would still be carrying the bitterness of old wounds that had festered for years. I would be hardened and closed to see the miracle of redemption at work around me.

In my new book, Peace for a Lifetime, I share more about my story as well as offer ways we all can allow God to heal us, in whatever situation we face. We don’t have to stay stuck in our pain, we don’t have to allow resentment and bitterness to grow like a cancer in the depths of our hearts. We can do our part to prepare ourselves for the Bridegroom to come.

Click Here to learn more about Peace for a Lifetime!

Have you seen God at work in your impossible situations? Is your redemption still somewhere in the hidden years? What do you need to heal today in your heart?

Do not shut yourself off from healing. Do not close the door of your heart to hope. There is so much that you can do to prepare yourself for the day when God redeems that situation, that broken relationship with a loved one, that long-forgotten dream.

Tend to your healing. Grieve. Pray. Invest yourself in what relationships and ministries God is calling you to. Don’t delay. His redemption is coming.

Blessings,

Lisa

About Lisa

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, author, coffee lover, and wife. My hope is to provide a compassionate place in the midst of the stresses and struggles of life. At heart, I am just a Southern girl who loves beautiful things, whether it is the beauty of words found in a deeply moving story, the beauty of a meal cooked with love, the beauty of a cup of coffee with a friend, or the beauty seen in far away landscapes and cultures. I have fallen passionately in love with the journey and believe it is among the most beautiful gifts to embrace and celebrate. While I grew up in the Florida sunshine, I now live just outside Nashville in Franklin, TN with my husband and Shih-tzu, Sophie.

About Peace for a Lifetime

In my new book, Peace for a Lifetime, I share the keys to cultivating a life that’s deeply rooted, overflowing, and abundant, the fruit of which is peace. Through personal and professional experience as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, I have discovered how to take the broken pieces of life and find indestructible peace with myself, God and with others. Through my story and other’s stories you’ll realize that you can experience the life for which you long. You can experience abundance beyond anything you can imagine. You can experience peace, not just for today, not just for tomorrow. You can experience peace —for a lifetime!

Peace for a Lifetime is available on Amazon.com.

I’d love to connect on Facebook: Lisa Murray, author

Twitter: @_Lisa_Murray

Book Trailer: https://vimeo.com/155392891

[yikes-mailchimp form="1" title="1" description="1" submit="Submit"]

Why You Should Get Excited About Spring

… and the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.  Anais NinThis quote comes to mind often as I gaze around me and see spring begin to unfold in full bloom. It’s how I feel inside. It's as if the cavernous chill of winter that has held me tightly in its cocoon has now begun to loosen its grasp underneath the penetrating heat of the sun. Winter is gone. Death is gone. New life is born – right here, right now.

I guess that’s why I love Easter so much. Within a three-day period, we get to experience the apex of spiritual winter – a death so profound that everything is draped in darkness.  It feels interminable. The anguish of our sin, overwhelming.  All hope is lost.  Or so it seems…

And then on Sunday, beautiful Sunday, the unimaginable happens! Mary and Martha find the stone has been rolled away. Jesus is not there. He is risen. He is risen indeed!

Out of death springs life. Out of darkness shines light. His light. I never have to fear the winter, because I know that is not the end of the story. Spring is coming.

For any of us who have experienced winter in their lives, there are three reasons to get excited about spring.

The arrival of spring means that winter is almost over.

We all need winter. God takes us gently and faithfully into barren seasons, heart-breaking seasons.  He knows all of the old, shattered, wounded parts need to be healed so that new life can grow.  Without winter, there is no spring. Without death, there is no life.

In the last weeks of winter, however, I become weary. The tepid grey skies, the endless days forced into confined spaces, and the repetition of dreariness, begin to take its toll. Spring announces that we made it through another winter season. We survived. Our hope, our healing is just over the horizon.

The arrival of spring prepares our hearts for rebirth.

There is nothing better than the first days that spring finally breaks through the waning hold of winter, and delivers the most life-giving, magical days. I can breathe again. I can hope again. All things become new.

When Jesus was crucified, it appeared that death had prevailed. There was no hope. But then on the third day, this marvelous and other-worldly, divine explosion broke through the tomb and broke through my heart, resurrecting from ashes a new light, a new life inside of me. I am reborn, in the depths of marrow and soul. I am utterly and delightfully refreshed and renewed. Spring has come. Life has come.

The arrival of spring offers the promise of hope, of new life.

Redemption ushers in unexpected restoration. Colossians 1:20-22 ESV says, And through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, He has now reconciled in his body of flesh by His death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before Him.

We, who were strangers, are now friends. We who were enemies, are now brothers. Jesus has reconciled all of my sin in His sacrifice on the cross, and now I am holy and blameless in His sight.

We are a new creation. We have a new identity. Our identity is as one who is beloved and chosen of our Father. We have hope for a future. Spring reveals to us that there are new seeds of life continually being planted within us. As winter seasons fulfill their purpose in our lives, so spring fulfills its purpose. Spring prepares and nurtures the crops for the harvest.

He has called you. He has a plan for you. He wants you to experience His life, His love, His freedom, His peace. He wants to heal you. He wants to plant new passions and purposes within you. He wants to bring forth a new harvest in your life.

The arrival of spring means that winter is almost over.  Whatever the winter is in your life – it won’t last forever.  Spring is coming. Spring prepares our hearts for rebirth.  Old things truly are dead and buried in the ground – behold ALL things are new in Him!  The arrival of spring offers the promise of new hope. The journey is not over.  Just as the blooms on the daffodils are beginning to unfold from their slumber and display God’s glory, so you too, are just beginning to blossom.  Embrace it.  Celebrate it.

My book, Peace for a Lifetime, shares how we can embrace whatever season in which we find ourselves to discover the healing, the wholeness, and the abundant life God has for us.  I share practical life steps that can help you experience an enduring peace.  We don't have to stay trapped in the winter seasons of our lives.  We can reach out and grasp hold of spring.

To Order The Book Click Here

Spring is beautiful!  Spring is God's gift to us.  Spring reminds us that God is bigger than our circumstances or pain.

Don’t remain tightly closed in a bud. Step out. Risk. Embrace all that God has for you and begin to see your life blossom in bold and brilliant ways!

Blessings,

Lisa

There are TWO DAYS LEFT in our social media contest!!!!!  Post a picture of your book along with the hashtag #PeaceForaLifetime and tag me, @_Lisa_Murray, and you'll be entered to win a $100 Amazon gift card!!!  That's it!! SO GET ENTERING TODAY!!

[yikes-mailchimp form="1" title="1" description="1" submit="Submit"]

From Pain To Peace

ONE WEEK UNTIL THE MARCH 7

"PEACE FOR A LIFETIME" BOOK LAUNCH!!!!!

I'm honored to be guest posting today at my dear friend, Kelly Balarie's place, Purposeful Faith.  She has been a fearless and passionate follower of Christ, leader, and cheerleader in the online community.  Let's show her our community love and support by visiting her site and share, share, share the post on Facebook and Twitter.

Also, if you haven't had the chance to support the "Peace For A Lifetime" book launch on Thunderclap, please click here>> https://www.thunderclap.it/en/projects/37713-peace-for-a-lifetime-release?utm_content=buffer0291d&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer.

 It takes 30 seconds!!!  Blessings, friends!

It was the tipping point. The beginning of the fall. No, it wasn’t a crash, a sudden impact dive that you didn’t see coming. I saw this coming. I could feel it making its way toward me and yet, I was entirely helpless to stop it.

It was a slow, distinct unraveling. That moment where you can feel the wheels teetering ever so slightly out of balance until the whole thing comes unhinged. My heart, that is.

This was the season of my undoing.....   To read the rest of the article, click here!!!

---

[yikes-mailchimp form="1" title="1" description="1" submit="Submit"]

Blessings,

Lisa

Peace For A Lifetime Video Trailer

https://vimeo.com/155392891 

Imagine if... we traded brokenness for healing, emptiness for abundance, chaos for peace? In my new book, Peace for a Lifetime, I share the keys to cultivating a life that’s deeply rooted, overflowing, and abundant, the fruit of which is peace.

Click here to learn more about Lisa's book!!

Or buy the book NOW on Amazon!!

Why Authentic Living is The Perfect Place To Thrive

A wise friend once told me, “Lisa, don’t listen to what a person says, watch what they do; what they do will tell you everything about what they believe.”

All of us have encountered people in our lives who have said one thing and done something completely different. These encounters leave us feeling shocked, disappointed, confused.

We like to be with individuals who live out their values and beliefs. They are consistent. What they say and do matches up. Their attitudes, their choices, their behaviors are natural extensions of their most deeply held principles. We feel safe with these people. We trust these people.

Here is an excerpt from my new book, Peace For a Lifetime, that shares why living out our values and beliefs is necessary for us to thrive.

Experts have said what you believe (perceive) becomes your reality. You do not believe what you see; rather you see what you already believe. Knowing ourselves requires us to look inside and carefully examine our beliefs and values because they hold the keys to unlocking and creating the reality for which we long.

All of us have an inner system of beliefs and values we have developed over the course of our lives. They are an accumulation of everything we have experienced in our lives from our parents and families, our religious heritage, our friends and peers, education, work experience, and more. If we take the time to identify what we believe, the things we value and why, we are closer to understanding ourselves at a deeper level and gaining insight into what drives and motivates us.

Beliefs are core convictions we generally hold to be true. Our beliefs grow from what we experience, see, listen to, or reflect upon. They can be spiritual, moral, social, intellectual, financial, or political in nature. From our experiences, opinions are formulated and developed.

Sometimes our beliefs are based on truth and sometimes they are not. Nevertheless, they can have a profound impact on our understanding or misunderstanding of the world around us. If we grew up in an abusive household, we might form the belief that love equals pain. Those of us who didn’t grow up with abuse can identify that belief as untrue, but until the abused can recognize that truth and heal from their wounds, that misbelief will impact how they experience themselves and everything around them.

As we appraise our beliefs, we can determine their worth or value in our lives; hence values are a natural extension of our core beliefs. Values are traits or qualities that we deem worthwhile. They comprise our top priorities, and our most deeply felt driving forces. Values can include concepts such as equality, honesty, faith, family, education, courage, effort, determination, loyalty, faithfulness, hard work, integrity, responsibility, excellence, respect, teamwork, freedom, beauty, happiness, empathy, wisdom, security, independence, challenge, learning, compassion, discipline, generosity, optimism, innovativeness, and service.

Emotionally-abundant people take the time to understand historic influences in their lives and begin to identify and develop a clear, meaningful set of beliefs and values. Living according to an internal code of values brings meaning, purpose, and direction to our daily lives. Decisions become easier as our understanding of ourselves becomes clearer. Choices are easier and our stress is reduced. Life feels calmer and more stable.

Do you find your behaviors betraying your most deeply held principles? Do you wonder why you struggle to discover your passion and purpose in life? Do you long to find peace and calm in the midst of the storms in life?

God desires for you to know your identity. He longs for you to find the deep meaning, purpose and direction that come from knowing your beliefs and values and living them out not perfectly, but consistently, day by day.

I share simple, practical life steps in my book, Peace For a Lifetime, that can help you understand the life God has for you. This material can help you create and experience an indestructible peace – not just for today, not just for tomorrow, you can experience peace…for a lifetime!

[yikes-mailchimp form="1" title="1" description="1" submit="Send my free gift NOW!!"]

When We're Tired of Living a Counterfeit Life

Have you ever bought a counterfeit? Have you wandered the streets of Manhattan and found a bottle of your favorite perfume or a beautiful designer bag for $20?

Did you think it was real? So many of us, whether we knew it or not, have been duped by a counterfeit. It looked real, we thought it was real —until we compared it to the real thing and realized we’d been taken by an inferior imitation!

Counterfeiting isn’t only for perfumes and handbags. Many of us live counterfeit lives. We’re afraid of letting our real selves be known, afraid of ridicule, terrified of rejection. We never let anyone get to know who we really are. We never get to know who we really are. We miss the joy of experiencing the person God created. Living with a counterfeit self, we can never experience abundance, we can never know true peace.

Here is an excerpt from my new book, Peace For a Lifetime, that shares the importance of knowing and growing our authentic self so that we can experience the life and relationships we desire.

Let’s face it. All of us at some point, whether we knew or not, have bought a counterfeit. Whether we were looking for a lower-cost prescription medication or simply trying to obtain some designer watch, handbag, or boots at a discount price, we have all been duped by an imposter that looked just like the real thing. If we’re honest, many of us don’t mind being duped. We have lost an appreciation for what’s real because we just want what we want—easy, fast, and cheap. Who cares if the item is real, right—as long as the look of status we’re hoping for is supported?

Unfortunately, counterfeiting hasn’t just impacted the world of luxury goods. Over the past few decades, the practice has filtered down into our medications, our food supply, even our home-building materials. What is the saddest to me, though, is the way counterfeiting has begun to impact our relationships and even our individual identities.

With the increasing popularity of social networks, we can now even counterfeit friends and relationships. People are engaged to, and in love with, others on Facebook who they have never met and who don’t even exist. Even the idea of posting status updates makes us feel pressured to present ourselves and our lives as an ideal picture of who we are, or who we would like others to think we are. We become satisfied with a world of pretend people with pretend identities living in pretend relationships.

The problem with spending so much time and energy creating or living an illusion is we never get to experience the real thing. Somewhere in all of us is a longing for something authentic, something dependable. Nothing fake will ever satisfy our souls like a true connection with a friend, a genuine encounter with God, or an authentic understanding of ourselves.

[clickToTweet tweet="Nothing fake will ever satisfy our souls. #authenticity #peace" quote="Nothing fake will ever satisfy our souls."]

You don’t have to keep up the façade. You don’t have to keep pretending. You can experience authentic love that will never disappoint and will never let you down. God created you with all of your strengths and weaknesses, gifts and abilities, for a reason. He doesn’t want an imitation of you. He wants you! He longs for you to find freedom from everything that’s counterfeit so that you can embrace the unparalleled beauty of your true, authentic self.

[clickToTweet tweet="He doesn’t want an imitation of you. He wants you! #authenticity #peace #love" quote="He doesn’t want an imitation of you. He wants you! "]

Blessings,

Lisa

About Lisa

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, author, coffee lover, and wife. My online community lisamurrayonline.com provides a compassionate place in the midst of the stresses and struggles of life. At heart, I am just a Southern girl who loves beautiful things, whether it is the beauty of words found in a deeply moving story, the beauty of a meal cooked with love, the beauty of a cup of coffee with a friend, or the beauty seen in far away landscapes and cultures. I have fallen passionately in love with the journey and believe it is among the most beautiful gifts to embrace and celebrate. While I grew up in the Florida sunshine, I live with my husband just outside Nashville in Franklin, TN.

---

About Peace for a Lifetime

In my new book, Peace for a Lifetime, I share the keys to cultivating a life that’s deeply rooted, overflowing, and abundant, the fruit of which is peace. Through personal and professional experience as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, I've discovered how to take the broken pieces of life and find indestructible peace with herself, God and with others. Through my story and other’s stories you’ll realize that you can experience the life for which you long. You can experience abundance beyond anything you can imagine. You can experience peace, not just for today, not just for tomorrow. You can experience peace —for a lifetime!

Peace for a Lifetime is available on Amazon.com.

www.lisamurrayonline.com

Facebook: Lisa Murray

Twitter: @_Lisa_Murray

Book Trailer: https://vimeo.com/155392891

[yikes-mailchimp form="1" title="1" description="1" submit="Send my free gift NOW!!"]

Why Solitude Is a Necessary Place For Our Healing and Peace

 Life comes at us. We barely have a chance to catch our breath. From the time we wake up in the morning until we finally drift off to sleep, it seems we simply live reacting to whatever crises, whatever deadlines life demands. We carry our wounds with us, from one season to the next, one job to the next, one relationship to the next. At the end of the day, we’re left wondering why we are exhausted, depressed, undone.

This is not the life God designed for us. Healing will never happen in the hectic. Peace will never be cultivated out of chaos. Solitude is as Henri Nouwen describes, the only necessary thing — for our healing, for our peace.

If you’ve ever felt beaten-down, bruised, and broken, God has so much more in store for you! He longs for you to experience peace. “Peace” in Hebrew refers to wholeness, completeness, safety, soundness, and fullness. God wants us to be whole —physically, spiritually, and emotionally. I Thessalonians 5:23-24 (NLT) states, Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again.

Here is an excerpt from my new book, Peace For a Lifetime, that shares why solitude is a necessary place to experience true healing and ultimate peace.

As we embark on this phase of our journey, recognizing we must walk this pilgrimage alone with God is important. While family and friends can provide great support, encouragement, and wisdom during this season of healing, we must take all of the energy we expend externally on others and begin to focus that energy internally on ourselves and our walk with God.

I’ve spent so much time and energy over the course of my life reaching out to others with the hope or expectation that they might love me, fix me, heal me, or even need me. So many times I cried in anguish for what others could not give or fix. In my barrenness, hunger, and need, I approached those around me with an empty cup, begging them to fill my broken, empty vessel. Because of their love for me, they might try to fill me. But just at the time I thought my cup was full, I would look down to see all of the contents had escaped and once again I was empty. The cycle continued until my friends had nothing left to pour into my cup, and I felt my emptiness as their rejection of me.

The truth is our friends cannot heal our wounds; our pain is our pain, and their pain is theirs. Yes, Scripture says that as brothers we should carry each other’s burdens (Gal 6:2 NIV), but we only have one Healer and he is Jesus Christ. He is the One to whom we should run with our pain, our fear, our loneliness, and our desperation. He stands waiting in that place of solitude to heal us, to free us, and to strengthen us.

Only when we become still can we silence the outside world. That stillness enables us to turn down the volume on the noise that keeps us distracted and exhausted. Only in the stillness are we able to experience both God and ourselves, perhaps for the first time in our lives. Initially, the silence might be difficult, maybe even frightening, but such silence is the beginning of true healing and peace.

You don’t have to continue hanging on by a thread. You don’t have to carry your wounds with you one more day. I’ve put together materials in my book, Peace for a Lifetime, to provide simple, practical life steps that will help heal the broken place inside of you. These materials will show you how you can cultivate a life of indestructible and indispensible peace —not just for today, not just for tomorrow, but peace…for a lifetime!

[yikes-mailchimp form="1" title="1" description="1" submit="Send my free gift NOW!!"]

How The Power of Relationship Can Help You Overcome the Monsters In Your Closet

Were you ever afraid of the monsters in your closet as a child? Are there monsters in your life today, areas of your life that you have been too afraid to face, too overwhelmed to muster the courage to conquer?

Me, too. I spent much of my childhood afraid. I was afraid of the dark, afraid of being alone, afraid of being rejected, of being ridiculed, of not being enough.

My fear followed me, like my childhood monsters, into my adult life. They paralyzed me. They crippled me, until I was able to find the key that empowered me to face my deepest fears. It was so simple, right under my eyes, but I never saw it.

Here is an excerpt from my new book, Peace For a Lifetime, that shares how the power of relationship can help us overcome the monsters in our closets. We know running away from our fear doesn’t work. We know mantras don’t work. Pills only work for a brief period of time. It is intimate relationship that holds the power to break through the fear that holds you captive and build a foundation for your life that will stand solid and strong.

As a small child, I remember being afraid of the dark. I would get so scared before bed that every night I would scour the closet, search under the bed, and peer in every nook and cranny to make sure there were no monsters or ghosts hidden anywhere in my room. At bedtime, my mother would pray with me, and all would be well until she said goodnight and turned out the lights ... then things would get worse.

I could see the outline of the monsters moving through the shadows as the clouds passed over the moon in the night sky. I could hear creaks in the floor, and I would stay there with my fear rising until I could take no more. Then I would run to the safety of my mother’s room. I remember lying beside her bed on a blanket and thinking that as long as I could feel her hand rest on mine, I was okay, and I was safe! You see, my fear didn’t need a formula; my fear needed a person.

As an adult, what I need is not a mantra, nor a theme song, to pep me up for a few moments. What I need first and foremost is a relationship, an intimate encounter with the God of the Universe, who is so intimately acquainted with me that He numbered the hairs on my head.

Perhaps as we start our journey there, we will be able to muster the courage to face the monsters in our closets. I’m not saying this is a three-quick-steps-and- you’re-cured program. What I am proposing is a lifetime journey that begins with a relationship with your Heavenly Father.

I sometimes wonder what life would feel like today if I could actually feel God’s hand rest on mine, quietly, simply, as I make my way through the ordinary and sometimes unbearable tasks of the day. Though I cannot tangibly feel Him, He wants me to know Him intimately and to rest in Him just the same.

God wants to be more than a distant judge with a set of rules. He is so much more than a genie in a bottle. God wants to grow a relationship —an authentic, powerful relationship with you that will change your life forever. Being with Him, knowing Him, trusting Him will give you the strength and confidence to face whatever challenges or fears that threaten to overwhelm you today.

I share simple, practical life steps in my book, Peace For a Lifetime, that can help you understand the life God desires for you. This material can help you create and experience an indestructible peace – not just for today, not just for tomorrow, you can experience peace…for a lifetime!

[yikes-mailchimp form="1" title="1" description="1" submit="Send my free gift NOW!!"]

The Only Remedy for the Hole Inside Our Hearts

 God created each of us with a “God-shaped hole” inside of us. A hole designed to draw us to Him, and into an intimate relationship with the God of the Universe. Most of us feel the ache of the hole inside, we feel the emptiness and despair that echoes our inner pain.

We try to fill that hole with anything and everything under the sun, except the one thing that was perfectly and uniquely designed to fill that hole.

Here is an excerpt from my new book, Peace For a Lifetime, that explains the importance of understanding the hole that exists within each of us, and details the only remedy to fill this hole and give us a life of abundance and peace – the perfect person of Jesus Christ. He is the remedy, our remedy!

St. Augustine wrote, “You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in You.”19 Still, humanity searches to fill this hole with anything and everything except God! Sadly, too many people spend their lives looking for something other than God to fill their longing for meaning only to discover how empty and unfulfilled they remain.

King Solomon, who had all the wealth, power, and success in the world still declared all those things vanity, because everything he had accumulated and achieved had cost him so much in time and energy and satisfied so little. He summarized his experience by declaring, “Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13 NIV)

Famous mathematician and philosopher, Blaise Pascal, echoed this truth by stating, “What else does this craving, and this helplessness, proclaim but that there was once in man a true happiness, of which all that now remains is the empty print and trace? This he tries in vain to fill with everything around him, seeking in things that are not there the help he cannot find in those that are, though none can help, since this infinite abyss can only be filled with an infinite and immutable object; in other words, by God Himself.”20

I cannot pour enough alcohol into the depths of this God-shaped hole to numb the pain of the emptiness in which I am helplessly lost. I cannot run fast enough to get my adrenaline fix of sex, gambling, or thrill-seeking to escape the numbness of this stale existence called life. I can’t glue together the cracks in my soul through compulsive relationships, spending, or eating to provide at least a few moments where I can breathe. The glue will eventually begin to pull apart, and the cracks will become even deeper and wider than they were before. Nor can I simply intellectualize my way out of this closet, trying to pretend in my self-proclaimed sophistication this hole does not exist any more than the God I cannot look at nor believe in exists.

We spend half of our time numbing ourselves and running from the pain, and the other half of our time using every rationale to pretend the pain doesn’t exist. Ironically, we appear to fear the light that would save us far more than we fear the darkness of the abyss that threatens to consume us. As a result, we prevent ourselves from passionately committing to anyone or anything outside of this prison cell of our own making.

What have you used to fill the hole inside of you? How have you tried to numb the pain in your soul? I invite you to stop running, stop reaching for things that cannot fill you or provide the meaning and peace for which you long.

In my book, Peace For a Lifetime, I share simple, practical life steps that can help you understand the life God desires for you. This material can help you discover identity, clarity, and purpose. It will help you create and experience an indestructible peace – not just for today, not just for tomorrow, you can experience peace…for a lifetime!

You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in You.

_ St. Augustine

[yikes-mailchimp form="1" title="1" description="1" submit="Send my free gift NOW!!"]

19 St. Augustine, Confessions (New York, NY: Doubleday, 1960), 43.

20 Blaise Pascal, Pensees (New York, NY: Penguin Books, 1966), 75.

How Our Search for Meaning Can Bring Us So Much Peace

 Do you ever find yourself bored, unsettled, restless? Have you ever struggled to find meaning in your life?

Culture tells us if we have the right education, the right house, the right spouse and kids, even the right toys, then we will have everything we could ever ask for in life. The problem is, all the things in the world were not meant to fill us, fix us, or provide the meaning for which our souls long. We were designed for so much more.

King Solomon had all the wealth the world had to offer and still declared, Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 2:11 NIV)

I’ve included an excerpt from my new book, Peace for a Lifetime, where I share why we were created for meaning, and how we can begin to search for and cultivate deep roots of purpose that will not only provide a solid foundation for your life, but will impact your life and relationships with significance, abundance and fulfillment beyond anything you could imagine!

Have you ever wondered, “Who am I?” or asked yourself, “What is my purpose in life?” Why are we here and what, if anything, provides meaning to our existence on this planet? Is this all for nothing? Is there more? These questions are not only valid, but they also are an active part of our journeys toward finding peace with God and peace within ourselves. There is within us all a quiet war, an epic battle for the answers to these very questions. These questions don’t request an invitation. They don’t sit politely by the side. They loom overhead in the routine and mundane tasks of the day. They step ever so softly over the stillness of our souls. We might not be aware of anything at all, except that somewhere what began as a tiny tremor grows into a seismic quake. We can feel the pounding in our ears and the reverberations in our chests, counting cadence, steadily louder and clearer. There comes a time when we can no longer tune out these battle drums. We must choose, we must fight to claim this territory once and for all, or surrender ourselves altogether.

The most basic of all human desires is to find meaning to life. Individuals who experience Emotional Abundance (EA)—the ability to feel and manage their emotions—are not only able to meet the demands of everyday life, but are able to create meaning in their lives and relationships. Anxiety is the tension that arises from that battle for meaning. Kierkegaard calls anxiety the “dizziness of freedom.”14 Existentialist theologian Paul Tillich characterizes this as “the state in which a being is aware of its nonbeing.” 15

If you have struggled to find meaning in your life, if you live with an emptiness and despair in your soul, wondering if there must be more to life than this, you are not alone. For so many years I felt both helpless and hopeless to fill the emptiness that swallowed everything inside until I discovered how to fill that hole and build a life of hope, wholeness, and meaning.

In my book, Peace For a Lifetime, I share simple, practical life steps that can help you understand the life God desires for you. This material can help you create and experience an indestructible peace – not just for today, not just for tomorrow, you can experience peace…for a lifetime!

All the things in the world were not meant to fill us, fix us,

or provide the meaning for which our souls long.

We were designed for so much more.

We were designed for God.

[yikes-mailchimp form="1" title="1" description="1" submit="Send my free gift NOW!!"]

14 Soren Kierkegaard, The Concept of Anxiety (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1980), 61.

15 Paul Tillich, The Courage To Be (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2000), 35.