Episode 66 - The Peace HE Offers
Episode 66 - The Peace HE Offers
Hello my friends!
Welcome to the Seasons of Joy Podcast.
I hope you are all doing well today.
I am recording this episode on a rainy day in June. This is one of the many rainy days we have been experiencing here in Cache Valley. This is pretty unusual for us but it has allowed for everything to be beautifully green. The outdoors and nature just bring me peace.
Recently, I had a friend who is currently serving as the camp director for her ward or congregation. She asked me if I would come and speak to the girls and leaders of her ward. I was thrilled because these are two of my favorite things–speaking to groups and girls camp.
For those of you who don’t know, in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints the girls ages 11-18 go on a camp for a few days each year. It is an opportunity for the girls and their leaders to go into the mountains and be out in nature. They participate in all types of activities like hiking, cooking, skits, crafts, camp fires, and devotionals. All of this provides the girls with opportunities to strengthen friendships, build onto their spiritual foundations, and connect to the love of God. I have so many wonderful memories of attending Girls Camp in my youth and as a leader.
So for this week’s podcast episode, I am going to share the talk that I recently gave at the young women’s girls camp.
As I was preparing my talk, the words just seemed to flow into my mind. It felt like I was being inspired by what God wanted these girls to hear. Last week, I shared this message with this group of young women and I knew at that moment that I wanted to share this same message with you on the podcast today. I really believe that, no matter our age or season of life, the message I am going to share is applicable to all of us.
As I share my thoughts, I hope that there is at least one thing you can take away that will help you find and feel peace in your current season of life.
So here we go!
I want to invite you to consider the word “peace” and what it means to you.
As I thought about it, some of the words I came up with are:
Stress-free
Unafraid
Security
Safety
Calmness
No fighting or war
Harmony
Freedom
In John 14:27, Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
The Savior promises us a peace that the world cannot offer. His peace is far greater.
This peace sounds amazing, doesn’t it?
Yet, many of us struggle to find and feel peace.
In our church’s most recent general conference in April, President Henry B. Eyring spoke about finding personal peace.
He said, “Some of you, perhaps many, are not feeling the peace the Lord promised. You may have prayed for personal peace and spiritual comfort. Yet you may feel that the heavens are silent to your pleading for peace.”
Why can peace be hard to feel sometimes?
President Eyring shares this answer.
He said, “There is an enemy of your soul who does not want you and those you love to find peace. He cannot enjoy it. He works to prevent you from even wanting to find the peace the Savior and our [Heavenly Parents] desire you to have.
Satan’s efforts to sow hatred and contention all around us seem to be increasing. We see evidence of it happening among nations and cities, in neighborhoods, in electronic media, and all across the world.”
He doesn’t mince any words.
The adversary doesn’t want us to experience peace. He works to keep us from believing peace is even possible by telling lies about our ability to find and access the Savior’s peace.
I believe Satan sows seeds of doubt, discouragement, and shame that block our perspective on the truth about peace. These seeds are sown through the lies he tells us. I want to touch on a few of the lies that I think Satan wants us to believe in order to keep us from experiencing peace. I am also going to share some truths that I think our Heavenly Parent want us to know so we can find and feel the Savior’s peace.
I want to invite you to pay attention to how you feel as I share these lies and truths. Let the Spirit work in you to help you distinguish truth from error. Ponder and decide for yourself what you believe.
Lie #1 - Satan wants you to forget who you really are.
Satan wants us to define ourselves by things like our size or shape, the color of our skin, our grades, the things we have said or done (for good or bad), our job, our thoughts, our choices, what our family looks like, our weaknesses or our strengths. He wants us to compare ourselves to others or to who we think we should be. But when we forget who and whose we are, we lose sight of the truth and it is hard to feel peace.
Truth #1: - Our Heavenly Parents want you to know that you are Their beloved child who was created with unique strengths and abilities. There is no one like you!
God gives us certain experiences to use our traits and abilities to help us grow. He also gives us gifts that help us bless the lives of others and overcome the challenges we’ll encounter in life.
God is the father of your spirit. Just as our fathers or father figures on earth love and care for their children, your Heavenly Father wants to have a relationship with you. You are the “offspring of God” (Acts 17:29), and as His child, you have infinite potential. Sit with that truth for a minute. I invite you to pay attention to how you feel when you allow yourself to remember who you really are, a beloved child of God with Heavenly Parents who love you.
Remembering this truth invites His peace.
Lie #2 - Satan wants you to believe that you have to earn your worth, your value, and God’s love.
This lie of the adversary keeps us stuck in the belief that we will never measure up or be enough. It leaves us always searching for validation from the world of our worth which cannot be found there. And believing that God will only love us if we reach a certain level in our progress. This “never enough” belief is poison and does not bring peace.
Truth #2: Our Heavenly Parents want you to know that you were born with your value, your worth, and Their love is constant.
So, if it is true that you don’t earn your worth then you can’t lose it. There is nothing you or I can do or not do to lessen our value or worth. You are amazing and you had nothing to do with it. You are valuable and worthy because you are a divine child of Heavenly Parents and Their love is constant and neverending, no matter what.
Our Heavenly Parents know each of us personally. They are watching over us and know exactly the difficulties we face—and They know exactly the abilities we each have been given to overcome and navigate the struggles we are facing. They want to see us succeed and reach our full potential. Our Heavenly Parents and our Savior are cheering us on because they love us.
Brother Bradley Wilcox has a quote that I love. He said, “God loves us as we are, but He also loves us too much to leave us this way. Growing up unto the Lord is what mortality is all about. Change is what Christ’s Atonement is all about. Not only can Christ resurrect, cleanse, console, and heal us, but through it all, He can transform us to become more like Him.”
Our Heavenly Parents want us to become like them and Their love is always there, no matter what. It’s available to you today and every day on your path of progression.
Understanding this truth invites His peace.
Lie #3 - Satan wants you to believe that perfection is possible.
This lie of Satan can keep us from turning to the Savior, His grace, and His peace. It keeps us believing that we have to work out our own progression and our own salvation all on our own–believing that access to the Savior only comes “after all we can do.”
When I was younger, I didn’t fully understand Heavenly Father’s plan. I believed that I had to do things perfectly. I believed that the expectation for this earthy journey was perfection. If I messed up then, because of the Savior’s atonement, I could be forgiven. Can you see the flaw with that belief? It is a subtle one. I believed “if” I messed up “then” He would step in. These two little words (If and then) reinforced the belief that perfection was possible and that Christ was the back up plan for my inability to be good enough.
Truth #3: Your Heavenly Parents want you to know that the plan is not about perfection. The plan is about progression.
God understood that we would make mistakes, that is exactly why He chose a Savior to come to earth to suffer for our sins. Jesus Christ’s sacrifice allows us to be forgiven and cleansed so we can live with our Heavenly Parents again.
Jesus not only suffered for our sins. He endured all manner of affliction so that He would know how to succor us in our infirmities, our pain, our struggles, and our trials. The human experience is messy and it was meant to be that way.
The “all we can do” is to trust in the Savior and believe that He will do what He said He would do. That really is all we can do because He is the only perfect one. He is with us before, during, and after all we can do. He perfects our imperfect efforts as we turn to Him. Christ is the way. Christ is the truth. Christ is the life. It is only through Him that we truly become our best. We were never meant to do it on our own. We were always meant to partner with Christ.
If you are believing that perfection is possible or expected and that you just don’t measure up, I want to invite you to borrow this thought and practice believing it.
“When I mess up, make mistakes, or struggle, which is all part of the plan, the Savior is always there for me. Because He loves me, He suffered and died on my behalf so I could learn, grow and progress while having this earthly experience. Jesus Christ is the plan. He was always the plan.”
Understanding this truth invites His peace.
Lie #4 - Satan wants you to believe that your only goal is to return to live with your Heavenly Parents.
This lie is a tricky one. I am not saying that we don’t want to return to live with our Heavenly Parents but I don’t think this belief is the whole truth. It is a half truth that keeps us from really understanding the “why” of this earthly experience. We were already living with our Heavenly Parents. Why leave them, just to go back? There has to be something more.
Truth #4: Your Heavenly Parents want you to know that the goal of the plan is about who you are becoming.
In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we believe that we lived in the pre-mortal world before we came to earth. We lived with our Heavenly Parents and their other children, our spirit brothers and sisters. Our Heavenly Parents knew us. They loved us and taught us. They wanted more for us, so a plan was presented. We were going to gain a physical body and come to earth. We would face opposition and challenges in ALL things on our earthly journey. We were given the gift of agency so that we could develop, grow, and become our best selves. We would each be given the light of Christ and we were promised the gift of the Spirit to help us along our earthly journey as we learned to use our agency to create happiness in this life and by following our Savior.
The scriptures tell us that we shouted for joy. We shouted for joy even though we knew it wouldn’t be easy because we understood and were excited for the possibilities–the becoming.
Our Heavenly Parents know each of us personally. They are watching over us and know exactly the difficulties we face—and They know exactly the abilities we each have been given to overcome our struggles. They want to see us succeed and reach our full potential. They want us to bless us and help guide us to find purpose in this life by developing and using our talents to serve God and Their children.
We exercise our agency as we navigate our trials and our struggles in mortality which helps us to grow and become our best selves. We each have a divine nature and divine potential to become who our Heavenly Parents want us to be—the best version of ourselves. That is why we are here. They don’t want you to be someone else’s best. They want you to be YOUR best.
If your progress and becoming feel like a messy process right now, that’s okay. You aren’t doing it wrong. The messiness is all part of this earthly experience–the learning, the growing, and the becoming before we return to our Heavenly Home.
Understanding this truth invites His peace.
Lie #5 - Satan wants you to believe that if you aren’t happy all of the time then you are doing something wrong.
The message that is often sent by the world is that we should be happy all of the time and if we aren’t then we are doing something wrong. When we are feeling sad, mad, frustrated, lonely, disappointed or any other negative emotion, it can be easy to think that something has gone wrong or, even worse, that there is something wrong with us.
If we were happy all of the time and never sad, how would we know how amazing happiness feels? There is something better.
Truth #5: Your Heavenly Parents want you to know that the contrast, the opposition, you face in life is what makes it beautiful and joy can be found there.
A few years ago, I was pretty sick. I felt terrible and had to stay in bed for a few days. I remember waking up one morning and noticing that I felt better. It felt so good! I can still picture myself looking out of my window with my hand on my heart in gratitude for my health. Of course, I am always thankful for my health but this moment is still so tangible to me. The sense of relief was big and beautiful. I savored the beauty of the contrast in that moment. The opposition is what helped me to experience the beauty and gift of health.
Jesus said, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: be of good cheer: I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
This is what joy means to me. Joy encompasses all of it. The sweet is sweeter because of the struggle. Joy comes through Jesus Christ because he helps us overcome the pain of mortality. He strengthens and enables us through His grace and His gift of repentance. He makes all things right.
That is joyful.
Understanding this truth invites His peace.
Our Heavenly Parents and our Savior are cheering us on. They want us to receive the gift of the Savior’s peace.
President Russell M. Nelson has said, “I give you my assurance that regardless of the world’s condition and your personal circumstances, you can face the future with optimism and joy.”
This optimism and joy come from accessing the Savior’s gift of peace no matter our personal circumstances.
Choosing peace and joy is just that, a choice.
We choose by turning to our Savior.
He is the ultimate peacegiver.
As we practice choosing to set aside the lies of the adversary and choose to turn to the truth that God offers us, we get better at feeling His peace. Then we can become peacemakers.
President Eyring said, “[God], raises up many peacemakers among His trusted disciples. They have felt the peace and the love of God. They have the Holy Ghost in their hearts, and the Lord can guide them to reach out …”
He is encouraging us to seek peace and help others have opportunities to come unto Him and qualify for that same peace themselves. Then they, in turn, will choose to seek inspiration to know how they can pass that gift along to others.
This is what President Eyring referred to as the multiplier effect.
Passing more and more peace onto your family, to your friend groups, to your community, to your nation, to the world.
President Eyring emphasized that, “The Savior’s invitation to come to Him is an offer of peace…and true disciples of Jesus Christ are peacemakers.”
To feel His peace and become peacemakers, we must choose to set aside the lies of Satan and choose to stand in the truth of God.
Recently, I was studying the New Testament story found in John 8 about the woman taken in adultery. We all are familiar with this story. This woman was being used by the Pharisees and the scribes to trap Jesus. They wanted to know if He believed that this woman should be stoned according to the law of Moses. Jesus stooped down and began to write on the ground without answering them. So they continued to ask Him.
Jesus stood up and said the famous words of, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” Then he stooped down again and continued writing in the dirt.
As you know, before long, they that heard this, knew they had sinned. One by one, they left. Then there was Jesus alone with this woman. He asks her, “where are those thine accusers? Hath no man condemned thee?” (vs. 10)
She answers Him and says, “No man, Lord.” (vs. 11)
Jesus says, “Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.”
He wasn’t going to condemn her. He was offering her His peace.
I love this story so much.
I have always pictured this woman on the ground. I even think that there is artwork depicting her on the ground. I have often heard people talk about how Jesus met her where she was–in this low point in her life. I truly believe that Jesus did this then and does this now. He meets us where we are and offers us His peace. He descended below all things that He would know how to succor us in our struggles and trials. (Alma 7:12)
However, I noticed something that I hadn't seen before. In John 8:9, the verse says, “....and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.”
The woman wasn’t on the ground. She was standing.
I believe because she was standing in the truth of the Savior. She was standing in trust and confidence of the One “who is mighty to save.” She was standing in His peace. (Alma 7:14)
I invite you to stand in the truth that you are a divine child of Heavenly Parents whose love is never ending.
I invite you to stand in the truth that you came to earth with your value and worth already in place and there is nothing that can take them away.
I invite you to stand in the truth that God’s plan is about progression not perfection.
I invite you to stand in the truth that you are here to become the best YOU.
I invite you to stand in the truth that the opposition you face in life doesn’t mean you are doing anything wrong. This contrast is what can add richness and joy to your life.
I want to circle back around to what I asked you to do at the beginning of this episode. I invite you to spend some time pondering the words I have shared with you and pay attention to how you feel.
What can you learn from paying attention to how you feel?
What is the Spirit teaching you, bringing to your remembrance, guiding you towards, testifying to you, or encouraging you to change?
That is all I have for you today. I hope you can take one of these truths and let it settle in your heart so you can feel His peace.
Thank you for being here and have a joyful week!
Mentioned on the podcast:
Finding Personal Peace by President Henry B. Eyring
If you are ready to take these concepts and apply them to your circumstances, I would love to be your coach.
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