Peace, Freedom, and Happiness

Have you ever thought, “If I could be perfectly free, I would be happy; I would have peace”? Many people have sought complete freedom in order to have happiness and peace. People desire to be free of all restraints, somehow believing that if they could do just as they please, this would bring happiness. Does it?

The laughter and carefree atmosphere prevalent in today’s society seem to offer the promise of happiness. The party life is so attractive to many. People with alcohol and all night to indulge with their companions feel assured of happiness. These settings do not provide the peace and happiness people are seeking.

Recreational drugs promise wonderful highs. One would think surely these would bring happiness, and with that happiness, peace. Do they?

Modern music, which penetrates mind and body, works together with alcohol and drugs to bring more highs. This does not bring real happiness either.

Complete text of: Peace, Freedom, and Happiness

Indulging sexually to the fullest extent of human lust, with no thought of self-restraint, offers promise of fulfillment. It only brings an emptiness and disappointment. No, happiness is not found there.

In our time many are promoting the thought that in these and other areas, one should be completely free to do just as he pleases. They believe that there should be no law, no stigma, and no ill feelings for the one who indulges in these gratifications in his pursuit of happiness and peace. It is thought that total freedom ought to bring peace and happiness. Happiness is always to be found, they advocate, in yet another indulgence, another high of some kind. People think that if they are only seeking personal happiness, they will not be held responsible for their actions. They feel that they are entitled to their fair share of “happiness.”

If happiness is to be found in these ways, why the lonely feeling in the crowded bar? Why the low after the high? Why the uneasy feeling after the indulgence? Why the letdown feeling after the intimate relationship breaks off? If indulgence brings happiness and peace, why do they always seem to be just beyond our grasp? Why are there so many problems, and why does life seem so empty?

Many people are driven to succeed financially. Others excel in sports. Some strive to become famous. Even if these goals are achieved, an unsettled feeling lingers. One may find happiness for a short time, but lasting peace and happiness remain elusive. 

Self-indulgence is not true freedom. It will never bring happiness or peace. Self-indulgence is sin because it is service to self instead of service to God.

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-29, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.”

How is it with you? Do you feel uneasy and troubled? Do the problems in the world and in your relationships cause you anxiety, guilt, and fear? Do you sometimes wonder if anybody really loves and cares for you?

Be assured God does love you. He is keenly interested that you find peace, freedom, and happiness. True peace comes not in indulging more, but in giving up yourself. Yielding yourself to God and trusting Him brings rest to your souls. Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you” (John 14:27).

Answer Jesus’s invitation. Come unto Him with all your heart. Give to Him your past, present, and future. Turn from the empty, wasted life you have been living. Then you will find true freedom, true happiness, true peace, and true love. You will have hope for the future and the promise of eternal life if you will remain faithful. May God bless you as you seek and find peace and rest.

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Peace of Mind in a Troubled World

Peace

“Peace, where is peace—for our nations, our homes, and most of all for our hearts and minds?” This desperate cry has been heard through the ages. Is it also the cry of your heart?

People are weary and worried. Without a doubt there is a need for direction and counsel, security and confidence. We need, and want, peace of mind.

Peace of mind—what a treasure! Can this treasure be found in a world of so much conflict and despair, turmoil and trouble?

Complete text of: Peace of Mind in a Troubled World

The great search is on! Many people are seeking peace in fame and fortune, in pleasure and power, in education and knowledge, in human relationships and marriage. They desire to fill their heads with knowledge and their purses with wealth, but their souls remain empty. Others are seeking to escape the realities of life with drugs or alcohol, but the peace they seek eludes them. They are still empty and lonely, still in a troubled world with a troubled mind.

Man in Turmoil

God created man and placed him in a beautiful garden to enjoy perfect peace, joy, and happiness. But when Adam and Eve disobeyed, they were at once stricken with guilt. Where before they had longed for the presence of God, now they hid themselves with shame. Guilt and fear replaced the peace and happiness they had known. Man’s sin was the beginning of a troubled world—and a troubled mind.

Although our soul longs for God, our sinful nature rebels at his ways. This inner struggle causes tension and distress. When we, like Adam and Eve, are self-centered in our desires and ambitions, we become anxious and fretful. The more we focus on ourselves, the more troubled we become. The uncertainties of life and the changing, decaying world shake our security and disturb our peace.

Although you may not have recognized or acknowledged it, sin could be the reason for your uneasiness. Many people search among outward and material things to find peace. They blame the troubled world for their troubled mind, but fail to look within their own heart.

Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace

There can be no peace until all aspects of life are brought into harmony with the One who made and understands us. This is only possible by a complete surrender to Christ. He is not only master of the world but knows our life from the beginning to the end. He was thinking of us when He came into the world “to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (Luke 1:79).

Jesus offers light for darkness, peace for strife, joy for sorrow, hope for despair, and life for death. He says in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you… Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

Repentance Brings Peace of Mind

When you feel the heavy load of sin weighing you down, the remedy is to “Repent… and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out” (Acts 3:19). Jesus invites you to this most meaningful, life-changing experience. “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). 1 John 1:9 promises, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Will you accept his invitation?

When you come to Jesus, you will find forgiveness and freedom. Instead of resentment and unforgiveness, your heart is filled with love and mercy. With Jesus reigning in your heart, you will love your enemies. This is possible through the power of Christ’s redeeming blood.

Abiding Peace

As a Christian, faith in God and trust in his care is the antidote for fear and anxiety. How restful it is to trust in an unchanging God who is from everlasting to everlasting. He loves us and will always care for us. So why worry and fret? Learn to do as we read in 1 Peter 5:7, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” We also have the promise, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee” (Isaiah 26:3).

With Jesus Christ in your heart, your search for peace is over. He will give peace and a calm that comes only from trusting Him. You will be able to say with the poet:

I know a peace, where there is no peace,
A calm, where wild winds blow,
A secret place where face to face
With the Master I may go.
-Ralph Spaulding Cushman

You will have peace of mind in a troubled world! Open the door of your heart to Christ—just now—and someday He’ll open the door of heaven for you, where perfect peace will reign for ever and ever.

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Free from Fear

What Is Fear?

The Fear of God

The Fear of the Future

The Fear of Failure

The Fear of Suffering

The Fear of Death

What is Fear?

Fear, a secret enemy, invades men of every age and race and every walk of life. It is subtle and devastating, poisoning our thinking, robbing our inner peace, and squelching our zest for living. It makes us nervous, uneasy, alarmed, disturbed, upset, and fainthearted—what unpleasant, unwanted feelings!

We fear conflict and change, failure and frustration. Some people fear sickness and suffering. Others fear that harm will befall their loved ones. Some are afraid of other people and their opinions. Others fear the dark, or to be alone. Many are afraid to die and to face the unknown. There are Christians who fear their salvation is not secure, or that God has not forgiven their sins. They are not only afraid to die, but also afraid to live.

Fear enters our minds so slowly and silently that we hardly realize we are becoming victims of its damaging influence. Even a little fear, like a drop of dye in a glass of water, discolors everything. When this thin stream of fear is not stopped, it cuts a channel into which other thoughts are diverted.

Complete text of: Free from Fear

Life is complex, the world is violent, but outward troubles need not mar inner peace. It is the fear within we must face. Fear enters when our most important need has not been met. Our souls, made in the image of God, cry out for Him. When we are away from God, we can expect to be fraught with phobias, complexes, and fears.

Satan takes full advantage of our fears. At every opportunity he intensifies them and makes them seem even more real and logical. Our way becomes darker and darker, and the burden of our heart becomes heavier and heavier, until we lose all hope of deliverance.

Satan works in darkness. He cannot work in the light because “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). Satan knows our weaknesses, and in these areas he presents thoughts and fears. He seeks to destroy truth and confuse us with falsehood. If we keep these things covered in the darkness of our hearts and minds, Satan will continue his evil work of discouragement and fear. He can be defeated and his powers can be driven back if we expose him to the light.

The Fear of God

Sin causes an overwhelming fear that springs from the knowledge that one’s life is not pleasing to God. It was a tragic day when Adam and Eve yielded to the suggestion from Satan to disobey God’s command not to eat of the tree in the midst of the garden. Through disobedience they sinned and then hid from the presence of God. That evening God called them, and Adam said, “I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid” (Genesis 3:10). Through the generations since Adam, all mankind has come under this shadow of sin. This fear of the judgments of God, if it will move a person to repent of his sin, can become a positive force in one’s life. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Psalm 111:10). This is a very proper reverential respect and awe that we feel. We see in part God’s greatness, his righteousness, his judgments, his love, his mercy, his wisdom, and his eternal being. He is all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-present. We realize that our very existence is entirely in his hands and that we are before Him as his creation. We are afraid to displease such a God. We know that God’s righteousness condemns to hell fire those who live in sin. “For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries” (Hebrews 10:26-27). This knowledge brings a fear of sin. As we come to know God as our personal friend through repentance, forgiveness, and obedience, our service to Him is motivated by a godly fear, and by love and thanksgiving for his unspeakable gift of salvation. “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love” (1 John 4:18). Our fear of Him is not one that strikes terror to our hearts, but one that deepens our love for Him. When fully applied in our lives, this is one fear that can overcome all others. Why then do so many allow clouds of fear to grip their hearts, trouble their minds, and shadow life’s pathway? God’s way is a way of peace and trust.

A story is told of a little boy who was afraid to walk alone in the dark night, but when his father walked beside him and took his hand all fear vanished. The darkness now held no fear, because he loved and trusted his father, and knew he would take care of him. Here is the key for us to be free from fear: we must learn to know our heavenly Father well. As we become acquainted with God, we trust our lives completely to Him, placing our hand safely into his. We humbly speak to Him of the questions that plague our minds, and those sorrows of life that would drive us to despair.

We have the example of the apostle Peter, as Jesus bade him walk on the stormy waves of the Sea of Galilee. Peter was unafraid until he took his eyes off the Lord and began to look at the fearful waves. Then he began to sink (Matthew 14:24-31). As we seek freedom from fear and place our confidence in God, his Spirit will speak to us in a still small voice. As we look to Him rather than our fears, the storm calms about us. He can then answer our perplexing questions, replace our doubt with assurance, and take our hand comfortingly in his. We can, by his grace, overcome the crippling effects of fear.

The Fear of the Future

The mysterious unknown of the future makes some people uneasy. Each morning they awaken to an unpredictable day. They face those nagging “what ifs” as their minds race down the dark alleys of imaginary dread. “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God” (Philippians 4:6). By trusting the future into God’s hands, we can surrender to Him the burden of the unknown. Try it and see!

Many fear the future because they lack direction for their lives. Not knowing where they are going, they have a sense of foreboding. God knows what lies ahead, and when they let Him lead them, their lives will not be an aimless journey, but rather the way home.

God has promised to be faithful to those who trust Him even though they face an unknown future. Do you believe it? No matter how severe the storm, or dark the night, or high the mountain, He will take you through.

The Fear of Failure

We have a desire to achieve, but we fear that we will fail ourselves, our families, and life itself. We fear we will make a wrong choice and carry out a wrong plan.

God commanded Joshua, “Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest” (Joshua 1:9). When we place our lives under the direction of the Master, past failures need not be final; they can become stepping-stones to success.

The Fear of Suffering

We all cringe at the thought of bodily pain, the hurt of criticism, the pang of loneliness and grief. God will not shield us from all suffering, but He will supply the grace to bear it. He has promised peace and assurance in the midst of our troubles. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear” (Psalm 46:1-2). If we love the Lord, He will use suffering for our good. Suffering provides an opportunity to know the presence and upholding power of God. It also brings depth of character and an understanding heart. Suffering can either make us or break us. Which will it be?

The Fear of Death

The fear of death is very common to mankind. Saying goodbye is a most painful assignment.

We need to come to grips with the age-old question, “If a man die, shall he live again?” (Job 14:14). Jesus came to deliver us from the fear of death (Hebrews 2:14-15). That is why He died and arose again, and that is why He promised, “Because I live, ye shall live also” (John 14:19). With Him, death is not a door into nothingness, but a shining gateway into a new life. “Let not your heart be troubled… In my Father’s house are many mansions… I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14:1-2). It will be a prepared place for a prepared people.

Are you prepared? Have you repented of your life of sin? Repentance brings a remorse for past sins and a turning away from the old life. When was the last time you came to the Lord in prayer and gave Him your load of care, your worries and fears? Jesus says, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). What an invitation! What a promise!

Come—trustfully, prayerfully, hopefully, and you will have peace of mind.

Come—and you will know the gentle joys of restful living. God invites you to trust Jesus Christ and be free, free from fear. Come!

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