Hunting Down Peace

      "Peace is the beauty of life. It is sunshine. It is the smile of a child, the love of a mother, the joy of a father, the togetherness of a family. It is the advancement of man, the victory of a just cause, the triumph of truth."

Menachem Begin

    
    Peace…This word has been in my mind a lot lately. 

    If we look at the world around us we can tell there is less and less peace and more and more turmoil. Just recently I attended a workshop on what to do during an active shooting situation. How sad that this is something we need to learn, but it’s the reality of life in this planet.
    
     Most of us want to live peaceful lives and the Bible does counsel us to seek peace and pursue it. (Psalm 43:14.) What does it mean to pursue? The dictionary defines pursue as to follow (someone or something) in order to catch or attack them. We are to seek peace, catch it, and make it ours! How can we do that?
    
     A few years ago I began a journey to live a more simple life, free from the many distractions that are constantly trying to get my attention. Although initially forced on me and though not always easy, it has been a very rewarding experience. Besides getting rid of many of my belongings, God has led me to let go of other things besides stuff. One of them was the daily news. I used to catch up on the news morning and evening. I wanted to know what was going on in the world. However, after the last US presidential elections, I became fatigued with my twice daily routine of catching up on the news. I realized that I was putting on my shoulders problems that I could not solve. I was worrying about things that were out of my control and that were distracting me from most important aspects of my life.
    
     I am so glad I did this. My life has been so much more calm. I don’t know how I would’ve survived this past year, if I was carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders on top of everything else I’ve been going through.
    
     Often peace comes as that inner calm we receive from God when the world is falling apart around us, and other times He encourages us to let go of things that are getting in the day of that peace. 
    
     Each one of us has a different journey. Examine yours and see if there is anything that is robbing you of peace. Often the objects that inhabit our homes cause us to feel stressed out. If this is your case, then it’s time to purge your living space from all the extra stuff. But you may also have to purge from your life other things such as old habits, toxic relationships, poor health practices, gossiping, old ideas, grudges, hate, and anything that can get in the way of you catching peace and making it yours.
    
     Peace is truly a treasure in this crazy world we live in. Don’t rest until it’s yours. Hunt it down! 
     Live a simple life, do good, seek peace, and pursue it!