The Peace

NPR has an “I believe” segment on Mondays in the afternoon news program where a guest reads an essay on what he or she beliefs. Yesterday the lady (wife, mother, nurse) reading her essay said that everyday she needed to block off all the daily voices in her life so she could listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit. She does this by taking a daily walk by herself and in the quiet listening to God.

Finding this quiet has been difficult for me lately. The most accessible time for me these days is on my ride into the city – but praying and driving have never been a great combination for me. And when your car has a working radio, it is even tougher to resist the temptation to put on the noise. And the morning news (forget about the music) is really noise in your life. Yes, you need to know what is going on in the world, but replacing prayer with the depressing state of affairs in the world is surely not the way to start a day.

I am searching for a place of quiet and peace again. We really need to appreciate what we have when we have it-because it is fleeting.

You can’t make Heaven on earth-but you can recognize heavenly moments-those you can cherish and be thankful to God for His blessings and His consolations. Those moments, or even periods in your life (although never without some distractions and hardships), must be recognized as God’s consolation-prodding you forward to your final home.