Be Peaceful

I pulled my head up out of the sand this week and took a look around.  So much is not going well as the economy of just about every nation spins out of control, violence consumes much of the world, and people are increasingly showing a general lack of civility.  Men’s hearts are waxing cold.  Even the so-called good people are turning on each other as religious arguments rage on the Internet and TV.  There seems only to be more trouble and difficulty to come. 

All this “reality” could put me in a very worried, anxious and hopeless state, but I refuse to let that happen.  I have been working very diligently this year on being Happy like Jesus.  I have continued to strive to be holy, spiritually-minded, humble, knowledgeable, serviceable and prayerful, and this week I added peaceful. 

This world’s right and wrong, good and evil, true and false change consistently.  That is not my reality.  My reality is the truth that is eternal, and that truth teaches me that the turmoil in this world is fleeting and avoidable.  Even as we experience the events as they play out, we can be shielded from the turmoil by the inner peace that comes with a vibrant and active testimony of Jesus Christ, what He has already done and what He has yet to do but which He surely will do. 

“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.” (John 14:27)

These were the words of the Savior a little before He died to save us.  He told his apostles that He would not leave them, nor us, without comfort.  If we are true believers and followers of Jesus, we should not be moved by the evil that is swirling around us.  We should be moved by what the Holy Ghost whispers to us.  We should be moved by what the prophets have told us in the past and what they are telling us now.  We should be moved to action to prepare for whatever is coming.  We should be moved to focus more on building up the kingdom of God and protecting ourselves from the evil that is becoming more prevalent and acceptable in today’s world.  But in all that moving, we should not be stirred up to fear, doubt, complain and attack.  We should live always with the inner peace that the Lord promised to those who believe Him, who love Him and who follow Him.

We are told that the righteous will not perish.  There have been many examples in history of how He has saved the righteous through miraculous means: the parting of the Red Sea and its closing on the Egyptian soldiers; the death of thousands of Assyrians in their sleep as they camped around the city of Jerusalem; the victory of a small, untrained, unprofessional group of rebels over the British empire.  He has done it before.  He can do it again.  If we qualify for his miraculous protection, God will protect His people again.

Peace comes with knowing we do not have to depend upon ourselves or the government to save us from destruction or unimaginable horrors that the evil of this world could inflict upon us in so many ways.  Peace comes from knowing that the One who can do everything will protect us if we obey His commandments.  Peace comes from knowing we have done our part in preparing to receive the blessings He has said we don’t have room enough to receive. 

We can never achieve peace through our own efforts.  Peace comes through the Holy Ghost.  That is what Jesus was telling the apostles.  If we have the gift of the Holy Ghost and live so as to have His constant companionship, He will give us peace by dispelling the darkness that enters our hearts and minds, by providing counsel when necessary and by reminding us of the Savior’s promise to deliver us.  If we have the Holy Ghost as our guide and companion, we will be peaceful, and then we can be Happy like Jesus.