Life’s biggest challenge peace in the midst of the storm
Finding peace in the midst of the storm is one of life’s biggest challenges. I’m looking out the window while I write this message. The wind is howling, the branches on the trees are tossing to and fro and the rain is coming down in steady drops. I think about the saying, April showers bring May flowers, and the sight doesn’t seem so bad anymore.
Where do you find peace in the midst of the storm? I find my peace in a few places, one of them being solace in knowing that like all storms this too shall pass. Storms bring stress and which is good or bad depending on its frequency and impact. Stress can ignite a fire deep within that causes us to rise to the occasion, or stress can become chronic wearing us down and causing us to grow faint.
Chronic stress ravages our bodies and leads to emotional, physical, and spiritual burnout. For women, especially Black women, chronic stress brings a variety of poor health conditions and outcomes. These outcomes range from chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, inflammation and infections, and having a baby born too soon or too small.
Develop Resilience
One of the passages I lean on during my storms is Isaiah 40:31; those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall run and not grow weary. They shall walk and not faint. Like nature’s storms the storms in our lives will come and go. Some will be more torrential than others seeming to wash away all hope. They will test our strength and resilience pushing us to the brink of weariness and causing us to feel faint, but this passage reminds me that I have options. This passage lifts my spirit and gives me the resilience to continue on my journey.
When I lean on my faith I trust and believe that when storms come I can rely on the Lord to renew my strength.[tweetthis]I can run the course set before me and weariness will not overtake me.[/tweetthis] The path I walk might feel exhausting, but I won’t faint.
Are you at a place where you feel like it’s time to have your strength renewed? Do you wish you could shed the weariness of your life’s circumstances? Take some quiet time now and meditate on what that experience looks like and feels like. Reflect on it throughout the day and begin taking the first easy step to finding peace in the midst of the storm.