Having Peace Of Mind

Most people have anything but true peace of mind. That seems to be one of those things we all search for, but never really find, right?

I heard an advertisement that said if you purchased their product, you could have total peace of mind, because if it didn’t work, you would get your money back. First of all, if a store tells me to buy something, then follows it up real fast with how it might not work, you can bet I will have peace of mind because I won’t buy it.

But, if I asked every person in here if they had total and true peace of mind, I doubt if very many would raise their hands. We want it; we search for it; but too many things seem to always get in our way of having it, don’t they?

Let’s go into the Word to see what God wants us to know about having peace of mind.

1. The first key to having peace of mind is to rejoice.

In PHILIPPIANS 4:4, we read where we are to

‘Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say rejoice.’

Paul is so emphatic about it, he repeats it by saying, “I say it again – rejoice!’ Now, the one very important part of this verse is not the rejoicing part. It is the rejoicing “in the Lord” part.

What I have always wondered is how a person can be full of joy if they are not also full of laughter. I feel that a Christian needs to be happy and I doubt if a person can be happy if they do not have a smiling heart.

A few years ago an Evangelist from South Africa got the idea that there needed to be more laughter in church. Perhaps he took it too far when he identified himself as "God’s Bartender," but the response he got was nearly overwhelming. Soon after he got up to speak, he was able to get a few people laughing, it began to spread, and soon most everyone in the meeting was doubled over, or falling on the floor laughing.

Many years ago, a man by the name of Norman Cousins was diagnosed as "terminally ill" - he was given six months to live, and his chance for recovery was one in 500. Then he got the idea that perhaps laughter would help his cause, so he began to watch and read anything he could find that was funny, and he asked his friends to call him whenever something funny happened to them or whenever they came across anything humorous.

Previously his pain had been so great he could not sleep, but now he found that by laughing for 10 solid minutes, the pain was relieved for several hours so he could sleep. Eventually Cousins fully recovered from his illness and lived another 20 happy, healthy and productive years.

Since this groundbreaking work, scientific studies have shown that laughter has a curative effect on the body, the mind and the emotions. The lesson is this: laughter is sound medical advice so indulge in it as often as you can.

2. The second key to peace of mind is showing off.

Now, I know that most Americans are so conservative they can’t show many emotions, even in church, but if we want true peace of mind, we must be willing to show off.

In verse 5, it says,

‘Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do.’

‘Let everyone see’ means to do just that. Act in such a way as to show everybody who you are and what you feel like. I have said before that if we can feel comfortable enough to go bowling and hoop and holler when someone makes a strike; or if we can enjoy going to a football game and jumping up and down and yelling when our team makes a basket, we should be comfortable enough in church to raise our hands and shout out a hearty “Amen” to the Lord’s message. And, we should feel comfortable enough and bold enough to show our Godly manner to everyone around us – all the time.

Jesus supported this idea, too. He even instructed His disciples to let their lights sine before men in MATTHEW. Doing "random acts of kindness" should be the normal life-style of all Christians.

3. I think the third key to having peace of mind is found in prayer.

Back in PHILIPPIANS 4:6 we read,

‘Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done.’

If we look at this verse closely, we will see that it clearly states that we offer up both needs and requests as we pray. I have heard too many people say that they feel uncomfortable asking God for things that are not truly needed, such as a promotion, or healing for themselves, etc. God wants us to pray about everything. He says to tell Him what you want, not just what you need.