Perfect Peace

By Sabrina Barich

What do you let your mind focus on?…

Yesterday I gave in to the temptation to feel anxiety and fear about an uncertain situation. I knew it was a lack of faith, so I went out for a walk and asked God to remind me how to overcome it. As I passed by the lake, I became so absorbed in how gorgeous these flowers were that I was shocked to discover something behind them as I looked through the photos once back at my house… Storm clouds! My mood had been so uplifted by stopping to admire God’s creation, that my mind simply hadn’t registered any negativity in the scene.

I then realized that if I had ignored the beauty in the moment, my eyes surely would’ve been drawn out to the dark clouds looming in the distance. They might’ve worried me. I might’ve cut my walk short and rushed home to beat the rain. But none of that would’ve been necessary! I was home long before the rain reached us, and it was nothing but a quick shower — just enough needed to water the grass.

And there was my answer…

When we fix our eyes on all of the beauty God is creating in our lives—remembering and rejoicing in every past miracle, every evidence of His hand at work—any storm clouds, no matter how “ominous” they may appear, will have no power to shake our faith. And when left in God’s hands, they’ll prove to have been nothing worth worrying about anyways, but something He was able to use for our own good, and most importantly, our growth. And so God reminded me that letting our minds focus and rest in the assurance of His perfect love for us, truly casts out all fear