There are many different forms of relaxation, and in the first blog I mentioned two of my favorites, exercise and art. But I’d like to talk about other forms of relaxation that are really a clever disguise into a world of darkness and evil. How do I know about this? Well, I got drawn in myself, years ago before I knew any better. I delved into these things out of curiosity at first and because they promised me either, freedom, relaxation and in some cases entertainment, but just the opposite occurred. In fact, I believe that part of the extreme anxiety and stress I had was because of my initial involvement in these things. What I did was open a door that never should have been opened and so I unwittingly invited darkness into my life.
There’s nothing new under the sun. Satan’s tricks are always the same, just packaged a little differently for each generation. His goal is to enslave and torment and he will use any means he can to do just that. Some of the things I was involved in were Ouija boards, palm reading, numerology, horoscopes, levitation, séances, eastern religious philosophy (I read through books), hypnotism, recreational mind-altering drugs, and later yoga. I became steeped in some of these things and one day I started to break down. I can’t even describe some of the hellish nightmares I had (and I wasn’t asleep either!). Eventually, I did have a break down and I could find no way out! This is not something you ever want to go through. I know others went through a similar nightmare and breakdown after they delved into these and other similar things. Some people never did get out and died either by the drugs, or were in so much despair they ended their own life. You can hardly call any of the above good for you, or relaxing, can you?
In yesterday’s blog we read about strongholds. What are the strongholds in your life? For me, it’s been fear. For others it might be lustful thoughts. And still for others it might be greed and wanting more things and money. And as long as we are battling with any of these things, no amount of relaxation is going to relax us! We can’t relax when we’re carrying around these demons of destruction, for we will be defeated every time! We need to identify and rid ourselves of whatever causes us to be weighed down and wrapped up in chains. Even prescribed drugs can’t really cure us. The effects are so temporary you have to keep taking them in order to stay calm. And I think they only mask the real problem. (I’m not talking about all cases where some people must take prescribed drugs for serious psychological conditions!)
Jesus is the Prince of Peace and promises peace to all His followers (all who believe in Him and accept Him as their Lord and Savior):
John 14:27 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.
Have you ever experienced the peace of Jesus? I can’t even describe it – but it affects the total person – mind, body, emotions, everything. It feels clean as it washes over me. My thoughts become clearer, stress leaves and stays away. Everything is calm like a still soundless lake just before nightfall. Nothing in this world can even begin to compare to it. How do I obtain this priceless free gift? Through prayer:
Php 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Php 4:7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. NIV
There’s another beautiful passage of Scripture about the peace of God:
Isa 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.
Isa 26:4 Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength:
God’s peace guards our heart and mind! No one and nothing else can do that. I must confess I do not experience this kind of peace nearly enough because a lot of the time my mind is focused on my many projects, but when I do receive His peace, it is so precious and so priceless I never want it to be disturbed by anything. And something happens when we put our trust in God. We are actually handing things over to Him so that we no longer have to carry that burden or that disturbing thought.
Remember in John 14:27, Jesus said, Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. In the first blog A Secret Source of Stress, we learned that fear has torment (I John 4:18). We can’t experience this peace when fear is present. Here’s an example. For many years I feared losing my loved ones to death, especially my parents. But when my father passed away, I was very sad, but I wasn’t afraid. God just took the fear away and I had so much peace I could hardly believe it. He really performed a miracle for me! I was assured that my father is in heaven with Jesus and that he is so happy there, living a new life in a place where Jesus is! It’s a beautiful place with no pain or sorrow or sin. I found so much comfort in knowing this. My father is no longer on this earth, he is someplace else. But I believe he is very much alive, just not on this earth.
When people do not know Jesus, they have to look elsewhere for the peace they long for. That is what maybe accounts for why so many people turn to psychics in hopes that the psychics will have the answers they are seeking. Or people can’t relax, so they turn to drugs and alcohol. Or they turn to the things I foolishly turned to as I mentioned above. But do they find peace? No. In fact these things only create many more and deeper problems, as I mentioned. And people can develop a dependence on any number of things that bring them a momentary escape from their present difficult life circumstances. But the problem is they never find the relief and the peace they are looking for! Only Jesus can provide the peace and true relaxation we all seek and need. All we have to do is place our “total” trust in Him, and remember that if and when troubling thoughts invade your mind, this is NOT from the God of peace of the Bible. This is a demonic source designed to torment you. Just go back to the verses in the Bible that talk about God’s peace and claim those verses as your own.
Thank you for reading and may you be flooded in your soul with God’s incredible peace today. If you don’t know Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, please click here. You too can begin to experience His peace today!
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