Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Pearl of the Day: It's My Peace and You Can't Have It!


 Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. [Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.] ~John 14:27 (AMP)


I have a story that I would like to share with you about something that happened yesterday as me and my daughters were on the way to run some errands.  A little side-note before I get started: Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a very careful driver.  I take driving very seriously because not only could my own safety be at risk, but my two children as well.  I believe more people should take greater care while driving instead of acting like they are the only ones on the road.  Okay, I'm getting off of my soapbox now.  Back to the story.....As we were driving down the road, I came up on a white van, which was driving slower than I was, so I got in the passing lane.  Well, the next thing I know, this truck comes out of nowhere and is tailgating me as I am in the process of passing the van.  I have a huge issue with people tailgating, but I won't get into that right now.  That soapbox will have to wait for another day.  As soon as I got past the van, I put my signal light on to get back over in front of the van.  Apparently, I did not do this fast enough for the guy in the truck behind me since he gave me a certain hand gesture as he was passing me.  It wasn't a friendly wave either, if you know what I mean.  Okay, so my first thought was not, "Bless him Lord."  I was ticked!  How dare he do that when I didn't do anything to him!  I was minding my own business and he comes along acting like he owns the road!  Needless to say, I had my little fit for about ten minutes and then it was all better.  Isn't that how things happen sometimes?  We're minding our own business, when all of a sudden we are caught up in drama that we didn't even create.  We are taking on another person's stuff.  I have to remind myself in situations like this, that other people's opinions and actions are not a reflection of my worth and value.  What that guy did is not a reflection on me as a person.  He might have been having a bad day and he took it out on me.  Instead of getting upset and letting what he did bother me, I should have just let it go instead of taking it personally.  I allowed what he did to take away my peace and joy.  If we refuse to take on other people's stuff, this will save us a lot of unnecessary hurt and frustration.  Let's decide today to keep our peace no matter what other people say or do.  Just because they are having a bad day, or a bad attitude, doesn't mean we have to lose our peace and joy.  It's yours, hold onto it!  I think the next time something like that happens, I will do what my husband does, smile and wave!  Haha!  Till next time my friends, be blessed!

2 comments:

  1. Great thoughts Sherry! I let stuff like that bother me so much. It usually takes me a more than 10 minutes to get over though. I have to constantly remind myself that my "battle is not against flesh and blood," rather there is something else at work, and often more sinister. As followers of Christ we are to make every effort to be instigators of peace. Thanks for the reminder.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for your comment Tommy! Oh believe me, those ten minutes were not pretty; just ask my girls. Haha! The kicker was this guy turned not even 1/4 mile down the road after he rode my bumper for me to get out of his way. Haha! I tend to let things like that bother me way more than I should too. That is so true....our battle is not against flesh and blood. The enemy is constantly at work against us, just wanting us to get offended and lose our peace. The more we know who we are in Him, the less stressed we will get about those types of things. I'm still not there yet, but I'm on my way. :)

      Delete