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Real Answers™
mm5
Copyright: ©2008 Mike Mirakian
555 words

TIME TO INVEST IN PEACE

By: Mike Mirakian

It’s tough out there. Our nation hasn’t faced economic anxiety like what we are currently enduring for many years. It may not be another Great Depression, but the stock market, gas prices and real estate values are certainly making a lot of people feel depressed.

Before going on, a quick disclaimer. My family recently moved successfully from Michigan to Massachusetts. We sold our home and bought a new one in just under two months time. We took a hit on the selling end but made up for it when buying. Given the hardships many people face today, we know we have been blessed.

Divine intervention makes a pretty handy safety net, especially when times are tough. It may just be that a consistent habit of prayer and reliance on God’s daily bread puts us in a position and mindset to weather life’s storms. Nowhere in the Bible does God promise to bail us out of all our problems, but He does offer wisdom, patience and that elusive yet essential endowment called peace.

Few people really understand why the economy is struggling. We may see lots of real estate signs and watch the downhill slope on a 401-k chart, but when the government starts throwing around billions of dollars to save banks and insurance companies, most people can’t follow the economic jargon. All we know is very smart people seem very concerned.

Some economists have suggested that a core problem in the financial world is lack of confidence. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke recently made this point in a congressional hearing. “Confidence in the financial markets has declined,” said Bernanke, “and concerns about the U.S. and global economies have increased.” From ordinary folks to skilled financial experts, people are worried, and that anxiety weighs down the economic engine.

Which brings us back to peace. What if instead of worry and fear and anxiety, we had peace? Jesus once said, “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself” (Matthew 6:34). What if we sold our worry stock and invested richly in peace?

Having peace doesn’t mean all your problems go away. It doesn’t mean your bank account grows or your house will sell overnight. Peace is a deep emotion, a spiritual feeling that allows you to endure even when the world crumbles around you. Peace is what you need when the doctor finds cancer, when a job suddenly ends, when a marriage falters.

Even the greatest minds can’t accurately predict the economic future, but things undoubtedly will improve eventually. In the meantime (and this time can feel pretty mean), seeking peace instead of profit seems to be the way to go.

Finding peace requires looking for it, seeking it in the midst of confusion and concern. It takes reshaping habits and rethinking priorities. Stop checking your portfolio every afternoon and start listening to the needs around you. Stop complaining about the latest crisis and start giving thanks for the important people in your life. Stop blaming others for the burdens you carry and start helping others with theirs.

Developing the habits of a peaceful heart may not solve the world’s financial problems, but it will make them easier to bear. There will always be something to worry about. Then again, there will always be a ready supply of peace for the asking.

"Real Answers™" furnished courtesy of The Amy Foundation Internet Syndicate. To contact the author or The Amy Foundation, write or E-mail to: P. O. Box 16091, Lansing, MI 48901-6091; amyfoundtn@aol.com

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