| Mark Edward |

ShorTTake™

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At the writing of this post, I’ve been following one of the worst mass shootings in U.S. History.

As a resident of Florida, the grief felt by my fellow citizens cuts into my heart. With so much indescribable pain, how do we find peace?

A young man recently wrote me, “Some days I’m okay — and some days I’m not. Honestly, I just really need peace.”

Flash Forward to 2020.

COVID19. The fight to end racism. The Need for Racial Equality.

Political Upheaval. National Anger. Unrest.

Division.

To Mask or Not to Mask.

This post is not about having all the answers to the pain which leaves us speechless.

It’s about stirring up the Peace already inside us.

In order to make it through the pain.

What do I mean by stirring up the Peace already inside us?

If you are a believer, you are a son of The Most High God:

He has placed His own Spirit inside you.

Jesus doesn’t live inside you.

What??

Nope.

Sunday School myth right there.

Jesus is at the Right Hand of God (Mark 16:19). Instead, God’s Spirit lives in you. The Spirit of God Himself.

“And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever” | John 14:16

Peace is His nature. Therefore peace is your nature.

You already have Divine Peace residing in you. By means of the Holy Spirit.

No.

I can’t even imagine the pain and grief my young friends Joseph, Phillip, and Brian – losing their sister in a car crash this year (2017).

I can’t image the pain of the families whose son, daughter, brother, sister, mom, or dad were swiftly & brutally taken early Sunday morning in Orlando at Pulse (2017).

Now in 2020, the pain we feel from the growing cases of COVID and – as of today – 130,000 deaths from COVID in our country.

The pain of inequality my guys of color feel, not just now – but have felt daily – intensely – their entire life in the “great” US of A.

Numbing pain.

A hole of deep emotion. That we wish would go away.

Sometimes we men feel guilty for our emotions.

We shouldn’t.

God created us with emotions. It is OK to experience grief, sadness, hurt, despair, anger, fear, and loss.

And to shed tears.

Many tears. He created them also.

(Shutterstock)

Grief is process.

It’s different for everyone. Emotions will come and go. And come and go again – when you least expect it.

Just today. I witnessed my wife deeply grieving about the brutal death of her mother and the wave of sorrow and judgement we rode for years thereafter. The death was 2011.

Grieving has no set time frame.

With a pandemic that restricts our daily lives, it’s normal to feel fearful about the future.

But.

After you let those emotions out — and you should — you can always come back to Peace.

Sometimes you have to surrender to Peace inside you – in other words, yield to it.

You don’t have to ask for more peace. Peace resides in you.

Right now.

Go Ahead. Surrender to Peace.

Yield to Peace.

The best way to yield to peace is to lift your hands and worship God.

Don’t stop – until Peace wells back up inside you.

God calms every fear.

He fills every wound.

He doesn’t settle for scars.

He’ll give you new brand skin if you need it.

You can strengthen your confidence in your Son-ship with God.

Gentlemen, what are your hurts and fears today?

Will you yield to the Peace inside you?

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This article was first published on the site, I’d Rather Talk ™

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