The Second Sunday In Advent: Peace

For the second Sunday in Advent Lectionary readings are:   Baruch 5:1-9 or Malachi 3:1-4  • 



  • Luke 1:68-79  •  
  • Philippians 1:3-11  •  
  • Luke 3:1-6


    • Peace; don't we all need it?  Don't we all crave it?  Certainly in our world of turmoil we pray for peace. But it seems to be out of our reach.  Is it?  

    Perhaps we need to start first with peace of our own making.  Peace within ourselves as the world seemingly spins out of control.  As the song says, "let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me."  We rarely influence peace in the world, but allowing peace into our own hearts IS something within our control.

    Peace doesn't easy to me.  I am one stressed out chick...it's my personality and I am continually trying to reel myself in for the good of myself (my health!) and my family.  Sometimes it works; sometimes I explode.

    Often my own personal craziness happens in the middle of the night.  I'll wake up from a peaceful slumber and be unable to get back to sleep.  My brain then goes into hyper drive.  And it does even more so during this time of the year.  In the darkness, I panic about bills and money, health, family, etc.  It's the perfect time to completely freak out!  It is the time when I most need peace so that I can get back to sleep and be refreshed.

    For me the answer seems to be to give myself permission to freak/panic for a set amount of time.  (You've got five minutes to be totally crazy girl; then you have to move on.)  Then I put on some quiet music (I'm a fan of Andreas Vollenweider's White Winds) or calming sounds.  I try to focus on that and on my own breathing.  By bringing peace to myself/my mind I am better prepared to face the chaos of the day.

    Allow yourself peace.  Find time for the self-care that brings you peace.  As peace fills us, we can help it fill the world.







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