Faithbase

Greetings and salutations. We're very happy to be back here with you once again. Another day that God has blessed us to come together for a devotion or as some would call Dr. J's thoughts. I trust that you're having the most amazing and blessed day. I certainly is my prayer that you are. And today's topic is going to be one in which I hope that is a truly a blessing to your soul. It is entitled the art of cultivating inner peace through meditation. And so today we're going to be encouraging you to develop within your own ability. What's comfortable for you process of exercising working out and meditating practicing some mindfulness that would allow for you to experience some peace. Some joy good physical condition and good practices that would lead to a level of peace. And so you're going to find that as you're reading today's devotion. It comes from Philippians four and seven. And I'm hoping that as you embrace this subject matter, you would agree with me that in the hustle and bustle of the modern life in a piece often seems like an elusive dream something that you know reserved for hermits in remote caves. But I want to suggest to you is reserved for you and I is just how we go about putting the practices in place to reach that level of excellence within ourselves that we are meditating that we're exercising and that we are mindful of the things that we need to be mindful of so that we can experience the level of success and happiness we deserve to have. And so, when we deal with this truth as it relates to meditation and certain practices that will lead to a healthier lifestyle. The truth is that inner peace is not a distant destination. It's a state of the mind that can be experienced right where you are. No one can give it to us. It's a gift that we have to decide to give to ourself. It's a priceless treasure that we have to decide to give to ourselves. Nothing needs to be more important than self care, because if you're not caring for yourself, chances are you're going to be extremely limited in caring for anyone else. So our thoughts have power to rob us from that ability to care for ourselves in the level that we're discussing. So as you read today's devotion, you're going to be encouraged to not allow that reality to take place, but to embark upon a journey to inner peace. The first and most crucial step is to recognize its value and actively, actively work towards making it a reality of your life. You can do it. It takes a made up mind. And I want to offer you seven principles or and or maybe I should say seven practical steps as I wrote it and that can guide you to achieving that level of wisdom within meditation practices to help you or I or anyone else that would embrace them to experience more peace of mind. And so the first one is mindful time management. That's number one. Number two is mastering your thoughts. Number three is simplify your life. Number four, allocate time for inner peace. It takes time and it takes determination. It takes persistency to achieve your destiny. Be, you know, the kind of person that would be impoverished and to flattery and criticism. You know, you're going to have to be able to be tough skin. You're going to have to be able to understand that in this life, there are going to be people that's going to be for you and against you. And many times some will be for you on Monday against you on Wednesday. And based on what happens, they might be for you again on Friday. So don't stress yourself out about what people say or what people do or people don't say or do focus on what's best for you as you trust in the Lord with all your heart. Not on your own understanding, but in all your ways, acknowledge him so that he can direct your path. Rely on God to be that navigator that will take you from destination to destination from point to point and give you the assurance that blessed assurance that you are victorious in spite of the circumstances because of your relationship with him. Number six, be active, selfishly, be active, selfishly. And number seven, avoid criticizing others. Avoid criticizing others. Be so focused on yourself that you don't have time to focus on the negativity of anyone else. If you're not lifting them up, you're not putting them down. If you're not pointing them towards Jesus, you are minding your business. They say it's a good saying. It takes six months to mind your business and six months to leave others alone and you won't have time for anything else but Jesus Christ and his righteousness and to focus on what's going to bring growth and development within your life. Remember, our time together is hopefully to motivate you to read the devotion and not tell you all of its entirety. I trust that you will have a super fantastic day and this is Dr. Jay. God bless you and may the peace of the Lord be with you.