Jun 3, 2016 filed under Temperance.

Key to peace

“The challenge of the Christian life is getting along with people. If we don’t have that, what else is there?” So said my friend Marlena today and she is right.

“Getting along” means practicing virtues like patience (giving up control — in a healthy way), justice (giving people the good things that are due them), and courage (standing up for what is right — in a loving way). Getting along usually means not imposing our preferences when we don’t need to (which, if we’re honest, is most of the time!).

Words and actions overflow from the heart. If we find ourselves not getting along with a family member or co-worker, we can look to our hearts for the source of the agitation. We can re-assess our list of loves — if we find our preferences at the top of the list, we can decide to knock it off the #1 spot.

How we interact with people who aren’t our favorites reveals our strengths and weaknesses. But that’s good news — awareness of what virtues we need to grow in is the first step to our next spiritual growth-spurt. Yay!

Fortunately, there is one habit that counteracts all our weaknesses: instant prayer. If someone starts to get to us, we can develop a habit of “blessing them,” as Marlena calls it. Blessing means silently asking God, on their behalf, for the same good things I want for myself, namely, peace. We will restore our peace if we pray for the peace of someone trying our patience right now.

Love always,
Rose

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14 Responses to “The Key to Peace”

    • Rose

      Diane, I’m practicing this as much as possible today since it’s fresh in my mind! Rose

  1. Lucille

    Beautiful words to carry with me today and to do my best to put into practice
    Thank you

  2. Marsha

    Rose,

    Such a beautiful way for Marlena to bring healing to herself and others.

  3. Sr. Mary Grace

    As always, you hit the nail on the head. Thank you.

  4. Sal

    Hello Rose,

    I don’t know how many folks understand the virtue of temperance as it is a word not commonly used in current times. It basically means discipline to go so far and no further. This can be easily observed with drunkeness as it is the most visible. However, there are many other examples that may not appear to be as obvious such as greed, gambling, over eating, hooked on TV programs, collecting cars/boats, etc.

    Living a virtuous life is about forming good habits which allow us to combat sin thereby bringing us closer to our Lord. In sharp contrast, sin separates us from God.

    To know that you are doing God’s will is to die to oneself. During the course of our lives, we make decisions that either bring us closer to Him or to move away from Him. The goal during our pilgrimage on earth is to get to heaven. Anything short of that, and we are just fooling ourselves.

    The culture especially the media is completely contrary to this in so many ways. We need to be vigilant!

    Peace in Christ,

    Sal

    • Rose Folsom

      Sal,
      Thanks for sharing your insights. It makes me want to add one or two others to your list — work and social media, which the culture idolizes but they can be also become a kind of addiction that prevents us from facing the quiet where God speaks to us.
      Rose