We all want it: peace of mind. 

But how can we have peace of mind in a world that is filled with fear? 

I’m talking about the kind of fear that grips your heart and won’t let go. It stops you in your tracks almost to the point where you can’t move forward, physically, emotionally, or spiritually because you’re so tied down by fear. 

I want you to know that this is not the emotional state that God wants you to be in. 

Resources Mentioned:

The Mindset Reset is a 6 week transformation course where you learn to take your thoughts captive, get control of your emotions, and finally live out your purpose.

Highlights from the Episode

Last year, the pandemic caused a lot of changes in our lives, and the fear and stress that resulted caused many people to lose their peace of mind. I want to encourage you to move on from that turmoil and step into peace. 

It’s 2021, but many people are still trapped in the anxiety of 2020. 

Today, I’m going to share an experience I had with fear and how I found peace of mind even when the situation got worse. 

Last year, I had plenty of opportunities to be overcome with fear and stress. My husband and I own a business with over a dozen employees, and there was potential for us to start fretting about the pressure of our employees depending on us to continue providing work for them during a time when many businesses were forced to shut down. 

My husband and I made the decision together that we would not start a downward spiral into fear. We would trust God. During that time, God brought peace to my life, and that’s what I want to share with you today. 

God’s Word promises us a peace that surpasses understanding. Keep reading if you want practical tools that you can use to start to experience peace in your life today. 

Having Peace of Mind in the Midst of Fear: David’s Story

One of the best examples of living out your purpose in the midst of fear is the story of David and Goliath. 

When David was a youth, he saw a giant on the battlefield defying the armies of Israel. For weeks, the Israelites and the Philistines had been engaged in a shouting match, and that’s where David heard Goliath mocking God. 

Instantly, David had a purpose. 

There was no way that David was going to let someone mock the King of Kings. So, he started talking about stopping Goliath. He tried talking to his brothers about it, but they made fun of him. Then he tried talking to the king. The king decided to try outfitting David with heavy armor. 

Saul (the king) was acting out of fear. He gave David armor because he was afraid that this kid was going to hurt himself trying to defend God and God’s people. All the while, Saul was hiding in his tent, scared to death of Goliath.  

Not peace as the world gives

David declined the extra armor, and he picked up his stones. 

We all know the story. 

But David said something when he was running up to Goliath that really stuck out in my heart. It’s something I try to remember, especially whenever I struggle with fear and desperately need peace of mind. 

David said, “By the power of the living God.” 

Change your mindset to this: having peace always involves Someone greater than us. (And by Someone, I mean The Lord.) 

That’s how David killed Goliath. It wasn’t the special stones that he picked out, but it was because he went against this giant having Someone who was greater than him involved. 

The way that we can start having true peace in our hearts is by knowing we’re acting on behalf of Someone who is greater than us and are being led by Him. 

Related: 3 Ways to Slay the Giants in Your Life | A Lesson from David

Peace of Mind in Real Life

You may be thinking, “Ashley, that’s all fine and dandy for David, but how does that relate to my life?” 

Here’s a #IRL example of having peace of mind in the midst of fear, and it comes from my personal life. 

Years ago, my dad and brother took my three and four-year-old son to a playground. They happily played together until my oldest, Lincoln, decided to go across a swinging bridge that was part of the playground. 

Now, a lot of people think that my boys are twins because their size is almost exactly the same. But their age difference becomes more obvious when it comes to certain scary things like heights, especially during this time in my boys’ childhood. My younger son, Emmett, was afraid of heights. 

He was so afraid that he refused to cross the bridge. 

My dad was doing everything that he could to convince Emmett that it was safe to go across. My dad had Lincoln run across the bridge to prove that it was safe. He promised Emmett that it was safe. He tried to reason with Emmett that grandpa knows what is and isn’t safe. He even got up and ran across the bridge himself (that’s a grandpa for you!). 

But my son still wouldn’t go across. He would not go across this bridge for anything. 

So finally, my dad sent my brother up to the swinging bridge, and my brother picked up Emmett and walked across the bridge while holding him. After that, Emmett started running across the bridge, zero fear, happy as could be. It was such a stark contrast to just a few moments before when he was shaking almost to the point of crying. 

What God Did So We Could Have Peace of Mind

My family and I were talking about this, and I thought, what a beautiful example of what God does for us. 

We’re scared sometimes by the difficulties that come our way. They cause us to have no peace of mind and zero chances of having a peace that surpasses all understanding. 

And just like Emmett couldn’t move forward and go across the bridge, a lack of peace of mind keeps us from moving forward. 

I know you’re picking up what I’m putting down. You’ve been there. You know what it’s like to get to the point that you can’t live out the purpose that God has given you because you lack peace. You’ve seen other people cross this bridge. You remember how God Himself has overcome the bridge. But you’re still held in fear. 

God wants you to overcome that fear so strongly that He sent His Son. 

My dad could tell Emmett that the bridge was safe until he was blue in the face, but it wasn’t until my dad sent his son up to the bridge to carry Emmett across that Emmett started to have peace and actually moved forward. 

Ladies, that’s what God does for us every day. Yes, He sent His Son, who came alongside us, and He died on the cross for our sins, but it wasn’t just about that. 

It was about Him, Jesus, God’s Son, coming alongside us every single day, picking us up and carrying us across the bridges of our lives. We don’t have to rely on our own strength, because we’ve just been carried by Someone who’s greater than us.  

When we change our mindset and trust Him, our fear can dissolve. 

There Goes My Life

At this point, you might say, “Ashley, that’s a cute story, and of course I know that Jesus is with me and wants to carry me. But I don’t know how that translates in my life, my circumstances, and my struggles.” 

I hear you, and I want to give you an example of how this translated into my life. To be honest, fear has not been a huge issue for me, but a while back something happened that caused me to experience fear. 

 My husband had to take a business trip, and our boys were getting old enough that they wanted to go with their dad. It was just a quick overnight trip, so I got them all packed up and gave them kisses. They climbed into our semi-truck, and they headed down the driveway of our business. As I was watching them drive away, all of a sudden, fear gripped my heart.  

It came fast, and it came hard. 

My heart still hurts sometimes when I think about it. As I watched them go down the driveway, a song came to my mind. You may have heard it. It’s an older song by Kenny Chesney. It’s actually a country song, and the lyrics say, “there goes my life, there goes my future, my everything.” 

Somehow, this song that I hadn’t heard in years came back to me. The enemy gripped my heart with fear that something would happen to that semi-truck and that I would lose my whole life. My entire life was in that semi-truck. 

Trembling, I went back to my office and shut the door. 

And I went to Google. 

Going to the source of Peace

I know that seems crazy, but I googled verses about fear. I literally typed “verses about fear” in the search bar. 

It’s okay to google verses about fear if you need to. In fact, google verses about whatever you’re struggling with. Girl, do what you need to do to get God’s Word in your mind. 

I have Bible Gateway as a bookmark on my computer, and when I googled “verses about fear,” that website was the first one to come up. 

The verse that popped up was, Psalm 56:10-11 which says, “In God whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise. In God I trust, and I am not afraid.” 

I just started saying that verse over and over and over. 

Our employees probably thought I had gone crazy because I shut the door to my office, sat on the floor, almost in the fetal position, and started talking to myself. 

But I was getting the truth of God into my heart and into my mind. And at that time, I knew that peace of mind was not something that I could have on my own.  The only thing that was going to work was changing my mindset to relying on Someone who was greater than me. 

To do that, I had to get HIS words into MY mind. 

That whole evening, I was home alone, and I could think of nothing else except this fear that was in my heart. So, every time the enemy gripped me with fear, I started saying that verse out loud. 

I was the only one home, and it wasn’t like the dog was going to talk back and have a conversation. Yet, I just kept saying that verse, over and over and over. Surprisingly, I slept pretty well. 

Related: Unlocking the Power of Prayer in Your Life

Where You are every fear is broken

The next morning, as I was getting ready for the day, another song came into my mind, and it was the worship song “Closer.” The lyrics start with, “There’s no life without You. You have all that we need. Where You are, every fear is broken, and the darkness must flee.” 

I felt the Lord say to my heart, “Ashley, I AM your life. Trust Me; I have everything you need. I will protect your family, but you need to know that they’re not your life. I’m your life.” 

As a Christian, I already knew that, but I had to change my mindset to lineup with the truth. 

I felt His arms wrap around me, encouraging me for going to Him for breaking my fear. For the rest of that trip, fear lost its grip on me. Even when my husband and sons ran into a little bit of trouble and had to stay an extra night, I knew that where God is, every fear is broken. 

Peace of mind isn’t just about being brave in those big moments because we may never have a huge David and Goliath moment. 

But we have moments every day when we choose to change our mindset to trust instead of worry.  

That’s the real trick to having peace of mind. It’s about being brave in those little moments. Whenever we’re faithful to go to Him in those small moments, then the big moments take care of themselves. If you really, truly want to have peace of mind, that’s what you need to do. 

Even though we want to have peace of mind, it seems like fear and anxiety are everywhere. But peace of mind starts with Someone who’s greater than you. And that’s The Lord. 

I have a list of POWER VERSES you can use to strengthen your peace. You can grab it for free by signing up for my Resource Library. Just click HERE!

Need to change your mindset to get peace?

Renewing your mind is going to change your life.

Like most things, peace of mind requires a healthy mindset. That’s why I’ve created The Mindset Reset, a six-week course that will transform your mindset and change the way you approach circumstances in your everyday life.

If you’re trying to get a better handle on your emotions, banish your negative thoughts, increase your motivation, and stop dealing with the same issues over and over again, this course was designed for YOU!

Check out The Mindset Reset, and remember to keep your eyes on the One who is carrying you.

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