A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh. – Proverbs 14:30

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Two artists were commissioned to paint a picture of peace for a prize of $250,000. The first painter created a serene portrait of a lake with the sun glistening across the water. The artist added a young girl skipping near the lake with a yellow balloon securely fastened to her wrist. Trees towered gracefully on one side of the lake, with birds gathering in their tallest branches.

The second artist painted a pitch-black sky. Lightning zigzagged through the air in unpredictable movements. This painter also had water, but it cascaded down a rocky cliff, flooding into a tumultuous canyon stream below. The trees were bowed by the wind. But in the center, sheltered in the cleft of the rock, a little bird sat on a nest. One faint light shone on the bird as it quietly covered its eggs, despite the situation around it.

The second painter won the competition. The judges chose the artist who showed the truest manifestation of peace — a well-being that resonates from within regardless of the circumstances.

One of the names of God is Jehovah Shalom. That means He is the Lord of peace and well-being. When you have a relationship with Jesus, He becomes your Jehovah-Shalom, the One who brings the peace that surpasses all understanding. So when your situation appears dark, praise Him during the storms and allow Him to shine the light of His peace into your heart.

Pray that U.S. believers in Christ turn away from the chaos of the media and seek Him as their source of tranquility and abiding peace.