Acceptance: The Door To Peace

Acceptance: The Door to Peace

Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” So we can say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper, so I will have no fear.”

Hebrews 13:5-6

Janie sat on the floor surrounded by piles of bills. She was glad her husband was home from rehab, but she was sick of fielding calls from bill collectors, of working all day and coming home to concerns about how she would pay what they owed. On top of that, she was angry at God because of the seemingly unanswered prayers about their finances. She was angry at her husband and terrified about his unemployment. As tears coursed down Janie’s cheeks, she remembered what a counselor had told her at their family meetings: “Acceptance is the answer to all your problems. For in acceptance there is peace.”

Janie got out her journal and began to list all the problems they faced and the fears and anxieties she was feeling. Lord, I’ve prayed, tithed, and worked, and nothing has opened up to us. I know that if you wanted to, you could change things in a moment or a day. But you haven’t, so I accept the way things are today, the things I can’t change. I ask you to show me the things I can change, and help me to trust you in the midst of our problems today, in the here and now.

For the first time in a long time, Janie felt peace begin to replace her worry. Instead of wishing things were different, she remembered the blessings God had provided in their wilderness and how he’d never failed or abandoned them. As acceptance and gratefulness grew, anxiety and anger dissipated.

Is there an area of your life where you need to grow in acceptance? Just as Janie learned, acceptance isn’t giving up; it’s saying, “This is my situation, and I embrace the reality of it. But I also open my hands to accept what my loving Father sends.” The peace that comes from this kind of acceptance is sufficient for any of our earthly trials. —CHERI

Father, grant me your grace to be content with what I have and to accept my present circumstances, knowing that you will never fail or abandon me. I take comfort and am encouraged to say with confidence, you are my helper!

First, the Lord brought me here. It is by his will I am in this strait place. . . . He will keep me in his love and give me grace in this trial to behave as his child. Then, he will make the trial a blessing, teaching me the lessons he means me to learn and working in me the grace he intends for me. Last, in his good time he can bring me out again, how and when he knows.

—ANDREW MURRAY (1828–1917), SOUTH AFRICA WRITER AND PASTOR