Joy and Peace

Benedicamus Domino!

As I continue to ponder what the word "joy" means in my life, I realize that a necessary beginning of joy is peace. I must try to live peacefully soas to have a body, mind and spirit which are disposed to the noticing of joy, and this cannot happen when worries and fears are overcoming me. When I worry or am frightened, one of the things I tend to do is to eat unhealthy foods with little or no true neutrition in them, and this does not help my body. When my body weakens, it finds it difficult to fight off diseases or pains or what-have-you, and moreover, this can upset the balance of chemicals in the brain. However, my beliefs teach me that everything does have a spiritual root, so the surest way to live a more peaceful and centred life is to fulfill my hungering spirit, and this can be done in a number of ways. First, prayer is essential, and not just structured services of prayer, but a kind of prayer which is meditative. The Jesus Prayer comes to mind: a few short words which can be repeated with the lips or in the mind and which can centre one even in a small way very quickly. "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner," is the way that I usually say it, but there are variations of it as well. It is meant to be something that one doesn't have to think about very intensely. I mean, it does not have to be read from a book. Some people have used it to attain a very high state of contemplation, but these have generally been monastics who have had competent teachers to guide them. Most of us simply use it as a way to focus all of the self on the act of praying to God so that maybe one day, we might be able to pray always, some part of us repeating that prayer no matter what we're doing. Though again, this is not something to be approached in a really intensive way unless someone can guide and support the seeker.

Me, I just want to promote some kind of peace in my life, and the best way to do this is to set aside some time each day when I can simply be alone and pray, read fulfilling books, listen to music which sets my spirit soaring, and generally give myself scope for seeing the joyful mysteries of life which are all around me and which I often overlook when I'm caught up in worries and fears of daily life. In short, I am a Christian, so it's time I start actively seeking Christ's help in my life, as He is for me the Source and Fountain of Life.

Deo Gratias!