Is there a difference between being peaceful and being calm? It may be a fine point, but yes, there is a difference.
Being calm
Life is messy. Life is challenging. Life calls us to respond to all manner of input on less than a moment’s notice. Is it any wonder that often our lives cannot be called any manner of calm? Calm is defined as free from agitation, excitement or disturbance. How many days have you had when you could claim all three? Agitation is what happens when you run into a situation that throws you for a loop, or a person who just rubs you the wrong way. Excitement; well heck, even when I am on vacation in Hawaii I often look for excitement zip-lining or driving a ball down the fairway. As for disturbance, if I am sitting in my favorite chair enjoying my backyard and the telephone rings, that is a disturbance. So far it doesn’t seem the state of calm is a very elusive place to reach.
Being Peaceful
Perhaps, then, the best we can hope for at any given time is to remain peaceful; untroubled by conflict, agitation or commotion. The key word in the definition of being peaceful is untroubled. When we view life as an ongoing opportunity to find joy in all things, even those that vex us, we are well on the way to having a peaceful life. For me, my re-set button is meditation, but it could also be as simple as taking a few deep breaths to help put things in perspective.
When we allow ourselves to get caught up in moments of life we forget the larger picture. That’s why I wrote the book Think Believe Receive. It will help you hit the reset button and approach life if not calmly, at least peacefully. Click on the cover below and read a sample.
