Sometimes life seems overwhelming, but with help from Christ, we can find peace and stillness even amidst our personal storms.
Late one night in Galilee, the Apostles of Jesus Christ frantically battled a raging storm. The tempest was so strong that the Apostles feared for their lives. In a panic, they turned to the Savior for help. He spoke the well-known words “peace, be still,” and the wind and waves were instantly calmed.
Photo by Daniel Olah
Do you ever feel like those frantic Apostles? I know I do. With all the concerns in my life—school, work, world events, and mental illness, to name a few—I often grow overwhelmed and fear that I will succumb to the metaphorical storm. But there is a way to find peace. In the talk “Peace, Be Still,” Sister Lisa L. Harkness (then serving in the Primary General Presidency) described how to find calm assurance through Jesus Christ even in the busiest and most trying times of our lives.
Sister Harkness observed that even when the waves of our storms are at their highest, Jesus Christ understands and will help us feel peace as we build our faith in him. So how can we build our faith in him? Sister Harkness teaches, “Our faith increases as we choose to believe rather than doubt, forgive rather than judge, repent rather than rebel.”
Our trials won’t simply vanish when we make good choices. But as we steadily make choices that build our faith, we can rely on Christ and experience moments of peace in the midst of our personal storms. Then one day, as we sing in the hymn “Master, the Tempest Is Raging,” we “shall make the blest harbor / And rest on the blissful shore” (Hymns no. 105).
Read Sister Lisa Harkness’s talk “Peace, Be Still” from the October 2020 general conference to learn more about how to find the peace that Jesus Christ offers you.
Source: General Conference
—Avery Andros, Latter-day Saint Insights
FEATURE IMAGE BY KORHAN ERDOL
Find more insights
Take a look at the Liahona article “Finding Peace for Yourself and Others in Troubled Times” by Alex Hugie and Aspen Stander to read specific tips for finding peace.
Read “Peace” in Gospel Topics to learn more about what peace is and where it comes from.
Listen to or read the hymn “Master, the Tempest is Raging” to learn more about the parallels between our lives and the storm that the Apostles faced.