"There are so many things you do yet know, but amidst it all, you can still know peace."

Peace.
Keep searching for it.
Don’t let them
make you believe
you cannot find it
and it is not available to you.
Light is still pouring through,
O tired, broken soul
please do not let go
of believing
you can still
know peace.

“Peace” is so much more than a feel-good positive message. It is freedom from disturbance. It is the ability to see that despite your current state, there is room to be untroubled within your soul. Having peace doesn’t mean you’re avoiding or deflecting. It means you are choosing to be calm despite the presence of stressors. Having peace affects the way you respond to others. It affects the way you give answers about your plans for the future, even you’re still figuring things out. It affects the way you see the success of others, knowing it cannot be compared to yours. Knowing peace can completely change your worldview.

The reason why this is important is because many of us live in communities that celebrates certainty.

Do you know where you’re going to be working after you graduate from college? Great.
Do you know who you’re going to marry and where you’re going to live? Good for you.
Are you working hard toward your goals and following the plan you have in place? That’s great to hear!

So often, it seems like the only way you can get a satisfactory response from someone is if you have things figured out, or at least give the impression that you do. Telling someone, “I don’t know what’s next, but I’m going to be okay,” or “I’m working it, but I’m not letting it consume me,” are not typically considered to be socially acceptable answers.

And in these moments, you are faced with this obstacle: “How can I pursue peace in my unknowns, in a world that demands so much certainty?”

Here’s what you can do: you can continue practicing the art of pursuing peace in your everyday life. And in doing so, embrace its radical nature. Embrace the fact that by choosing to have a calm state of mind about the unknowns in your life may cause other people to give you a strange reaction, and maybe, even resistance.

However, don’t be disheartened by this. When others are unimpressed or confused by the calmness you are finding in your uncertainty, know that you are becoming an example of what knowing peace truly looks like. It might not feel like it in the moment, especially if it seems like those around you have a much better grip on their lives, but don’t lose hope that you can still know peace here. You do not need permission from anyone in order to pursue peace in this season of your life. You do not have to hold your breath because that’s what everyone else is doing. You are free to exhale, and to know it is well, even here, in your uncertainty.

Be mindful of the need for certainty that keeps you from pursuing peace on a daily basis. Whether it comes from those around you, or within. You do not have to know everything in order to know peace.

More tomorrow,

Sincerely,
Morgan Harper Nichols