The Calm Sanctuary

The calm sanctuary is a place of refuge from the stresses and tensions of daily life.
Inner peace is a state of tranquility that nourishes well-being and enhances the quality of life.
The calm sanctuary nourishes the soul, inspires the mind and strengthens the body.
God Created human-beings with:
1. Body - the part with which the individual grows, learns and communicates within the physical realm.
2. Mind - to understand and perceive through life-long experiences.
3. Soul - the part that will have a never-ending future in the Heavenly Kingdom of God.
The body, mind and soul are all interconnected to Glorify God through faith, worship and service.
The Body
A healthy body keeps you well and active.
Imagine having a well-toned body that radiates strength and vitality.
Imagine a waistline in proportion to your body shape that oozes vibrant inner health.
What you eat, how you think and what you do determine your quality of life.
Unhealthy habits eventually have consequences that undermine the quality of life.
"Exercise is king. Nutrition is queen. Put them together and you've got a kingdom."
Jack LaLanne (American Fitness And Nutrition Expert)
Assets of the Mind
*Positive attitude
*Clear conscience
*Self-respect
*Spiritual enlightenment
A healthy mind is the individual's faculty for thinking and reasoning through wholesome values.
The Soul
Physical life is temporary.
All things come to an end.
God gifted mankind with a spiritual soul that will continue to exist beyond physical life in God's Heavenly Kingdom.
The soul is the link between the physical body and the spiritual self.
A healthy soul is looking towards an eternal future in God's Heavenly Kingdom.

The Rat Race

The Calm Sanctuary
The vicious cycle of long working hours, daily commuting to work, the monotony of a repetitive, dead-end job as well as the traffic and pollution in the fast-paced, urban-sprawl of city life can be a place of stress and pressure where many people find themselves trapped in what is referred to as the "rat race."
It encapsulates the relentless pursuit of success and materialistic pursuits to keep up with the Joneses.
Excess Baggage
"I would if I could, but I can't, so I won't".
Unnecessary things "weigh you down" making us less productive and stressed.
Its negative effects makes it difficult to relax which in turn, affects the ability to focus.
Simplicity brings forth reflection on what truly matters in life.
It creates freedom to focus and self-management to gets rid of the irrelevant making one feel calmer and more in control.
Removing the excess creates more time and energy for the things we love.
*Say “no” to things that you don’t have time for.
"Out of clutter, find simplicity. From discord, find harmony. In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity."
-Albert Einstein

The Calm Sanctuary

There is a special place where time seems to stand still.
It is a place where one can enjoy and appreciate the simple things around them that others don't take time to see.
A sanctuary is like a retreat that provides peace and tranquility in serene surroundings.
It is a place of refuge, where one can go to relax and make time for themselves.
A sanctuary can be a home, the church or a quiet, natural setting where its tranquil atmosphere helps the individual to recharge and de-stress away from the hustle and bustle of a hectic world.
A love-filled home possesses a radiance beyond description - God Abides Here!
Spiritual Sanctuary
A person touched by the Holy Spirit is forever changed through a Divine Connection.
A spiritual sanctuary enhances our connection to the Divine through spiritual inspiration that can lead to a profound healing of the body, mind and soul.
The church becomes a sanctuary for God's people and where the longings of the soul is satisfied.
It reminds us of God's Presence in our world.
*The church is the House of God.
*Jesus Christ is the Head of the Christian church.
Nature is a sanctuary surrounded by God's wonderful Creations in quiet, natural and uncrowded surroundings that absorbs the body, mind and soul with beauty.
You can look unto the hills from where your help comes from.
Psalms 121:1-2

Balance

The Calm Sanctuary
Too much or too little destroys the equilibrium of life.
Time can either be used productively or wastefully.
Spiritual realities can only come from God and Jesus Christ.
Spiritual assets help us to love God and our neighbor.
Jesus Christ brings God's Way of righteousness to live a wholesome life in harmony with our values and our fellow human being.
Balance is necessary for moving forward and to finding fulfillment.
A healthy diet, exercise-program and the right attitude, strengthens the immune system and reduces health risk factors.
Family and friendships are the foundation of a vibrant, good society.
Emotional well-being provides resilience and positive emotions.
Knowledge opens the door to opportunity.
Recreation and hobbies improves our physical and mental health.
Spiritual enlightenment opens the spiritual gateway beyond the physical world.
Balance through common sense avoids the extremes and the harmful because of its ability to imagine the consequences.
Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.
-Thomas Merton

Simplicity

The Calm Sanctuary
Simplicity provides the intangible resources of time, peace of mind and contentment.
There is less stress, better sleep, increased focus including freedom and peace of mind.
Simplicity empowers the individual to live lighter and add value to life through meaningful goals.
Negative emotions create puppets of fate.
Wrong values lead to nowhere.
A fixed mindset achieves fewer goals and fewer rewards.
"If you can't focus effectively, you can't think effectively."
Clarity is clear thinking that is aligned with your values - "To Thine Own Self be True".
It means knowing exactly what you want and where you want to be with goals and their paths to reach them.
Simplicity has two steps:
*Identify the relevant - focus on what matters!
*Eliminate the irrelevant.
The secret of success is constancy to purpose.
- Benjamin Disraeli

Peace of Mind

The Calm Sanctuary
The mind is the mental and emotional aspect of the human body.
It governs both conscious and unconscious thoughts and functions - allows us to imagine, dream and store our memories.
Negativity restricts the mind.
Mental freedom enriches the mind.
Peace of mind brings inner calm that radiates contentment.
The Conscience
In the spiritual sense, the conscience is the internal Voice of God that provides the compass to our values and principles.
We use our concience to judge whether our actions are ethical for the benefit of a good and stable society.
No-one can stand before God and lie or do evil with a clear conscience.
The prodigal acknowledges his sins by turning to Jesus Christ and asking for forgiveness and deliverance.
They must also be willing to forgive others.
Jesus Christ said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."
- Matthew 11:28
Tranquility
The Bible is God's Written Revelation.
It refers to the way in which God reveals His Divine Providence to humanity.
When the mind is absorbed by beauty and inner contentment, it gives a sense of something Greater than one could ever imagine.
The visual delights of a sunrise or sunset and the scents and sounds of nature provide tranquil health benefits.
Whether you spend time in your backyard, a neighborhood park, a beach or the tranquil settings of the countryside, nature can have a profound impact that makes you feel better emotionally and contributes to your physical well-being.
Our attention capacity is increased and our creativity finds inspiration through peace of mind.
“Stop and smell the roses” means to relax; to take time out of one's busy schedule to enjoy the little things that give life meaning and goodness in the midst of everything else.
God's Presence is seen in the breathtaking Beauty of the natural world through His Creativity and Splendor - just look around, above and beyond.
When the "heart spiritually awakens," the senses experience God's Creation's everywhere and every day that fill the mind with beauty and contentment.

Spiritual Enlightenment

The Calm Sanctuary
The Kingdom of God is invisible unless you have the "eyes of faith" to see it.
Spiritual enlightenment gives humanity a reason to life in this world and in the eternal world to come in God's Heavenly Kingdom.
The spiritual asset of faith provides the renewing inspiration of transcendence ("seeing" beyond the physical level) to find the Pathway that leads to God.
Jesus Christ said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
- John 8:12
With faith, we acknowledge God's Existence and reinforce our need for Him.
Through worship, we show our love and devotion for God.
The humble Christian acknowledges Jesus Christ in their life as they bow to honor and Worship Him as the King of their world.
Faith coincides with repentance from sin.
It provides the hope of salvation through Jesus Christ.
The Biblical revelation of salvation should have a great impact on the kind of life we lead.

"Count Your Blessings"

The Calm Sanctuary
"Count your blessings” encourages the individual to focus on the positive aspects of life and to appreciate what they have.
*Think about the things you love the most.
*Think about the things that make you grateful.
*Think about the things that made you happy.
*They all serve as a reminder to "count your blessing".
Counting your blessings means being thankful for what you have.
It promotes optimism and inspires positive emotions.
It is the way God can "See" us as a living testimony of His Love, Kindness, Mercy, and Grace.
“Blessed are they who see beautiful things in humble places where other people see nothing.”
– Camille Pissarro.

Coat of Many Colors

The Calm Sanctuary
In the Bible, the Coat of Many Colors is a well-known story of the garment given to Joseph by his father, Jacob as a special mark of favor.
Every color of the Coat of Many Colors has a special meaning of God's Plan in the life of a Christian.
God's Coat of Many Colors clothes us with:
Grace - Divine Favor
God favors the humble (prov. 3:33-34, james 4:6), and those who obey his Commandments: Isaiah 66:2.
Love
Love fulfills a fundamental Law of God.
In Corinthians 13:4-7, St. Paul said that God's Greatest Gift to humanity, is love.
Faith
Faith is the bedrock of the true Christian who:
*Believes in God unconditionally - this is trust.
*Believes that Jesus Died on the Cross for our sins.
*Anticipates the future of God's Promises.
Jesus Christ's Coat of Many Colors is woven with spiritual assets that heal the mind and body and illuminates the light of hope.
*Gold represents God’s love that is more precious than all the gold in the world.
*Crimson represents the Blood of Jesus Christ which is our redemption and forgiveness of sins.
*White represents purity and righteousness.
*Brown represents humility.
*Green represents the good fruit of serving others.
*Olive green is the color of peace.
*Blue is the color of the sky representing faith in God and His Heavenly Kingdom.

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