Sometimes the hardest thing to do is to maintain a sense of peace. The world roars with words and behaviors that create headaches and spike blood pressure. Get engrossed by the daily news feeds, the social networks, or even the drivers who cut us off during our morning commute, and we risk losing our sense of peace. If we add marital or financial problems, a cycle of homelessness, worries about aging parents, restlessness at a low-paying job, concerns are gang members wooing a teenager, and a multitude of other life challenges, we don't walk from peace to anger. We sprint.

Anger is like the gaping ditch we know is coming. We know it should be avoided. But once we flirt with anger that ditch draws closer. Passivity is no different. Passivity stands out like a dark closet. Once inside, the door slams, and we feel trapped by the inability to move or say anything. We grope in the darkness, feeling immobile and overrun by circumstances.

But peace? Peace takes eyes wide open. Peace takes radical dependence on the Holy Spirit. Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:1-4:

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We're gearing up to celebrate men and women who have seen God dramatically change their lives. Praise! in the Park starts at 11 a.m. on Oct. 21 at Jubilee Park Community Center, 907 Bark St. in Dallas. The event is a wonderful time for family, friends and the community at large to honor men and women who are thriving to the glory of God after being previously incarcerated. 

The celebration is hosted by Dallas Leadership Foundation's DLF Reentry program, which sees an 8.3 percent recidivism rate among previously incarcerated men who have completed our program. Fifty percent of the men who participate in our transitional program keep a job for more than a year. 

Through DLF Reentry, we mentor incarcerated men and women working in partnership with local churches and organizations that serve the prison population.  Operating a pre- and post-entry program through designated dorms in Hutchins State Jail and Bridgeport Pre-Parole Transfer Facility, DLF supports individuals seeking a fresh start by walking side by side with them to develop individual service plans designed to help them successfully return to society.

If you're interested in volunteering for Praise! in the Park or providing financial support, register at dlftx.org or contact Katie Miholland by email: kmilholland@dlftx.org or by phone: 214.777.5520.

Giving is one of the exquisite opportunities we have to serve human beings. Giving also is a unique self-test. It reveals our level of trust, faith hope, holy expectation, self-sacrifice, mutual understanding, neighborliness, compassion, kindness, thoughtfulness, leadership, and much more. 

Our view of generosity syncs with how we view God. If we see Him as the Creator of all resources, if we see Him as a God who provides for us, if we see His way of doing life as our gold standard, every day we align ourselves more closely to heaven's infinite levels of giving. Best of all, we come into a deeper understanding of how giving reflects the beat of God's heart.

If we view ourselves as the only sustainers of our lives, we stifle acts of generosity. We don't look to God to replenish us. We take an extreme perspective that denies God's overall provision to us and rejects chances to give to others because our resources are insufficient. Finite. We can't give to others because we don't have a back-up. In our eyes, our financial pantries are too bare to share. The Bible addresses this I-don't-have-enough mentality by saying:

The Bible addresses this I-don't-have-enough mentality by saying:

"Cast your bread upon the waters,
    for you will find it after many days" (Ecc. 11:1).

In other words, as Jesus followers we give as He directs. He identifies opportunities to give and grants us wisdom on how to do it. We give as an act of service to Him, and our giving doesn't rock our trust that He will meet the needs that we may have.

On Wednesday, North Texans will have a chance to give during North Texas Giving Day. Dallas Leadership Foundation is participating, as we mobilize leaders across cultural and political lines. We hope you consider giving to our nonprofit organization to help us as we reach out to Dallas families. For more than two decades, we've labored in Dallas neighborhoods to identify and affirm leaders and help them transform the places where they live. Even if you don't give to us, we hope you still give.It really is more blessed to give than to receive.

It really is more blessed to give than to receive.

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The cascading events of the last few weeks can remind each of us – if we let them – of our call to service as Jesus followers. It doesn’t matter where we serve, only that we serve where God assigns. There’s plenty to do.

• Evacuees need ongoing support as they try to rebuild their lives after Hurricane Harvey. Physical, financial, and spiritual support will be needed for months and years to come. (At Dallas Leadership Foundation, we're donating our summer clothing drive to help evacuees. To donate items, call 214.777.5520 or give funds at dlftx.org )
• Young, unauthorized immigrants known as Dreamers, will no longer be able to apply for protection through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. President Donald Trump wants the U.S. Congress to replace the program, which expires in March 2018, with new legislation. Regardless of our political views about immigration law, there is and will be, a human cost. People will need ministry.
• The tensions between the U.S. and North Korea continues. Compassionate and strategic intercession is needed for our leaders and leaders of the nations.
• Irma barrels through the Caribbean as an immense Category 5 hurricane, as of Tuesday. Intercession is needed for God’s protection -- for our country and all nations within the path of this storm.

Again, there’s plenty of footwork and knee-work needed at this hour by the church of Jesus. And it’s for such times as these.

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If you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday (Is. 58:10).

The devastation brought to the Texas and Louisiana coasts because of Hurricane Harvey and its flooding has also delivered an opportunity for all of us to serve here in North Texas. The power of strategic and responsive leadership is vital during times of crisis. May all of us be counted as caring leaders with fervent prayer and compassionate service. Find out how you can step in and help through this Dallas Morning News list.

UPDATED:

Since Thursday, we've started to get the word out that all items collected during our summer clothing drive will go to families in need after the rains and floods of Hurricane Harvey. To donate items to help families move forward, please go here.

At Dallas Leadership Foundation, we feel it's important that every leader find his or her our niche during this historic crisis. No role is too small or insignificant, whether it's clothing, money, blood donation, emergency help on the ground, or heartfelt intercession. God calls leaders from every sphere. 

Our response to His leadership call is critical. We live in unprecedented times. Leaders from every walk of life can help shore up conditions where people live, work, and worship. The challenges lie in clear view. Food security, chronic unemployment, affordable housing, education, and emergency preparedness are among the growing list of needs.

Infrastructure issues, as we've seen over the past week in Houston, also demand our strategic focus. As a state. As a nation. (To understand the context of what's happening in Houston, read the 2016 report by ProPublica and The Texas Tribune.)

In other words, it's time to be proactive, not silent. God's people must be on the move.

He is.

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