Joanne Fairchild Miller - Creating a Haven of Peace: When Youre Feeling Down, Finances Are Flat, and Tempers Are Rising

Creating a HAVEN of Peace

What People Are Saying about

Creating a HAVEN of Peace

Theres a lot to love about Joanne Millers new book. What I love most is her conviction that our choices matter. Life happensand sometimes in ways that hurt. But, as her own story demonstrates, we can choose to respond to the difficult times in ways that dont add hurt upon hurt, but rather restore and heal.

Michael Hyatt, New York Times bestselling author of Platform

This world can be a pretty crazy place, and we can always use a little more peaceespecially in our homes. In Creating a Haven of Peace, our good friend Joanne Miller offers some great practical ideas for creating genuine, God-honoring peace under your roof. Weve watched Joanne practice these principles for decades. They work for her, and we know theyll work for you, too.

Sharon and Dave Ramsey

Haven of peace is a perfect description of Joanne and Dans home. A rare commodity in todays world. We want our grandchildren to experience that treasure. We are using her book to transform our home.

Diane and Ken Davis, motivational speaker, author of Fully Alive

Joanne Miller embodies this message more than anyone I can think of. And not just to family or house guests. She creates a haven of peace, love, acceptance, and fun wherever she goes. In her home. At her events. On her property. Out and about. Wherever she is. The world needs this message. The world needs this book.

Gail Hyatt, artist and speaker

Joanne shares a powerful combination of high points and struggles from her nearly five decades of marriage in Creating a Haven of Peace. This book will be a go-to resource for me as I strive to continue to improve my relationships and lead others in doing the same.

Nick Pavlidis, Confessions of a Terrible Husband

In a world that is often too fast and preoccupied, Joanne Miller not only unfolds how to create A Haven of Peace, she offers one to us in the midst of reading her delightful book. With artistry and authenticity, Joanne encourages us to pause and ponder our priorities and gives practical ways to create a home where family and friends will long to linger. Joanne doesnt just talk about peaceful havens; she is one, exuding peace, warmth, and grace! We need this book to remind us of what really matters and how to stay true to our best selves, regardless of circumstance.

Susie Miller, MA, MDiv, Listen, Learn, Love

When Youre Feeling Down,
Finances Are Flat, and Tempers are Rising

Joanne Fairchild Miller

New York

Creating a HAVEN of Peace

When Youre Feeling Down, Finances Are Flat, and Tempers are Rising

2016 Joanne Fairchild Miller.

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or otherexcept for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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In an effort to support local communities and raise awareness and funds, Morgan James Publishing donates a percentage of all book sales for the life of each book to Habitat for Humanity Peninsula and Greater Williamsburg.

I dedicate this book to Irene and Jerry Hall

Two dear friends, who believed in us, gave Dan his first real taste of entrepreneurialism that actually brought in a paycheck, laughed with us, played with us, cried with us, and loved us through some difficult times. Jerry, you and Dan made a great team and you taught him a lot (most of it was good!) Irene, you and I will always be there for one another. We understand our men and we know for a fact they would be lost without us! I thought of you often as I wrote these pages.

And to Dan, Kevin, Jared, and Ashley

There is no greater love on this earth than the love I have for you four.

Table of Contents

Disclaimer

Im going to be real with you. Rather than have a lot of legal terminology and disclaimers I will just say plainly that I do not have letters after my name. I am simply Joanne Fairchild Miller. I dont have certifications, degrees, and credentials. Im not apologizing for that because I earned a doctorate in Marriage and Family just as valid as any college degree or certification (if not more so). Not by regurgitating facts and formulas from a textbook but from the reality of life experience. I had a lot of teachers. Mentors who shared their successes with me through conversations, books, videos, conferences, and simply by example. People I looked to for help from how to love unconditionally to how to incorporate beauty in my life. I learned a lot about what I didnt want; the marriages I had seen in my past and the ones I have seen along the way in couples who sacrifice family for career. So, when reading the pages ahead, remember I am just like many of you. A person who drew a line in the sand and said, Not me! Not my marriage and not my home! A person who worked hard to create a Haven of Peace in spite of circumstances and in spite of the sacrifices and the labor intensity. This is what worked for us and my hope is you will find examples you want to emulate to create your own Haven of Peace. Its never too late!

A Note from Joanne

This is a compilation of articles, blogs, quotations and thoughts on home and family that I have been writing and sharing with others for over twenty years. At the time I began to put pencil to paper (I actually started out that way!), I had been married enough years to garner considerable positive experience so that others looking at my life, at our peaceful home, began asking how we managed to create our Haven of Peace. In my first attempts to put my thoughts on paper, I had titled this book, Creating a Haven of Peace In a Broken World. Indeed, we do live in a broken world. With all the chaos and busyness around us, all the noise and confusion, all the anger and frustration, it can be difficult to create a peaceful refuge where one can escape and find sanctuary. My desire is not to draw attention to all the negatives in our environment, but instead to give positive examples of what has worked for us and why others are curious as to how we have created the life we want.