All in Peace
Imagine along with me for a minute…
It is autumn in the spiritual fruit orchard. As you walk down the rows of trees, you notice something interesting. The harvest has been completed and the branches are bare, except for the fruit that remains on one kind the tree. You ask your companion what it is and he answers,
Rest for my soul? Soul Rest! Soul Rest just might be the most valuable commodity in today’s economy. It is something I have sought and treasured since the earliest days of my life.
Division. It was tearing us apart again.
Are you concerned over division in your country, city, or neighborhood?
Division in the world, although sad, is more understandable.
But what about division in your own home or church?
Maybe even division in your own heart?
Eight days later—so much to take in.
Jesus didn’t play hide-and-seek with His friends for long. The empty tomb alone was not the crux of the story. The truth of who He was and what He had accomplished lay in His appearing, alive. So He began to reveal Himself first to those closest to Him.
One afternoon I was hiding under the bed covers, feeling defeated as usual. I cried out to God and felt His calm, familiar presence envelop my tired spirit. And I saw this…
The sound of silence… Do you know it?
There are times with God though… when it is too quiet.
“Ah gots peas like a riber in my sooooooooooooo”. My toddler-daughter sang it loud and long throughout the Christmas season. I’d never really thought of “I’ve Got Peace Like A River” as a Christmas carol, but that didn’t matter to my girl. I asked her what peace felt like. She said, “sssshhhhhh quiet, f’ever”.
December just began and already my calendar is filling up with Christmas activities, parties, and baking. I haven’t even started buying gifts yet. The hustle and bustle of the holidays can quickly become overwhelming for me. Where can I get some peace?
The words just spoken over me tore a gash in my heart.
Harsh words can hurt.
In a moment… I had a decision to make… How am I going to respond?
In Psalm 11:3, David asks, “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” and these days of upheaval and outrageousness in the most foundational of our country’s institutions, a lot of Christians are asking the same question.
Historical scholars would tell you that our present turmoil is nothing exceptional. What is truly unusual is the era of peace and prosperity that most of us have experienced as our norm.
One summer our family toured Luray Cavern. Our guided tour took us deeper and deeper into the earth. As we walked the well-lit path, our leader pointed out the natural wonders on all sides.
Ladies, I am so glad for the sun and the rain and the pruning and fertilizing of the word of God under the shepherding of the Lord and the Spirit. Living securely now is a given for those who believe. As Jesus prayed in John 17:3, “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” We are truly blessed.
Do you journal? Write?
I use writing to process my thoughts.
God can use it to show you something that He wants you to see.
God told Jeremiah to write down His message for a purpose… for change…
I was lost.
It was getting very dark.
We were on a boat in an unfamiliar lake, unsure of the way home … and it was cloudy, no light.
The first decision I made seemed innocent enough. My daughter and I chose to go get our fingernails done thinking we had plenty of time before my grandson’s PreK program. Of course, it took longer than expected so we rushed out in a hurry afterwards.
I don’t know about you ladies, but when life’s distracting noises bombard my senses I best regain my equilibrium in the wonders of creation. There, the voices that declare God’s glory ring loud and clear.
The endless cacophony between Job and his four friends is over and God essentially tells Job to be still: who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge?” Indeed! And with that the LORD beckons His servant Job (42:7,8)—servant having the connotation of the one I trust, who worships me (Strong’s)—to come in close: “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). You see, Job had to step away from his circumstances to know the One who was in control.
With the 2021 record Texas snow over, the big meltdown had begun and I had cabin fever. Caution! Caution! my brain said—those brittle bones should not slip and slide. So I stepped out on the back porch to take it all in. The crusty layer on the garden wall, sparkling like jewels in the brilliant sun, creaked and groaned, reluctant to shed its coat of white. The drip-drip-drip off the roof chimed in, running down delicate icicles, down-down-down to oblivion. Birds added their bit of harmony in their clamor for the remaining holly berries bared of snow. All quiet; yet all so alive.
2020, what a rough year for our family. And guess what? Nothing that happened had anything to do with Covid.
