“Will it get any easier the older I get? Will my responsibilities ever cease spinning around my head? Can I just pause and catch my breath?” School is starting. Work continues. The days become busier and the schedules get tighter. It feels as though I am trapped in a whirlwind of chaos. Everyday there is something unexpected I need to do. Somewhere else I need to go. I enjoy it! But sometimes- okay, okay, a lot of the time- it is overwhelming!! It feels like I keep doing the same thing over and over and over and over. As though I am never making progress. Yet nothing stays the same! Things are constantly changing! I am positive that I am not the only one who feels this way. You go around on a daily basis trying to complete all the tasks you have been given. It feels as though the list has no end! You want everything to just stop. For time to just pause so that you can sit and contemplate all the questions that keep demanding attention. Can you feel the wind rushing wildly around you yet? It is, in times like this, that we want peace. But what is peace, really? A dear friend of mine used a story to explain to me and some others what he believed peace was exactly. In the story, the king of the land declared a contest to decide who could paint the best picture of peace. When the time came for the final judging, the king didn’t particularly like any of the entries- except for two. The first had was a scene with a calm lake, mountains, blue sky, and white clouds. Nothing was wrong; everything seemed to be flawless. Many who saw this painting imagined it as the perfect picture of peace. The other picture, however, was quite different. It still had mountains and water. But the water was gushing out of a waterfall from the side of the steep mountain. Instead of blue skies and white clouds, there were dark rain clouds with a flood of water descending, adding to the gloomy picture. Many who saw this picture must have wondered why the King had such a hard time choosing between these two contrasting pictures. There was something they had neglected to notice that the king saw when he studied the painting: behind the raging waterfall, in a crack of the rock, was a bird sitting on her nest- sheltered from the storm that completely surrounded her. The king ultimately chose the second painting for this reason, “Peace does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. Peace means to be in the midst of all those things and still be calm in your heart. That is the real meaning of peace.” (I found the complete story at http://storiesforpreaching.com/painting-peace/) After hearing this story, I pondered my questions some more. Maybe things won’t get easier and they probably won’t slow down, but I can have peace. Even though I feel this whirlwind blowing all around me; I am safe and I am reminded that God is in control! To quote one of Ryan Stevenson’s songs, “In the eye of the storm, You remain in control And in the middle of the war, You guard my soul. You alone are the anchor, when my sails are torn. Your love surrounds me in the eye of the storm.” Wherever you are, whatever you are going through, God is with you! Ask and accept His peace! Jesus tells us in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” I encourage you today, jump up on Jesus’s lap and let him surround you in His peace. Only He can give you true peace in every circumstance. Keep Smiling Everyday :) *** I must mention the fact that I wrote this yesterday intending to post it this afternoon and this morning my pastor spoke on God’s peace. It is no coincidence. God knows what we need to hear and when we need to hear it. :) *** {Never Miss a Post! Click here to subscribe and get my posts in your inbox!}
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AuthorGod has given me a love for people and a passion to write. I love that the sky shows the creativity of our loving Maker, don't you? I hope you will join me on this journey through life exploring the beautiful creation God has made and the lessons that He is teaching me through it all. Categories
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June 2018
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