on peace. and faithfulness.

 

I woke up with this song in my mind......

one of the most beloved hymns of the traditional church.......I'm thankful my interdenominational, contemporary church still does this song in our worship time...........the words and music always resonate with me...even in the midst of a "storm".  The song got me thinking about peace...and God...and His faithfulness......

After I woke up and got a cup of coffee, I settled on the couch in the living room with my small group study book.  Here are some of the words I read:

"True faith depends.........upon the Lord alone and His faithfulness..........to have faith is to have trust in the faithfulness of our God, knowing that faithfulness is first and foremost not a human but a divine attribute." ~Mike Mason~ (pg. 93 Becoming a Woman Whose God is Enough by Cynthia Heald, c.2014)

I find it no surprise, or coincidence, that this next week's chapter is based on the faithfulness of God.  God seems to do that with me (and other friends!)....when He wants to get our attention about a topic or attitude, He shows us through His Word, through a study, a song, a sermon, a scripture.

One of the passages of Scripture in the chapter points to Jesus calming the wind and the waves. (see Matthew 8:23-27)

How do we do when we face the storms of life?  Do we fret and worry and have little faith?

I know I sometimes do.  It can be hard to believe God has something in His control when we want to take control...or when we don't know the future....or are facing loneliness, singleness, brokenness, sickness, addictions, joblessness, homelessness....the list goes on and on.

I tend to be anxious about my daughters' future.  Or my husband's heart health.  Or my finances.  But then I remember that God tells us to NOT be anxious.  And we want to please God, right?  

How much more calming.....peaceful...it is to simply lay our burdens down at His feet......and allow Him to pick them up and carry them on His shoulders...the very way He carried that burden of the cross to Calvary for us.

He can calm the raging storms within our minds.

The study chapter goes on to say that the reason the disciples were so amazed in the boat when the waves and the wind calmed down, was because they (the wind/waves) were controlled by Jesus.  God is the One who created those waves and that powerful wind.  Only He can control them!!  We cannot.  Only God can command them to be still.

and He wants us to be still.

How are we going to respond to the storms around us?  Whether they be physical or emotional storms?

God is faithful.  He will never leave us.  We just need to have the faith..the trust...to reach out to Him.  Allow Him to take your needs, concerns, health, future.  Whatever it is you are facing.  Ask Him to show you the way to walk.  He will lead you through the storms of life. 

When I look back on my own life, I see His Hand in so many areas.  When I needed a job, He provided. Maybe it wasn't my dream job right out of undergrad school, but it paid the bills.  Maybe I had to endure many single nights, alone in my bed, crying out to God for love and romance, but He comforted me and brought me to a place of acceptance and peace.  No, I don't have my dream home in the mountains, surrounded by a pristine lake.  But I have a home, near mountains, with lakes.  He provides in ways we cannot imagine.  We just need to take our little faith and ask God to grow it.

God is powerful.  He is sovereign.  He is with us.  He will calm us....and bring us that peace.

Peace...like a calm river........

and we can say

It is well.  With our souls.