Today the Holy One calls to me. New life springs out of the rocks in the forest. Tiny but exquisite flowers are finding their way from the crevices to delight the eye of those who take the time to look for them. The message of "slow down" seems to be coming from my Counselor and Friend.
What an interesting, message considering where I am in my life journey. Last July, life took a sudden turn and I found myself a widow after 31 years of marriage to a move and a shaker. This life change seems more like a shut down than a slow down so the "message" is curious to me.
Gone are most of the old ways of familiar activities. It's interesting to discover how much I used to do to keep up with his energy level and his drive. I guess as a wife we all can and do become the "cog" in someone else's wheel.
As I look back, I have to admit I was a "hoop-jumper" going through the motions and trying to meet the expectations of another. Performance has been an issue all my life so performance anxiety presses down upon the flesh emotions that I learned to live with.
Tension is a familiar feeling and an unwanted intruder, yet it has always lived side-by-side with the other voice of self-preservation, "I am woman, hear me roar!"
Since I have had to accept the new normal AKA widowhood, I realize the old life is gone. There is a future and a hope but different now that I am facing the challenges without the human husband I lived with for so much of my earthly life.
The call of the Spirit this morning takes me to His Word, Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God". Today the sense of the verse is the power within it.
The Sovereign God of all Creation spoke it. His Divine Will is in it. Power beyond all comprehension stands behind it.
There always seems to be a "moment" right before a great display of nature's power is unleashed that we know to be the calm before the storm; the still before the rush of a tornado; the silence in the atmosphere as Creation seeks to hide from its Creator.
"Be still and know that I am God" is only part of that verse. It continues on to say, "I WILL be exalted among the nations. I WILL be exalted in the earth".
While so much of our earthly life boils down to the pursuit of individual, happiness and whatever it takes to obtain our personal goals, this verse commands our attention upward toward the Almighty God enthroned in Heaven.
I have learned over the last year that this life is tentative. It can be over in a heartbeat or on a day we least expect it to end. We are not in control of life or death no matter how hard we may try to self-protect.
I am so thankful when I hear the comforting voice of my Savior no matter what He speaks. I trust Him with all my life circumstances.
Leading up to the translation of my earthly husband, my Lord spoke calming directives for each day's struggles and challenges. Just like in the days of Abraham I found Him to be my faithful friend. "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?" Genesis 18:17
My relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ traverses decades. I have walked with Him for most of my life. He has never left me nor forsaken me even when I failed, I betrayed, and I stumbled on the journey. He was always there to pick me up, dust me off and put my feet back upon the higher ground. He has also been the wind beneath my wings when I found the courage to soar.
When He speaks, I know to listen. My Lord knows the end from the beginning of all things. He knows the pathway ahead and the twists and turns of each day's events before they touch my life.
Today, when He says, "slow down", I need to make some changes even if I have not registered my own speed on the trail. There are important things I might miss, but even if it is just to linger longer so I can catch my breath, I know my Beloved has purpose in the wait.
Who knows what dramatic and powerful move of His hand might be just around the corner and He is placing me in the perfect place to witness and stand in awe of what He is about to do.
The Spirit is calling. Can you hear Him?
What an interesting, message considering where I am in my life journey. Last July, life took a sudden turn and I found myself a widow after 31 years of marriage to a move and a shaker. This life change seems more like a shut down than a slow down so the "message" is curious to me.
Gone are most of the old ways of familiar activities. It's interesting to discover how much I used to do to keep up with his energy level and his drive. I guess as a wife we all can and do become the "cog" in someone else's wheel.
As I look back, I have to admit I was a "hoop-jumper" going through the motions and trying to meet the expectations of another. Performance has been an issue all my life so performance anxiety presses down upon the flesh emotions that I learned to live with.
Tension is a familiar feeling and an unwanted intruder, yet it has always lived side-by-side with the other voice of self-preservation, "I am woman, hear me roar!"
Since I have had to accept the new normal AKA widowhood, I realize the old life is gone. There is a future and a hope but different now that I am facing the challenges without the human husband I lived with for so much of my earthly life.
The call of the Spirit this morning takes me to His Word, Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God". Today the sense of the verse is the power within it.
The Sovereign God of all Creation spoke it. His Divine Will is in it. Power beyond all comprehension stands behind it.
There always seems to be a "moment" right before a great display of nature's power is unleashed that we know to be the calm before the storm; the still before the rush of a tornado; the silence in the atmosphere as Creation seeks to hide from its Creator.
"Be still and know that I am God" is only part of that verse. It continues on to say, "I WILL be exalted among the nations. I WILL be exalted in the earth".
While so much of our earthly life boils down to the pursuit of individual, happiness and whatever it takes to obtain our personal goals, this verse commands our attention upward toward the Almighty God enthroned in Heaven.
I have learned over the last year that this life is tentative. It can be over in a heartbeat or on a day we least expect it to end. We are not in control of life or death no matter how hard we may try to self-protect.
I am so thankful when I hear the comforting voice of my Savior no matter what He speaks. I trust Him with all my life circumstances.
Leading up to the translation of my earthly husband, my Lord spoke calming directives for each day's struggles and challenges. Just like in the days of Abraham I found Him to be my faithful friend. "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?" Genesis 18:17
My relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ traverses decades. I have walked with Him for most of my life. He has never left me nor forsaken me even when I failed, I betrayed, and I stumbled on the journey. He was always there to pick me up, dust me off and put my feet back upon the higher ground. He has also been the wind beneath my wings when I found the courage to soar.
When He speaks, I know to listen. My Lord knows the end from the beginning of all things. He knows the pathway ahead and the twists and turns of each day's events before they touch my life.
Today, when He says, "slow down", I need to make some changes even if I have not registered my own speed on the trail. There are important things I might miss, but even if it is just to linger longer so I can catch my breath, I know my Beloved has purpose in the wait.
Who knows what dramatic and powerful move of His hand might be just around the corner and He is placing me in the perfect place to witness and stand in awe of what He is about to do.
The Spirit is calling. Can you hear Him?
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