Relax...Breathe...Even in the Middle of LIfe's Craziness...

It was a hot summer day and my friend, Jennifer, had brought her boys over to swim in our pool.

Simon, the young toddler, not yet knowing how to swim, and in water over his head, had been enjoying the pool with his "floaties" fitting comfortably on his arms keeping the little man perfectly content in the water.

Until he panicked.

His Mom, sitting just outside the pool, kept asking him, "Simon, what's wrong?!"

Simon wouldn't answer.  He would only scream and cry.  The more upset he became, the more his body was also showing his panic as he began to wail and flail in the water. 

As he continued to panic, cry out, and splash around it indeed looked like he was in trouble, even though we knew if he calmed down he'd be fine.

His older brother Isaac was in the pool close by him, so Jennifer asked Isaac to check on Simon.  Isaac, annoyed by his much younger brother, turned quickly  to Simon and with much authority said these oh, so, wise words.  Words that I often need to hear when I'm wailing and flailing through one of life's circumstances...

"Simon!  You're FINE!"

Simon immediately stilled.

Jennifer, still concerned, followed up with a "Simon, are you okay?"

I will forever remember Simon's answer.

"I thought I wasn't okay, but Isaac told me I was fine."

Breathe.

Sometimes, in the middle of life's craziness, we just need to be told...

"you're fine"

"you're going to make it"

Maybe your world has been rocked.  Maybe you're in a panic state. 

I'm not denying that there are situations of REAL danger.  Nor am I denying that there are situations that are unhealthy for you and you might need to make some changes.

But most of the time for me, I panic over circumstances that aren't life or death.  They're just, quite frankly, unpleasant circumstances.

I may feel like I'm in over my head, and may indeed be treading water so hard that I can barely keep my head above the waves of life's circumstances.  But in that place, like Simon, I have to still myself...calm down...and in the stillness realize that I'm fine...and the reason I'm fine is because my hope is in the Lord.

Lord, my heart is not proud, my eyes are not haughty.

I don't concern myself with matters to great or too awesome for me to grasp.

instead I have calmed and quieted myself, like a weaned child who no longer cries for its mother's milk.  Yes, like a weaned child is my soul within me.

Oh Israel, put your hope in the Lord---

now and always.

Breathe. 

You're fine.

I Saw God Today...In a conversation with a client.

I saw God today in a conversation with a client.

It was simple small talk.  About Volleyball of all things.  My daughter plays.  His daughter plays.

He didn't know it, but what he was saying, I needed to hear.  To be reminded of.

He was talking about how volleyball is really a "mind" game.

It's more of a battle of the mind, than a physical battle.  He was saying that the players who  have the ability to regain focus quickly after making an error, are the ones who do the best.

You have to leave it behind, and focus clearly and confidently on what is happening now.

Push the reset button on your brain.

I believe it's the same in life.  We can't wallow in negativity.  Or constant complaining.  Or constant regret.

We need to look for the positive in situations, things to be thankful for instead of things to curse, and fix our minds on that.

The Bible says it like this:

Philippians 4:8
summing it all up friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious, the best, not the worst, the beautiful, not the ugly, things to praise, not things to curse.  Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

Thankful for the reminder that the enemy wants to steal our joy, and that battle primarily takes place in the mind.

Thankful for the way the Lord spoke to my heart.  In a much deeper way than just speaking to me about volleyball.

Thankful that in the middle of doing normal everyday life....I saw God today.

He Offers His Very Own Presence to cheer and to guide us...

"pardon for sin and a peace that endureth....Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide...."

every once in a while the "ordinary" becomes "extraordinary".  The "natural" becomes "supernatural".

Every once in a while, while worshiping, even using a song that I've worshiped with 100 times before, a line will jump off the page and take on new life to me.  Like a tall, refreshing drink of water, normal words will refresh my whole being.

That's what happened this past Sunday for me.  As I was leading the congregation in the song "Great is Thy Faithfulness"....I got to the part that says, "Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide..."

As I sang that line I was reminded of what had just happened that morning in my quiet time.  There had been a couple of things in my life that were disturbing my peace. Greatly.  There, in my quiet time, I prayed about those two things, I talked to God about what was bothering me, and then I opened up my Bible and began to read the scripture that went with that days devotion.  Lo and behold, God dealt with the two things that were bothering me in the passages of scripture that were opened before me.

How does He do that?

It was seriously as if I asked Him a question....and He answered.

"call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things that you do not know."  Jeremiah 33:3

As I sang the line "Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide."  I had a renewed gratefulness for his faithfulness.  And I thought, "why do we skip quiet time?  why do we NOT stop and call upon the Lord?"  He offers His very own presence to cheer and to guide us.

So many times while reading HIS Word, it become more than just words on a page, it becomes His embrace.

Give Him the chance to embrace YOU through His word today.

AND, when you worship Him through song, think about what you're singing about, and let Him meet you in the midst of the song.

He inhabits our praises. (Psalm 22:3)

but can He calm MY storm?

Mark 4:39He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.40He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

The disciples walked with Jesus, talked with Jesus, lived with Jesus and yet still had trouble understanding just exactly who Jesus was. They certainly didn't understand what having Jesus in their daily lives meant to them.  How He could provide and comfort and....

And we forget too.  

Even now, after having the Holy Spirit to help us as we study the Word to learn who He is, we still forget, and/or fail to have faith that having Jesus in our lives can beautifully effect our daily lives.  That He can also calm the storms in our life as we call on Him.

A few years ago there was a popular Christian song that said, "sometimes He calms the storm, and sometimes He calms the child".  That's my prayer in my life as I face storms...

Jesus, either calm this storm, or calm me...

and for anyone who reads this today, I pray this for you.

So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the LORD your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you. Deut. 31:6

So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea. psalm 46:2

How do I live this life?

I grabbed my coffee, my devotional book, my bible, and I sat down on the couch, closed my eyes and with quiet desperation asked...

 "How do I live this life?"

My own negative thoughts rose up within me and answered my own question with these words,

 "not very well."

I had been up since 3:37am EST.  Worried about everything.  I don't typically wake up worried, but due to some current life circumstances, that's where i found myself this morning.  Worried.

I opened up my devotional book (currently reading Jesus Calling by Sarah Young) and read this line...

"Peace is my continual gift to you..."


In the stillness of the moment and with my unsettled brain still stirring, I thought,

"You, Lord, offer peace, and yet I choose worry...why is that?"


My brain processed the things that had kept me up and stirring this morning. Mostly worried about how my decisions I'm making today will affect my/our future.  Not necessarily bad space to be thinking through, but what i was primarily worried about was...

the future...


I continued reading my devotion....

"Peace flows abundantly from my throne of grace.  Just as the Israelites could not store up manna for the future but had to gather it daily, so it is with My peace.  The day to day collecting of manna kept My people aware of their dependence on Me.  Similarly, I give you sufficient Peace for the present, when you come to me by prayer and petition with thanksgiving.  If I gave you permanent Peace, independent of My presence, you might fall into the trap of self-sufficiency.  May that never be!  I have designed you to need Me moment by moment."


When the Israelites were in the desert, God gave them enough food (manna) for each day.  They had to depend/trust Him to give it again the next day.  And so it is with peace.  I don't have peace for future days yet because those days aren't here yet.  So, I accept His peace for today, I trust Him for today, and I know that I can trust Him for tomorrow, and therein lies my peace.

Perhaps worry is a struggle for you too, robbing you of peace.

Trust Him for today.  Accept His peace for today.  And then do it again tomorrow.

Matthew 6:34 (MSG)
Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow.  God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.