Rest???

 Rest….how does THAT word fit into all the Christmas busyness? Do you ever find yourself longing for the days when someone was telling you it was nap time?

To take a break and rest is something that few of us do in the midst of the Christmas season or anytime for that matter. A rest. Truly our souls are desperately crying out for a rest!  Does rest only happen when we find time to take a vacation?

The reason that our souls are crying out for rest is that it is God’s heart as well, to give us rest and peace. It is God’s desire and will to give us that much-needed rest.  In Hebrews 4 we read that as God desired to give people a rest but they could not get it! They just could not take time to rest. I think God was talking about something more than a nap or vacation. I think He was talking about an attitude of heart, mind and soul. Discovering a way to rest in God as well as finding time for our bodies to rest.

I loved this quote “Christ’s “rest” is not a “rest” from work, but in work, “not the rest of inactivity but of the harmonious working of all the faculties and affections—of will, heart, imagination, conscience—because each has found in God the ideal sphere for its satisfaction and development” J. Patrick

I have asked God for that type of rest, a rest of trust and peace in who and what He is and in His deep love for me. It doesn’t come with inactivity but in peace. A dear friend of mine posted on her Facebook wall

“You don’t have to attend every argument you are invited to”.

I found that nugget after an interesting experience that morning and could not agree with it more.

I found myself on the freeway in a lane of traffic that had to end and merge into a lane that was exiting. As I merged (yes, with my signal light blinking) the woman in the vehicle behind me began screaming and pointing not nice things in my direction. I realized at that moment I did not have to allow let her anger to invade my car. I chose to live in peace and rest that only God can give at times of tension and not react to her. I have no idea what was going on in her life to make her that upset when a car had to move in front of her in traffic, but it didn’t have to invade the peace and rest God was trying to bring me. I felt bad for her.

The kind of ‘rest’ God is trying to bring to humanity is a supernatural peace that invades our panic.

That is why He sent the Prince of Peace into this chaotic world so long ago so that His creation could  experience peace and rest. Peace from all the craziness and busyness.

Rest from all the stuff that would like to reduce us to walking worry and confusion. A peace in God that is truly supernatural and cannot be experienced in this life without Him.

May you find the true source of peace and rest this Holiday Season in Supernatural ways!

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One-bel/ Same Heart

Carina said that to me the other morning when I was up interceding for her and a four year old orphan that God had put into her life. She was praying about the same thing as she was going to bed in Papua New Guinea and found my internet on as I was composing an email to her with the scriptures I had found. So we were able to ‘chat’ online for a few precious moments. We found out that both of us were holding a cup of PNG tea in our hands – hers to get her ready for bed in PNG and mine to wake up in the early morning in Southern California. She explained to me that one-bel meant that we had the same heart. I was honored!

I assured her that she could go to bed in peace knowing that I would continue to pray throughout the day and take the next shift in prayer. We comforted each other with the things that God was speaking to us regarding the situation and I was so grateful just to be able to share this burden with her. Then I realized that this was God’s heart! We not only had one heart as we prayed for a lost little orphan that Carina was trying to reach out to, but that we had ‘one heart’ with God as He had put the concern of this little one onto our hearts.

It is God’s heart that we are ‘one bel’ with Him so that we can truly get a grasp of His great love for all of creation. This one little four year old Orphan who had two women across the globe interceding at the same moment for her , was hugely significant in God’s eyes! She didn’t realize how lost and in danger she was, but God did and that was important to Him. So important that He had me wake up in the middle of the night to pray for her and to ‘join’ Carina in prayer in PNG.

I wonder who He had up in the middle of the night praying for me, who did He burden to intercede for me when I was lost in the dark and in danger? Only heaven will reveal who those dear saints are that I owe a life-time of being rescued from destruction to. For now I am eternally grateful for them and thank God they had ‘same bel’ with God’s heart where I was concerned.

If we are called into a relationship with a wonderful God who has this much concern for one little starving orphan in Papua New Guinea, it should make us realize that He is concerned for all of His children no matter if we are lost in the US, Canada or Africa…He is genuinely concerned for all of us. We just need to hear His heart and allow our heart to be one with His. Same-bel

Jesus called a little child to stand among His disciples and said…

Matt 18:10 “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones . For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.” NIV

Matt 18:12-14 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost”. NIV

We are in our matching 'meri' blouses

Fires and the Stock Market

Today the Stock Market hit an all time low; we found out that more stores will be closing which means more people being laid off, which will mean more and more difficulties in our nation. Just after a weekend where the fires in our area destroyed so many homes and forced so many out of their homes for a very stress filled weekend.

I thought that now more than ever the scriptures really become life giving…scriptures like…

 John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. NIV

Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. NIV

The peace that comes from the world comes and goes like waves depending on what we have or what we are getting…stuff that can be taken very quickly. If our peace comes from that we will always be on a roller coaster of emotions tossed back and forth and up and down waiting for the next thing to give us peace but the peace of God transcends all of that. I love the word transcends, it means

1.       To pass beyond the limits of

2.       To be greater than, as in intensity or power; surpass

3.       To exist above and independent of

So the peace of God passes all of our understanding, is greater than we can understand in intensity and power and is exists above our understanding. This powerful peace is able to stand guard over our hearts during times just like this; in fact these are the kind of times this peace truly shines. When we cannot understand how this could be happening, what we can do and how we will survive…the peace of God is available. This peace covers us, fills us and surrounds us and it is in that peace that God is able to comfort our hearts and give us grace and wisdom for the moment.

Without the peace of God we are overwhelmed because our bodies don’t handle this kind of stress well, they aren’t made for the stress the world gives they were made to be so close to God that we would always live in His peace.

So I pray that no matter what your crash is or what fire is near you that you will know the true peace of God and receive His transcending grace and wisdom. In this hour we are desperate for it!