peace

i'm currently part of a Bible study with some other women at church. right now we're doing "living beyond yourself...exploring the fruit of the Spirit" by beth moore. this week is about peace. i read a few things just now that i feel i need to share with whoever reads this.

i know this entry looks long and it has no pictures, but don't let your eyes glaze over...stay with me.

after reading about Jesus' experience in the days surrounding the death of his friend lazarus (john 11), some of the discussion was about waiting and tears. peace in the waiting and in the tears. purpose in both. it's okay to feel what you feel. she says " peace means the absence of fear and turmoil, not the absence of pain and grief...we can be filled with sadness and still possess a wonderful sense of God's peace." Jesus did - He cried in this time of sorrow. He demonstrated His love for people in the sharing of their pain and grief.

everybody's got something, you know? nobody has a life that is free of stress or worry or hardship or pain or loss or mistakes. we're human. we screw up. and when we don't screw up, someone else is probably there screwing things up for us. and inevitably it all seems to pile up, one thing after another until it looks like there is no way out from under the circumstance. ever wonder if anyone notices? is anybody seeing you and what you're under? people might not. even your favorite people on the planet might be oblivious to it. but don't ever wonder if God sees you. He DOES. that's something i'm sure of. now that doesn't mean He's going to rush in and save the day. (at least not on my timetable.) Jesus didn't hurry to make it all better when He was told lazarus was sick. and when He showed up after their brother had already been in the grave 4 days, mary and martha were beside themselves. but Jesus' waiting made time for it to be obvious that it was all God when He did do something about their situation. and it gave time for a crowd to gather so when He called lazarus back to life and out of the grave, many witnessed it and many believed in Him as a result.

more from the study..."perhaps right now you are walking through a time when the obvious actions of Christ in your behalf seem inconsistent with His professed love for you. oh, beloved, can you see today that it is quite consistent with our Savior to

• go for the greater glory?
• have us be void of all other explanations?
• wait until many surround us who may put their faith in Him?

if you believe Him, He will show you His glory. guaranteed."

"Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear have perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him." Isaiah 64:4

"Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge." Psalm 62:8