Love, Agony & Peace

Colossians 2:1
I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church…

After having gone to bed exhausted last night at about 8 p.m., I awoke around 11 agonizing for this church and the people who find themselves in overwhelming difficulty who often seek pleasure primarily as a means of escaping pain (some legitimate pleasure and others, illegitimate which just causes more pain.)

I prayed and problem-solved until I was anxious and alert and feeling consumed.
I prayed, “God I push all of these problems on to your plate and expect the peace you offer in their stead.”

Philippians 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Psalms 55:22 Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.

1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

After some persistence in this, I became mindful of the creek. Hunting for crayfish. Looking at the smooth rocks beneath the stream. Noticing the light reflecting off the ripples in the water. Remembering how the water pooled just after the bridge and flowed around each emerging stone that formed a semicircle slowing the water enough to create the pool. I was home. At the creek. Totally absorbed in child-like wonder in the beauty of the breeze rushing through the trees around me, engulfed in the solitude. No one but God could find me here.

Someday I’m going home and it is going to feel like that again. I’m glad for that. The creek taught me what home feels like. I miss it and long for it and can visit it any time I am willing to be slightly less important and accept the peace that God is ready and willing to give.

Ecclesiastes 5:12 The sleep of a labourer is sweet