–Begin by taking some deep breaths. As you breath, you begin to clear your mind.-
- Breathe in: Peace
- Breathe out: Faithfulness
-Continue this breathing exercise until you feel you are ready to continue.-
Lord, you were favorable to your land;
you restored the fortunes of Jacob.
You forgave the iniquity of your people;
you pardoned all their sin.Selah
You withdrew all your wrath;
you turned from your hot anger.Restore us again, O God of our salvation,
and put away your indignation toward us.
Will you be angry with us forever?
Will you prolong your anger to all generations?
Will you not revive us again,
so that your people may rejoice in you?
Show us your steadfast love, O Lord,
and grant us your salvation.Let me hear what God the Lord will speak,
for he will speak peace to his people,
to his faithful, to those who turn to him in their hearts.
Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him,
that his glory may dwell in our land.Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet;
Psalm 85
righteousness and peace will kiss each other.
Faithfulness will spring up from the ground,
and righteousness will look down from the sky.
The Lord will give what is good,
and our land will yield its increase.
Righteousness will go before him,
and will make a path for his steps.
I know God is working in each of us to bring us to be righteous. I know this because I have seen it in my own life. I used to work to become a righteous person, a better human. I worked to be the person I believed God wanted me to be. It was not until I came to a time in my life that I was too tired to work any longer. All I could do was live one day at a time. Looking back at this time, I realize God was able to bring about more change than I had been able to bring about in all my striving to be righteous. The change came not because of what I was doing, but because I finally let go and let God have control. This is the faithfulness of God. God is faithful to bring about the changes in our lives that need to happen. These changes happen when we stop striving to become something. When I stopped my striving to become a better person, and let God do the work in me, I became more like the person I wanted to be, and I was able to find a peace inside me that I did not know was there. This peace has been there to support and keep me through all life has put in my path.
God will speak peace to the faithful. Faithfulness will spring up from the ground. God is faithful. You can trust God to give you salvation. You can trust God to give you the gift of peace. There might not be peace in you right now. There might not be peace in the world around you right now. The peace God gives helps us to remain calm in the midst of struggle. We can trust God to give us what we need at the time of need. This trust or faith is what we need to continue to live a life that leads to peace, and embraces peace.
- Are you letting God work in your life?
- Where do you see God at this moment?
-Please take a moment.-
-Take some deep breaths.-
- Breathe in: Faithfulness
- Breathe out: Peace
God of peace, thank you for bringing me to the point where you can do the work in me that needed to happen. I pray that we will guide and keep each person reading this in you loving embrace. I pray you will guide them into a life of peace. Amen