Calm Waters in Sight

Nothing says peace like a still stream.  When the wind stops blowing and the waters are calm you can see through to the ground as well as your reflection on the surface.  Have you ever just sat at the side of a stream or on a bridge and looked down at the peaceful water?  Have you looked for pebbles on the bottom or rocks with unique patterns?  When the water is still you can see where it is safe to step.  Not only can you feel the ground, you can see your path and where you are to tread.  God is like that too.  He said “be still and know I am God.” (Psalm 46:10)  When you are still you can feel God all around you.  You can see the path you are to take and where you have come from, sometimes even how all the pieces fit together.  The firm rock that always holds us up is there, we just can’t see it through the chaos and the storms.  One of the things I love about peaceful waters is that not only can you see through them to God, but you can also see yourself on the surface.  The water acts like a mirror reflecting our image.  How closely does it match up with God?  Can I see peace on my face or wrinkles of fear and struggle?  God says be still (Mark 4:39).  Stop what you are doing and rest; let him refill those places that are empty.  Refresh your spirit with the life giving waters of God. 

There’s a pattern to water just like there is a pattern to our journeys.  If you think about a stream there are times in its path where the water is calm and peaceful.  There are also times when there are rapids and waterfalls before we find still waters again.  God gives us times of rest at the end of periods of struggle.  During that rest we reflect on what we have gone through and we grow.  We prepare ourselves for the next adventure, the next time God asks us to serve and we are prepared to say where and how.  The song on my heart today is an old hymn… “As the deer panted over the waters so my soul panted over you.  You alone are my heart’s desire and I long to worship you.”  Are you thirst for God, for a time of rest by the streams of his love?  Then come to the water and sit by God.  Be still and know that he is there!

Born in the Sign of Water

I’ve had this song stuck in my head now for about a week, actually just one line of that song. It’s from my childhood, a song by the Little River Band. It’s called Cool Change. The line I keep remembering says “I was born in the sign of water, it’s there that I feel my best, the albatross and whale they are my brothers.” I don’t remember much of the rest of the song, but this one line had meaning for me when I was younger and it still does today. While a strong Christian, I was born in the sixties and my “sign” is Pisces. Most of the time I could be thought of as a fish out of water. I long to be in the water. I spent hours as a child in the waters of Lake Michigan and the Gulf of Mexico in Florida. My parents say that they would have to pull me out of the water, blue, because I just didn’t want to leave it. I was a swim instructor and life guard all through high school and college. It’s how I put myself through college. I’ve done my best thinking in the water. In college I use to keep a kick board with a notepad and pen at the end of the lane and would write all the outlines for my papers while swimming. Over the years whenever I really needed time alone with God I went to the hot tube. Each morning I spend most of my shower time in prayer. I can’t tell you how many times I have forgotten to rinse my hair because I was so caught up in prayer. There is just a part of me deep inside that longs to be in the water. It is where I hear God the clearest.

This past week I had the pleasure of spending my 50^th birthday praying in the Gulf of Mexico. There is such a peaceful feeling when you are surrounded by water; knowing that you are loved by the Creator, maker of all this water. Riding the waves I felt lifted up by God, light as a feather (the salt water helped), and gently brought back down to reality. In the shower I feel a connection that I am at my most exposed self and able to just bow before God and his glory; to be used by him without any of the interruptions of life. Daily I feel blessed, washed clean, and baptized in the grace of God. I may not spend hours swimming anymore, but I love walking in the rain, singing in the storms, and splashing through puddles. Lord, you are my living water. The waters I long to embrace, to wrap around myself, to cozy up to, and to become one with. Lord, I live in you and you live through me. Without you I can not exist. You fill me up, keep me alive, and flow out of me to others. I thank you Lord for searching me out, connecting with me, and bringing me life. May your love flow out of me like a river so that others may be blessed as well. I pray this in your son’s name, Amen.

Cleansing Waters

I have a history of tears. It’s not always something I’m happy about, but it is a deep part of who I am. I first met God in those tears. Between my twelfth and thirteen birthdays I lost thirteen of my friends. It was in those tears of sorrow and pain that I reached out to God and asked why, and for the first time in my life I heard him reply. We made a connection during those moments and I have felt his heart ever since. I have cried cleansing tears that healed deep wounds, and I have prayed and cried with others as we sought their wounds and found healing. I tend to cry when I tell people my story, because I am just so moved that God would love me through all my mistakes and trials; that no matter how far I have wondered he is right there, waiting to catch me. During worship tears just flow from my eyes. I don’t have any control over them. Sometimes they are tears of regret at my own sin, but usually they are tears of joy that I feel from the overflowing love from my creator and friend. My tears come from my heart and from God’s heart. At times those tears are His tears of pain and loss.

I’ve been crying a lot of those this week. Yesterday I said good-bye to a sister in Christ that left this world way too early. We met through a friend. My friend has spent a lifetime running from the pain in her life. For twelve years she has ran to alcohol. We met four years ago and found companionship in those tears of pain. We have retraced her steps and cried through all the tragedies in her life. We discovered that in order to be able to handle the pain that just happens in life, she had to build up strength by facing the past. She needed to learn to face pain when it happens, so that she could change the patterns in her life and walk away from the alcohol. All of the tragedy hung over her like a cloud that would never go away. It controlled her every thought and action.

She met our new friend in jail; they were cell mates. They moved to the Gospel Mission when they got out and have been inseparable ever since. Our new friend was adventurous, fun, and always laughing; but she had never faced her addiction and she just couldn’t walk away. The tears God has cried have been tears of loss. The loss of possibility of what could have been different in our friend’s life. Her pain was so deeply buried that she couldn’t find it. She never faced it and it kept pulling her in. She had walked away from all of her friends and family. God wept at their loss; that they didn’t know her. He wept at their fear over wanting to know her, and the anger that had separated them from her.

It’s not fun to cry; your face gets all red, your nose fills up and runs, and sometimes you make these snorts and gasps, but God wants us to cry. When we shed tears we show our hearts, and that’s where we meet God. He comes along side us and helps us through the pain. He gives us a new perspective and shows us his grace and mercy. The Word tells us that God collects our tears. They represent our humility and weakness. It is in our weakness that we become strong; we become His.

Lord, I crumble at your feet. Life sometimes is so hard, and I don’t always make the right decisions. Thank you Lord for being there in those moments of humility when I come face to face with the errors of my ways. You use my tears to cleanse me; to wash away my sins and make me whole for your glory. Lord, help me to continue to embrace those moments I am not so proud of; to bring them to you. Lord, when life hits hard help me not to run, but to face those moments like David faced Goliath. You are always with me and I know you will help me through. May your strength empower me in those times of despair; may I rejoice in the storms of your tears for you are always with me. In your son’s name, Amen.
　

Thirsty - Chris Rice [Cover]

Day 3: IT IS YOU

Think about it… water is everywhere. It is in the atmosphere around us, on the ground we walk, in the food we eat, in the liquids we drink, in the plants we grow and the lakes and seas we swim. It completely surrounds us. Simply put, IT IS.

How fitting that we are surround by a creator who refers to himself as I AM. He alone is the beginning and the end. He is with us in the middle, always. It is hard to comprehend that no matter what we do, how seriously we sin, how far from His path we stray He will never leave our side. I have seen families, businesses, and churches torn apart from sin. I myself have wondered to the point of being lost, yet I am humbled to realize through it all God was present. He was there in the middle of the mess waiting, patiently waiting, on us to turn to Him for help.

Take a moment and think back to the last time you were lost. Close your eyes and open your ears to that time of struggle. Ask God to show Himself to you. Look carefully. Where was He in that situation? Listen for the ones He sent your way to help you. No matter how far away you walked, He followed. No matter what, He will never, I said NEVER, leave your side. He IS all you need. Like the life sustaining water, He will fill every need and bring you life abundantly.

Lord, I am blessed by your love, that you thrive to follow this sinner to the ends of the earth. That you love me beyond reason, even when I run from you. You are more than I can comprehend or know. I thank you for loving me, for surrounding me like warm water on a cold day. Lord you cover me with your blessings. You are the ground, the rock I stand on. You fill me to overflowing with your love and grace. Lord I praise you during storms and gentle showers for you bring me life. IT IS YOU that I long for.  In your son’s name. Amen.

Day 2 Thirst

Imagine, you are a twelve year old girl living in Zambia. You could be going to school each day, but instead you walk 4-6 miles to gather water for your family. It is a long walk in the hot sun, alone and the weight of the water strains your arms and legs. When you get back you share the water with your family only to get sick from the parasites in the water. So I have to ask, why do you think this happens daily in Zambia? It is because the body thirsts for water. It is made of 80% water. You can live for weeks without food, but you can only go a couple days without water. For this reason families drink dirty, germ infested water. We were created to thirst. The more water we drink the healthier we are. Science has shown that water has a positive affect on almost every organ in the body.

God created man to thirst not only for physical water but also for living water. Jesus came to prepare and provide a means for us to receive the Holy Spirit. Within each one of us is a void that nothing here on earth will ever be able to fill. Man tries to fill this void with money, love, power, pride, drugs, alcohol, and many other things, but nothing ever comes close to meeting our thirst for God.

As you go about your day today make note of what it is that you try to fill the void with. It is your family, your grades, your athletic abilities, your friendships, your relationships, your job, and income, or the material things you own? Ask yourself if they really make you happy. Do you have peace or are you always wanting more? Are you ready to accept the Holy Spirit into your life? Are you ready to fill the void for the first and last time? Then talk to God.

Father, I thirst for you. There is a hollow place in my soul that longs to be filled by you. So come Holy Spirit come and fill me so that I may be whole. Lord, forgive me for my foolishness and pride that I could do what only you are able. Lord, without you I am lost and empty. Today, by your Spirit I am complete. Lead me in your ways Lord. May your Holy Spirit burn in me and change me from the inside out. Lord, your grace and mercy brings me life on this earth and for eternity. I thank you Lord, that your love sets me free and gives me purpose. I praise you alone Lord, in your son’s name. Amen.