Like many of you, my past few months have been inundated with mountains to climb and valleys to climb out of. We all know there are two diverse, Christian prospectives to view such challenges. Fearfully, we can crawl to God and beg His mercy and grace; or boldly, we can run to God and expectantly declare His power to defeat the enemy, while repeating His promise from Philippians 4 :19 — “And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”.
Those who know me can testify that my faith runs. However, no acclamation do I deserve. On the contrary, it is God who repeatedly sends me “Angel Friends” who encircle my being with reminders of how mountains are to be climbed and valleys to be climbed out of –and it’s not by winning a war but by resting in God’s peace.
It was an early Monday morn. My Grammy Group was meeting to pray for our grandchildren. A sister gram was sharing her hobby for (and from) our Lord. Sandy makes beaded bracelets confirming God’s presence in our present. As she was showing us her bracelet gifts, which she shares with both fellow Christians and total strangers, one caught my eye and soul. Noticing my attraction, Sandy offered it to me. I, literally, snatched it from her hand and slid my wrist into it. The message encircling my wrist read: “God Gives Me His Peace”. Since receiving this bracelet, many messages have I discovered in it. However, the one I realized yesterday is the memo I wish to share today.
After donning my bracelet for weeks, I finally noticed the knot tying its ends together rests between the words God and Gives. That the wording is broken with a knot, initially, seemed odd to me. That was until I sensed God’s wise explanation.
For God to intercede in our lives and get us up our mountains and out of our valleys, there has to be a bond between God and us — i.e., a knot tying us together. Too many humans go to God only with the beginning of a mountain or a valley needing to be overcome. However, God desires us to always (good, bad, hard or easy days) have Him centered in our lives and not positioned as a bookend of our needs. Simply stated, to rest in God’s peace, I (and you) need God to be the center knot of my (your) entire life and not just flanking the challenges of my (your) ups and downs. Only when I (you) am tied to God as my (your) life’s center will I (you) rest, always and forever, in HIS Peace. ”You Keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.” Isaiah 26:3 (ESV)
Be it accident or intentional, the knot in my treasured bracelet has significance (and a reminder) beyond string securing beads. I’m now tied, more deeply, to God as my constant center with His peace the resulting gift. Amen and Halleluia!!
Uplifted in a Broken Down World 