June 23, 2019
Sunshine for the Soul –The Treasure Hunt
HIS POWER and HIS PEACE
“The LORD rules over the floodwaters. The LORD reigns as king forever. The LORD gives his people strength. The LORD blesses them with peace.” Psalm 29:10-11
Have you ever thought about the relationship between God’s power and His peace?
We often think of ‘peace’ as being a passive condition when, we, if possible, can chill and relax in the midst of whatever circumstances surround us. And, if we are honest, we expect, in some mysterious way, for peace to just appear in our stormy and stressed lives if we can just hunker down, shrink back and wait out the storm…
As I thought more about the relationship between power and peace, I began to think back to storms and stormy seasons I have experienced in my lifetime. There were numerous times in the years we lived on our ranch when powerful tornadoes skirted around our property, uprooting trees, slinging giant branches, and dismantling rock and brick walls and fencing…but, thankfully, leaving the roof on our home. We spent many evenings, and some exciting ‘family time’ camped out in our downstairs pantry.
During those years on the ranch, we also experienced what I call ‘fire storms’. They would begin with a single spark, and morph into ravaging storms of flames and smoke. One Christmas, we celebrated in the midst of a fire which eventually burned over 1000 acres of ranch properties. Billy, our son Adam, and our future son-in-law Barry, joined efforts with the fire departments in battling the blaze on our ranch. Neighbors drove their bull-dozers over to attempt to contain the flames. Two days later, the fire re-ignited threatening the structure of our home. Eventually, the fires were extinguished and we were left with some charred acreage and the reminder of the consuming storm.
I also recall sitting out Hurricane Carla in 1961 when my parents chose not to evacuate our home in Corpus Christi. I was enthralled by the magnitude of nature’s power over what I thought had been indestructible structures in our city. A few days before the storm made land, I remember the raging waters along the coastal beach…and the darkness, almost blackness of the sky as we secured our doors and windows in our home, preparing to weather the giant hurricane. I will always remember the intense power of the wind we felt through the shaking walls of our home, and the flooded streets following the monster storm.
More recently, while driving from Waco to Austin, I experienced the unannounced Texas thunder-storm complete with one-inch hail. The sound of the stormy winds, rain and thunder, and the pelting of hail on the hood of my car and windshield demonstrated the tremendous power of the storm in my life that day. I sat helpless on the side of the road, joining a few other travelers who had pulled over because there was no other place to go. No shelter, no cover, just hunkering down, to wait out the storm…to wait…
Those Other Storms…
And, then, we all know about those storms in life that come sneaking into our lives, some expected and anticipated, and the others which come unannounced, with no warning, allowing no time for preparation. There is no kitchen pantry, or shelter, there are no boarded windows and barricaded doors…There is nowhere to go…no detour, no alternative route, no GPS wisdom…there is no other way, except through the storm.
HIS POWER Brings HIS PEACE…
Think for a moment about a particular storm you have had to go through…the one where there was no detour, no way around…no way over, or under…Your only option was to go through the storm… Perhaps, you are in this season of a storm at this moment.
One of these storms occurred in my life as we walked in the last month of my father’s decade battle with leukemia, a ravaging and cruel disease. Most children, in some way, experience the fear of losing a parent, and the very thing I had feared as an only child was now imminent. It didn’t matter that I was an adult child, wife and mother of a five-year-old and a seven-year-old. I had never been in a storm like this one, and it was a count-down…a month, weeks, days…moments. This was a raging storm…and there was no way around it…over it…under it…We had to walk these steps with my father, as far as we could go. What happened?
I experienced a power I had never known could possibly exist…I thought I knew God, and had been pressing into Him and had discovered that He was my shelter, and my shield …But in this storm…He carried me through it…His power was bigger than my fear, than my grief, than my loss…and as He escorted my father from this world, my Loving Heavenly Father calmed the storm inside of my heart and my mind…and He carried me through. His Words in scripture spoke in a new and meaningful way into my heart. Praise music playing throughout the night, brought a peace-filled rest I had never experienced before. I discovered my Treasure in the midst of the storm…God was and is my Peace-Giver.
The Peace-Giver
King David experienced extreme storms of life, and as we study Psalms, we are becoming aware of many of his struggles. Although most of us probably won’t have to pick up stones to battle a giant man, or lead an army into battle, God uses David’s life to teach us. David learned from experience and relationship with the LORD, Yahweh, that His God was big enough, strong enough, and powerful enough to defeat the enemies of the LORD’s people. David learned that in the storms of life, when there was no detour, or alternative route, God’s Power was sufficient to carry him through the most ravenous and destructive storms. And, David discovered that the LORD-Yahweh was his own Peace-Giver, in the midst of the storm.
Our Peace-Giver
Whether our Almighty God chooses to calm the storm, or instead carries you through it, He is powerful enough-strong enough-big enough-wise enough-sovereign enough to protect you and sustain you, and to calm the raging storm inside of you. And, as He calms the storm, He carries you. His Power is the author of the Peace he gives to those who honor Him, and worship in the splendor of His holiness. There is no storm in this life, big enough, or powerful enough to steal the Peace your Heavenly Father provides for you, and gives to you, as you press in to Him and anchor yourself to Him.
My friends, I pray that we continue to draw closer to the LORD as we study His Word, and that we live in total confidence that He is our Peace-Giver. His Power produces His Peace, and His Peace is more powerful than any storm we will encounter…There is no storm that can rob His children of the Treasure we find in Him.
And by the way-in the midst of the Texas hail-storm, I turned up the volume of the Praise music, and yes, I could faintly hear it over the raging storm…I just had to listen for His voice…
“He calmed the storm to a whisper and stilled the waves. What a blessing was that stillness…” Psalm 107:29-30
Love you in Jesus,
The Treasure Hunt-Week Four
“The entirety of Your word is truth, and all Your righteous judgments endure forever.” Psalm 119:160 (HCSB)
Read a Psalm each day and journal your answers to the questions below.
*Monday-Psalm 31:1-24
*Tuesday-Psalm 32:1-11
*Wednesday-Psalm 34:1-22
*Thursday-Psalm 36:1-12
*Friday-Psalm 40:1-17
*Saturday-Write a prayer of praise and thanksgiving for what the LORD has done in your life. How has His display Power brought Peace into your life? Continue your list of the attributes of God.
Questions for each day:
Record what you learn about God and His relationship with David?
What do you learn about the LORD’s character?
Have you personally experienced this particular attribute or character trait of the LORD? If so, how? What are you learning about your relationship with God?
What treasure have you discovered about your God? What have you entrusted to Him this week?
Enjoy your Journey as you unpack God’s Truth and His Word. May you discover and experience The Greatest Treasure…May you live confidently that God is big enough, powerful enough, and mighty enough to save you and to sustain you…today…and forever.
