SO...it's the "middle of the morning" - 6:49 a.m., that is - and if you've been up since 5 a.m., it IS the "middle of the morning!" And what to do when you can't sleep? Well, you turn on TV and watch what's going on in the MIDDLE! No, not "Malcolm in the Middle," the popular TV sitcom; I'm talking about what everybody's talking about--the Middle East!
And what a MESS - with a capital "M"! Now the Church of the Holy Sepulcher is in the middle of it all....built over the place where Christ was believed to have been born. Conflicting news reports reveal little except that there is NO peace today in the war-torn place where the Prince of Peace came to this world 2000 years ago.
My Sunday School-trained mind goes back to a story of another "middle." It was the middle of the deep blue sea. Christ's disciples found themselves in a stormy mess--one of proportions larger than they could handle. And what to do? Turn to Jesus, Master of the Sea. Tell HIM their troubles--certainly He would--and could--turn it around!
But there was a small problem. Jesus, the Master of the Sea (unlike many fearful Americans now being diagnosed with sleep disorders), was fast asleep in the middle of it all! Not a problem for the disciples who promptly woke Him up. "Master, we are perishing. Help!"
And Jesus, truly the Master of the Sea, unperturbed by the rolling, roaring waves around Him, stands in the boat, speaks to the waves those now-famous words, "Peace, be still" - and what are the wind and waves He created left to do - but to BE STILL!
It worked...for Jesus, for the disciples--and it will work for you. The same Jesus, Master of the Sea, stands in the middle of YOUR mess--be it family, church, school, the workplace, home--or your heart--and HE whispers "Peace, be still." The winds and waves may continue to rage in the sea AROUND you, but in the heart WITHIN you, you will hear His voice and YOU will know His peace. Where? In the MIDDLE of it all--When? When HE is Lord of it all! Let it go!! Remember, HE can handle that storm far better than you ever will!
And what about our world? The Prince of Peace stands on the balcony of heaven, waiting for the Father to say, "It's enough--go get my children!" Only then will this wicked world know true peace.
But "until then," until that trumpet sounds, He is STILL whispering "Peace, be still" to the hearts of those who love Him--and to the hearts of those who will LISTEN to Him. You've got to be quiet enough to listen and hear His voice...can you do that THIS day, and find PEACE in the middle of YOUR mess? Try it - the Prince of Peace is alive and well in our world THIS DAY to meet your need!
...and that's just a little "food for thought" from my heart to yours!
Copyright 2002 by Peggie Bohanon, Springfield, MO. All rights reserved.
Not to be copied without permission.
A Scripture: Galatians 1:3-5
A Song: Listen to "Standing Firm in the Storm" by Elton Smith and Larry Holder (Songs of Praise).
Be sure to see "The Storm on the Lake of Galilee" - art by Rembrandt.
A Prayer:
"Lord, we pray 'for the peace of Jerusalem' today; however there's "a mess in the MIDDLE" of MY life today too--and I need Your help. Take control of MY boat this day; may I hear Your Word and whisper of authority and power, 'Peace, be still"--and may it happen as I surrender my mess to you, In Jesus' Name, Amen."
TODAY'S FEATURED LINKS
"In the Middle of the Muddle!" . . . "Late-Breaking Waves"
"The God of the Unexpected" . . . Hurricanes of the Heart
All Scriptures are taken from the King James Version of the Holy Bible.
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