A Command from Jesus - Quiet! Settle down!

A Stressful Weekend

Labor Day weekend has been fairly stressful this year. I allowed myself to become mentally and emotionally wrapped up with an issue that arose Thursday evening. Last night, my husband and I sat down and prayed together. My inner turmoil calmed down gradually throughout the prayer. However, I awoke at 3:30 AM wide awake. Knowing that sleep wasn't going to return, I arose and checked my email.

A Personal Revelation

I opened up yesterday's Girlfriends in God devotional, Be Still and Know from Sharon Jaynes and started reading. 

"Like the men caught on the stormy Sea of Galilee, I felt I had been reeling in the waves for years - never in danger of truly sinking – just reeling from one rolling wave of work and deadlines to the next. But on this particular morning, I began to see the cast of characters in this Galilean scene in a different light. I was definitely in the scene, but I wasn’t in the boat at all. I was the storm.

I love how Eugene Peterson describes Jesus’ words to the wind and the waves as his friend stirred him from his sleep to calm the squall: “’Quiet! Settle down!’ The wind ran out of breath; the sea became smooth as glass.”(Mark 4:39 The Message)...And all the while God has been whispering to me, “Cease striving and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10 NASB). “It’s not that hard. Settle down. Be quiet.”

Now, I am sitting here knowing that God spoke to me through Sharon's devotional. Oh how I wish I had started yesterday out with that message instead of the mental merry-go-round my mind couldn't seem to stay off of for more than an hour or two.

I Was the Storm...Inwardly

I was the storm. How those words struck home with me. All weekend, I was the storm, not outwardly, but inwardly. Jesus finally had enough and told me this morning,"Quiet! Settle down!"

This isn't the first time he has had to bring this home to me. I am reminded of a devotional I read several years ago that said,

"sometimes you just have to sit in park for awhile, before you put yourself in gear and move ahead."

Brothers and sisters, I am going to follow Jesus's command to be quiet and settle down. God wants me to cease striving and know that He is God. He will hold me in his hand and set me to his purposes.

You can find Sharon's devotional at:
http://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/girlfriends/be-still-and-know-girlfriends-in-god-september-2-2013.html

Update: 9/7/2013 

My mom shared a photo with an accompanying message from J.I. Packer, onto my Facebook page today. This is what is said:

“Wait on the Lord" is a constant refrain in the Psalms, and it is a necessary word, for God often keeps us waiting. He is not in such a hurry as we are, and it is not his way to give more light on the future than we need for action in the present, or to guide us more than one step at a time. When in doubt, continue to wait on God. When action is needed, light will come." ― J.I. Packer

My heavenly Father has my godly, faithful Mom reminding me of the personal revelation I received four days ago. I'm sure you think this is just a coincidence. There are no coincidences in God's plan for me.