RELAX!

I love when God brings something my way and it hits me from about 3 different sources in 24 hours.
Today I am reminded to stay calm.
My devotional for today is actually entitled "Relax".
 It says "How can you fear change when your life is hid with me in God who changeth not - I am the same yesterday, today and forever....you learn poise, soul-balance and poise in a vacillating, changing world."
Immediately after that I read in Matthew 8:24 "Without warning...a furious storm came on the lake...but Jesus was sleeping."
I've heard or read this 100 times.  But, for some reason, what hit me is "without warning".  In other words, everything seemed to be going along just fine.  The disciples were on this crazy adventure with Jesus, but he was leading and telling them what to do and teaching them and the crowds.  He gets on the boat, they follow, and presumably the disciples felt relief.  Ahhh.  No crowds, no people demanding to be healed, no attacks from religious leaders.  A break.  They could relax and take a breather.  But, "without warning" a furious storm came.  Not only did it catch them off guard, but, where was Jesus when they needed him?  Sleeping!
When they wake him, he says they have little faith.
I don't think he minded being awoken for help.  But, I think it was their panicked fear he was addressing.  There really is NO place for panic and fear int he Kingdom of God.  NONE.
"God does not give us a spirit of fear" (2 Timothy 1:7)
That spirit of fear comes from the enemy.  The world.  The ruler of this world  (Eph 2:2, 6:12).  He always wants to replace our peace and joy with fear and panic.
Yesterday, I read in my book "A year of biblical womanhood" (which I am enjoying immensely) a quote from St. Theresa of Avila.  It is a mediation:
Let nothing upset you
Let nothing startle you
All things pass
God does not change
Patience wins all it seeks
Whoever has God lacks nothing
God alone is enough.
I am definitely going to be mediating on these words daily!
I'm not currently in a state of fear or panic or distress. But...WITHOUT WARNING, a storm will come.  It will.  It is promised:  "In this world you WILL have trouble" (John 16:33)
What can I do to prepare for the trouble?
Ironically, I can REST.  I can RELAX.  I can meditate on truth.  I can fill my mind and soul with God's word, His truth, and His very spirit!
I can cultivate a gentle spirit (1Peter 3:4) by trusting in the one who never changes.  I can extend my roots deeply into the one who is safe, secure, unchanging, true and trustworthy.  And, I can stand tall, with my roots planted, and when the storm does come, I can sway and bend...but not break.  Maybe I could even find a way to experience joy in the storm as I experience the incredible strength and power of the one who holds me up!  And maybe I won't be upset or startled.  Not to the depths that I would be if I were running in circles in the storm with my arms flailing, panicked and unsure, searching for my source of peace and stability.
I need to seek my peace and stability DAILY.  Not during the storm alone!
Meanwhile, I do boldly pray for protection.  From the enemy.  From storms that could come my way.  And I boldly pray that God could use me to help others who are in a storm.  I ask God to bring me into the path of people who need to find His peace and I pray for God to help me see how our lives can intersect and how I can help shine his truth and light by being open, honest, vulnerable, and available with them.  Whenever I pray, asking God to bring me people, He does!
It is all His power.  His strength.  His truth.  I'm nothing, really. Just a vessel.  Open.  Willing to empty myself and be filled by him.
When I can do this, I'm at peace.
When I take my life back and try to approach my days in my own strength, with my own plans, for my own purpose...I'm unsettled.  Dissatisfied.  Uncertain.
Breathe in.  Breathe out.  Relax.  Stay Calm.
Thank you God.  I missed you.
I was floundering a bit.  Stuck in my own heard.  Uncertain.  Apathetic.  Dissatisfied.
That's when it hit me.  "IT'S NOT ABOUT ME."
I finally know what my focus needs to be for 2014.
"It's not about me."
Without fail, when I focus on me, my joy and peace are short lived.
When I focus on the unchanging, powerful, all-loving, perfect creator and lover of my soul, I am FULL!
When I focus on the needs of others and ask God how he can use my life to serve, I am FULL!
IT'S.   NOT.   ABOUT.   ME.