The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying,
Thus you shall bless the Israelites:
You shall say to them,
The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine
upon you, and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance
upon you, and give you peace.
Numbers 6:22-26
Our seasonal theme is freedom. So let me state the obvious first:
· The Lord’s blessing is freedom.
· When the Lord keeps us in the palm of his hand, that’s freedom.
· When the Lord countenance shines upon us, that brightens our darkness and there is freedom.
· We need the Lord graciousness like we need oxygen, and in that, there is freedom.
· And when the Lord rescues us from trials, his peace is the very definition of freedom.
Have you ever felt the Lord’s blessing, keeping, grace, and peace?
I’ve been reading through a book on freedom and healing, and the neuroscientist/author’s first step is stopping and listening. We’re always in such a rush. The beginning of healing is over letting our senses turn back on.
So last night I was sitting beside my niece. From Oregon, she’s making an Instagram album of her southern summer journey. So she went out in our back yard and recorded the buzzing, chirping, clicking of the cicadas. And underneath that, you could also hear the sound of four kinds of birds tweeting. Tweaking the sound, she played it over and over again It was peaceful. It was holy.
And I wondered … why don’t I take long enough to stop and hear the wonder of God’s creation that’s always around me? His countenance is continually shining on me, and I miss it.
We were just on the mission trip, and with an intentional team, we were looking moment for moment for God’s presence … and he kept showing up. Why don’t I do that more on my own?
May the Lord bless you and keep you. And may you take the time to feel his countenance shining on you. And as the Lord is gracious to you – a continual blessing – may you discover peace.
In Christ’s Love,
a guy in a rush
(slow down, Ed, slow down)
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