My
mind was racing both day and night and I caught myself wound up tight about
things beyond my control. Sound familiar? Isn’t that what December is all
about? Anxious thoughts multiplying within me?
As
I shared with a friend my realization that anxiety had taken over my life and I
was beginning to show physical signs such as sleeplessness, lack of appetite
and overwhelming fatigue, she shared just one sentence along with the
encouragement to think about this one thing. ‘The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want’.
Before
turning off the light to go to sleep that night, I read the entire Psalm over
once again. “Lord, you want me to have peace in my heart and not be anxious.
You indeed are my shepherd and I don’t need to be in want. That’s not your plan
for me! You make me lie down in green pastures, and lead me beside quiet
waters. I can trust you Lord even in this. Give me peace tonight please?”
Every
time I woke up at night and my mind threatened to go down that same track of
anxiety and lack of peace, I instead repeated that one sentence, ‘the Lord is
my Shepherd, I shall not want’. He was in control and I could rest in that,
after all he was the Prince of Peace. Isn’t that what Advent is all about,
preparing for the coming of that Prince of Peace?
December
can be an exhausting month with all the activities and expectations that we
place on ourselves. When those things threaten to overwhelm you today,
remember, ‘The Lord is your Shepherd, you shall not want’.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for the reminder from this
familiar psalm and the message of peace that it gives me in the midst of this
busy month. Thank you Lord that you truly are my shepherd and I can trust you
to work out all the details that threaten to overwhelm and consume me. Fill me
with your peace today. Amen.
1 comment:
Thank you!I say those words to my mom in her confusion and forget to say them to myself in all the business of life.
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