COMFORT - 19Sample

Day Three Where can I go and meet with God? For years, my wife and I have taken trips down to a retreat nestled just outside a tiny town called Leakey, in the hill country of Texas. We go to a place called Laity Lodge. A very dear friend, professor, and mentor of mine, Mark D. Roberts, invites us often as he leads the retreats. Many shallow, crystal blue rivers, creeks, and small lakes run between large caverns and rock formations with high elevations. Cedar trees and scented woods permeate the air.  Seclusion can allow us to focus our hearing on the trickle of the cool spring waters.  Open quietness can lead us into the awesome wonder of God. Finding quiet is not always easy. It takes work, discipline, and perseverance. But the more uninterrupted time you can give to God daily, the more easily you will see  His beauty within the journey that is your life. When you get to that meeting place with God, it is simply breathtaking. David writes in Psalm 42:1-2: 1 As the deer pants for streams of water so my soul pants for You, my God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? Gracious desires for God - those strong, fervent longings for Him - are in this silence. While there is a struggle between hope and fear, joy, and sorrow, we find God’s prevailing faithfulness that silences the conflict and gives aid to our souls. Where else can we find this kind of solace and comfort? Faith holds up the heart. With hope, the day will dawn again. Our souls will be restored from our grievances, as Faith gets the last word. To God, we show Him our love when we make it a priority to spend time daily in fellowship with Him. At the time, within scripture, David was banished to the land of Jordan, a great distance from the courts of God in Jerusalem. It is there that he expresses his grief and thirst for God, longing to be back in God’s presence. Even though David does not find himself in a land of tranquility, he does encounter the springs of God's peace and comfort, and his soul returns to a sweet reunion. When you are filled with God’s healing waters, you cannot help but overflow with joy. He refreshes you, much like the dawning of a new day, and He brings clear hope into view. Even in the day of trouble, 'your life is now hidden with Christ in God' (Colossians 3:3). “But I will sing of Your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble." - Psalm 59:16 God is praised for His power and mercy. With confidence, this should be the subject matter of David’s song. Power without mercy is to be dreaded; mercy without power is not much benefit to others. God’s mercy and power, however, are able and inclined to help us. He is to be praised many times as our defense because He is our refuge. “You will increase my honor and comfort me once more.” - Psalm 71:21 Our resolve and our comfort are held by the One who holds the cosmos. He who renews our faith desires us to give love back to Him in an act of worship. The goodness of God is better than any place known to man.  " How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty!  My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God". (Psalm 84:1-2).  Since our hearts and flesh cry out for the living God:  where can we go and meet with God? Reflection: How can you set time aside to go and meet with God? Where will you go? When you get there, take in what you see, hear, and experience. What does Jesus bring to your heart and mind? What is holding you back to honestly lay down your emotions to Jesus? Can you ask Him to fix your heart and mind on Him? Let His thoughts and His words cause you to worship Him. Prayer: To you, O Lord, I give thanks for this moment of serenity. It’s not often that I experience this kind of tranquility, but I long for Your waters to carry me daily. Help me then to labor in Your rest. Help me to journey to Your refreshing brooks continually, as You guide me along paths of peace. Thank You for being my song, even when I don’t know how or what to sing. Thank You for giving me strength when I am weak. Thank You, O Jesus, for being my source of life when all may seem empty. I know I am not empty because You came to give life and to give it abundantly. I praise You, Lord God, for who You are: my Salvation, my Forgiver, my Comforter, my Life, and my Future. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.