Lock and Key

         Windows, doors, cars, safes, lockers, and suitcases… what do these things all have in common? They all have locks on them. We have grown up in a world that has made us feel insecure with leaving our possessions unlocked or unprotected of some sorts. Haven’t we done the same with our very own hearts? We get hurt once or twice causing us to lose trust in someone or something and we lock away our hearts for safe keeping, separating them from a world of hurt and pain. When really, our hearts are never really safe or secure in our own hands or even the hands of anyone of worldly matter. Instead, they remain safe and secure in the hands of the Lord who although remains unseen in heaven, is never truly separated from us. It’s easy to say out loud and possibly even to believe that our hearts remain safe somewhere, somehow, but is it easy to do?

         As a child, we are told about Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, and many other unseen characters. So when we are young we are taught and we learn to trust what is unseen. Although we later grow and learn that these are all fictional characters, we learn that there is one that remains constant: Our Father in Heaven. We look back and see where he was, how he worked and tested us, and when he kept our hearts in safekeeping. I was reminded yesterday by my dear friend Meredith that we need to believe in our Lord the way we believed in Santa Claus, not just by saying it, but by believing it and being filled with the spirit of Christ. When you ask a young child about Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy, they believe in it with their whole heart, without a doubt. If only we could capture that and truly understand why we are called the children of the Lord, to not only have faith and innocence, but also the absence of doubt.  We need to believe in our Lord without a doubt and that once our hearts remain in him, how safe and secure we are and that nothing can prevent us from reaching our eternal destination.  We live in a world where everything is locked up and stored away, whether it be our possessions or our hearts. What we do not realize is that there are so many locks and not enough keys and that the true key lies within the Lord when we choose to believe in Him.

“Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part, then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known” {1 Corinthians 13:12}

“But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, ‘Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole’" {Luke 8:50}

“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” {Psalm 73:26}

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows" {Proverbs 4:23}

“But I was sure of something, too: it's a lot easier to be lost than found. It's the reason we're always searching, and rarely discovered--so many locks, not enough keys” {Sarah Dessen}

The Path Less Traveled

"You are on the path of My choosing. There is no randomness about your life. Here and now comprise the coordinates of your daily life. Most people let their moments slip through their fingers, half-lived. They avoid the present by worrying about the future or longing for a better time and place. They forget that they are creatures who are subject to the limitations of time and space. They forget their Creator, who walks with them only in the present. Every moment is alive with My glorious Presence, to those whose hearts are intimately connected with Mine. As you give yourself more and more to a life of constant communion with Me, you will find that you simply have no time to worry. Thus, you are freed to let My Spirit direct your steps, enabling you to walk along the path of Peace." 

-Jesus Calling {05.01.13}

There is just something about knowing that there is no randomness about my life. That no matter how much free will I have, there is a kind of order and plan the Lord has for me. All too often, I find myself with my own plan, allowing moments to simply slip through my fingers like thousands of grains of sands. And those moments are precious because time is the one thing we cannot get a hold on or get back. We are always worrying about what has happened in the past or what will happen in our future, whether it is a few minutes in the past or a few years in the future, thoughts stream through our minds consuming our time and our feelings in the present. Let me ask you a question, how often does your mind focus on what you have to do, or simply worry about what has just happened in your life? Our mind is trained to this, because of the fast paced world we live in there is simply too much going on to focus on the present. We think about how our past decisions will impact our future ones, when in reality it's what we do NOW that matters. Why are we so quick to forget that we are imprisoned by time? There's nothing we can do to get back the past or obtain what lies ahead of us in the future. Instead we are limited to 24 hours a day because plainly, we cannot handle any more than that. 

There is no peace found in this world, simply temporary fractions of it. But we do have eternal peace on the path we walk with our Lord. "A life of constant communion..." what does that even look like? Its constant surrender, ongoing recognition of the blood that was shed for this very time we call the present that we all too often take advantage of. The exceedingly undeserving act that freed us and allowed us to walk a path that leads to eternal life with our Lord and Creator. Take a look back at your life; do you see any evidence of God's workings in your past? I guarantee you that His hands molded worrisome situations you felt were out of your control. Now what would it look like if we recognized that He is always present, always beautifully molding our lives and moments as we walk with him? Of course seeing the final product puts things into perspective and pieces it all together, but do we have enough faith in Him to let Him do His work as we simply enjoy and recognize his presence?  That's what the path of Peace looks like to me... because how could I worry about life and the distractions it presents, when I know the Creator of the very life I am living walks beside me for encouragement, communication, guidance, love, and grace. In that kind of life, there is no time for worry and no time to focus on anything besides the present. Take the path of Peace less traveled by.