Peace Reflection

"Even as evil cannot be overcome by evil, so peace and harmony cannot be attained by war," said the seven-paragraph "Appeal for Peace," released from the Serbian Orthodox Patriarchate. "To be a peacemaker is the greatest duty and most noble obligation of every man. That is why we are not afraid to be the first to extend the hand of peace to one another. In the name of our future and our common life together, we pray to God and appeal to all men of good will to endeavor with maximum effort to end this war and resolve the problems by peaceful means."
The document was signed by Serbian Patriarch Pavle, Catholic Archbishop Franc Perko, Mufti Hamdija Jusufspahic and Rabbi Isak Asiel, all of Belgrade. Together, they called for all bombing and fighting to cease and for the return of refugees to their war-ravaged homes - both the ethnic Albanians fleeing the paramilitary units of Slobodan Milosevic or Serbs fleeing the Kosovo Liberation Army.

Read the full article here: http://tmatt.gospelcom.net/column/1999/06/09/?printable=1

Weekend Recap

Psalm 33

22 May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, even as we put our hope in you.

That verse is a perfect reflection of what I'm feeling right now. A greater understanding of the Lord's unfailing love. Resting in and hoping in Him.

I had an incredible weekend. So great, that I couldn't fall asleep last night. Which then caused me to oversleep this morning. Since I was late to work (and tired), I'm feeling stressed about the week. This verse is going to give me hope and rest throughout the day.

Now let me tell you about my weekend!

Friday: Dinner & Discussion group. Topic: War & Peace. A fantastic discussion full of agreements and disagreements, challenging thoughts and encouragement. I love this community.

Saturday: Are you ready to hear about this amazing day?

After sleeping in (such a simple pleasure) I enjoyed breakfast at Athens with my friend, Scott. We then ventured to the lake for an afternoon of friends and watersports. Yes, I am now in pain from failed attempts at wakeboarding.

I left the lake and went home to get ready for a date. We went to Italia, a local pizza place for their tasty White Pizza. And I just must say, that the pizza was delicious but the company was wonderful. I wish I could tell you more, but I prefer to keep those details to myself! All you need to know is that I can't wait to go out with him again.

Moving on. After that fantastic memory, I enjoyed swing dancing in the park. For the first time in my life, I entered a swing dance competition. My dear friend and excellent dancing partner, Luke, and I danced to the final round for a 3rd place finish. Really, could this day get any better?

Sunday: I spent the morning helping Adam pack up his house so that he can move 2 blocks away to his new pad. We enjoyed a great lunch at Batter'd & Fried (Jared- they have Ceviche!). Later I enjoyed catching up with Sarah about her recent bike trip to Ireland, then off to worship with the City Church community. The day ended on a double-date with my roommate at Sunset Grill.

The only thing that could have made this weekend more perfect was if it had taken place in the Caribbean!

Perfect Love

I have a lot of thoughts going on right now, ones I wish that I could put words to and share with you. However, most of them are extremely personal and I have so far attempted to be careful sharing those online. So, I spent 30 minutes in a google images search typing in words associated with what I was feeling. And--I failed. It's hard to put feelings into pictures!

What I finally realized I was looking for was an even deeper understanding of perfect love. As a single woman, I've been on a search for a meaningful opposite-sex relationship. As I've spent months dating, I've come to a deeper understanding of Christ and His love for me. Although a great man may come close and meet many of our needs, the photo below finally summarizes the only perfect love I or you will ever find.

Peace

I was on a walk with a friend last night and kept thinking about the word "peace". We were walking on a path that always makes me feel peaceful, which made me think more about what peace means to me. So, I turned to my new friend biblegateway and typed in the word. Enjoy the following verses that I chose because of the picture they drew for me. Peace may mean something different for everyone, but for me it's when the twisted, busy world seems to disappear for a moment and all I know is that God is good. When the rest of the world disappears and I feel calm. May you find peace at some point in your day today.

1 Chronicles 16
27 Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy in his dwelling place.

Psalm 4
8 I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 17
15 And I—in righteousness I will see your face; when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.

Isaiah 54
10 Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,"says the LORD, who has compassion on you.

Luke 1
79to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace."

Confession

Since moving to Nashville, I have, for the first time in my life, begun a journal of sermon notes. I like pasting parts of the bulletin inside the journal, such as songs or scripture. This morning I was doing just that and thought I would post some of what I have here.

An important part of worship each week is a time of Corporate Confession and Repentance. I came to treasure this moment in woship when I was introduced to it through Washington Community Fellowship, Washington, D. C. Confession has become so important to me, because I realize that I would not take time to do so otherwise, and when I'm confessing the deepness of my humanity - so are 100 other people in the same room. I hope you appreciate the confession below, and that it allows you to grasp the fullness of Christ and His great mercy.

Gracious God,

our sins are too heavy to carry,

too real to hide,

and too deep to undo.

Forgive what our lips tremble to name,

what our hearts can no longer bear,

and what has become for us

a consuming fire of judgment.

Set us free from a past that we cannot change;

open to us a future in which we can be changed;

and grant us grace

top grow more and more in your likeness and image;

through Jesus Christ, the light of the world. Amen.

LORD God, so many of us so often are so fruitless. We know our lives should count for you but we see no fruit, no outworking of your presence. You tell us - and we agree - that this happens when...

We put our trust in our neighbors and our confidence in our friends instead of upon you. Forgive us.

We treat others, even our own parents, with contempt, and fail to live at peace even with those in our own family. Forgive us.

We don't hope in you - the God of our salvation - with the confidence that you will hear us when we pray. Forgive us.

In recognizing these things, we look away from ourselves now and rejoice in Jesus, in whom all our sins are now cast into the depths of the sea. Because of him, you pardon our iniquity and pass over our transgressions. Because ofhim you delight in your steadfast love and have compassion on us through your covenant of peace. For Jesus has tread ouriniquities under his fee, so we approach you with humility and confidence, as we pray in his name. Amen.

Anxious

This week I've been dealing with a great deal of anxiety. Mostly over relationships. Okay, so it's all because of relationships. I've told myself many times that I don't have to worry, but that hasn't seemed to help. I've listened to sermons online every day at work, and have been digging into scriptures. However, I still kept hoping that I could figure this out on my own. I knew the scripture "do not be anxious about anything..." and thought "yeah, yeah. I know. But I really don't want to think about that right now, I can figure something out on my own."

How silly is that?

I don't want to be anxious, but I refuse to trust in what I know will take away the anxiety. Being human is such a mess.

So today I gave in and typed in 'anxiety' at Biblegateway.com and of course, found the passage below.

Phillipians 4

5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

The passage reads differently to me while I'm in the midst of great anxiety than it did when I memorized it as a child. It helps to read a verse in context, I only knew verse 6.

The Lord is near.

He is here with me, in the midst of my thoughts and desires. He knows and sees me. I am not alone.

with thanksgiving

I can already thank the Lord for hearing my prayers and responding to them. I have faith that he will do what I ask for, and the result will be astounding. I don't need to worry about figuring out my relationship issues on my own - why should I worry myself about something that's already under control by someone much more capable than myself?

peace of God

Life without worry or anxiety. Quiet, still. Like the hammock under my apple tree.

transcends all understanding

I'll never figure it out. And I don't have to.

guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus

Ah. So I don't have to guard my own heart. Christ can do it for me. I just have to live each day with Him.