A spirit glided past my face, and the hair on my body stood on end. It stopped, but I could not tell what it was. A form stood before my eyes, and I heard a hushed voice: “Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can a man be more pure than his Maker?” Job 4:15-17.

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 NKJV.

I loved this devotional this morning from You Are the Beloved, by Henri J.M. Nouwen: “A Prayer – Dear God, Speak gently in my silence. When the loud outer noises of my surroundings and the loud inner noises of my fears keep pulling me away from you, help me to trust that you are still there even when I am unable to hear you. Give me ears to listen to your small, soft voice saying, “Come to me, you who are overburdened, and I will give you rest. . . for I am gentle and humble of heart.” Let that loving voice be my guide. Amen. With Open Hands”

What struck me this morning in our Friday Retreat, was that we were gathered to worship God together and experience His peace; and in His peace know understanding and hope that nothing in this world can shake. Isn’t that the point of worship? To know our Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit. And to experience together God’s Presence in His love for us. In His loving care, we can shed the worries of this world like a garment old and soiled. How? Because we know that we are not in charge. The storms raging with unstoppable power show us how inadequate we are to control anything. To know God is to know He is in control, not us. To know God is to be thankful it is He and not us who is in control because we are experiencing awe in His wisdom and majesty. It begins there. Awe. Thankfulness. Reverence. With Him.

Our psalm is like so many of the psalms. Someone needed to express awe for our Creator and thankfulness expressed in words from the heart given in hope and faith. When Israel came out of Egypt, Jacob from a people of foreign tongue, Judah became God’s sanctuary, Israel his dominion. The sea looked and fled, the Jordan turned back; the mountains leaped like rams, the hills like lambs. Why was it, sea, that you fled? Why, Jordan, did you turn back? Why, mountains, did you leap like rams, you hills, like lambs? Tremble, earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob, who turned the rock into a pool, the hard rock into springs of water. Psalm 114. Why? Because we experience the personal love of our God who says to us: Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Matthew 11:28-30. In our God who loves each of us, we find peace, understanding, hope that this world filled with storms cannot know. Do you long for understanding? It’s a journey with our God guiding us and it’s the best journey you will ever undertake. The world will not look the same as you keep your eyes on God. The storms of wind, rain, political upheaval, of personal tragedies will still be here; but we have a window into something better that is more real than anything in this physical world…our life with our God who loves us now and into eternity. He is our true Home now and into eternity.