Crossroads Community Church in Norwalk, Ohio is celebrating 10 years of being in their current building. Ten years ago they were at a crossroads-in order to move ahead,hurdles would have to be scaled. Just the financing for such a project is staggering. Then add the careful planning that had to go into the big decisions that were made: location, size, and placement of church and parking lot on the land. After that comes the gazillion (Is that even a word?) other decisions that would have been made starting from the ground up. Just thinking about it overwhelms me! One thing I know for sure: they built the church on a firm foundation. How do I know? It’s still standing.
We all come to a crossroads in our lives where we need to make a decision. Do we want to carry on as we are: in worry, stress, and pain? Or do we want to start building something new with a firm foundation? Jesus is the Rock we should build on. “Look! I am placing a foundation stone in Jerusalem, a firm and tested stone. It is a precious cornerstone that is safe to build on. Whoever believes need never be shaken.” (Isaiah 28:16, NLT) In the storms of life, our ‘house’ will stay standing because God himself watches over it. “The Lord protects you; the Lord is a shelter right by your side.” (Psalm 121:5, HCSB) We don’t have to live in a house filled with anxiety; we can live in a house filled with peace. God’s already dropped off the welcome gift on the doorstep. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27, NIV) So the only question is: will we pick it up?
Things to do today:
- Accept the peace that God is offering.
- Read a similar blog called ‘Hold Fast to Peace’ and listen to songs ‘Prince of Peace’ and ‘Perfect Peace.’
Picture this: late evening in an overcrowded parking lot, snowy and cold, with 2,000 impatient people trying to leave at the same time. There was high potential for angry words and honking horns. Since we wanted to keep the good feeling of the season, my sister-in-law and I waited patiently in a long line of cars. To entertain ourselves, we started making jokes as we watched drivers cutting in front of other cars and forcing their way through to the exits. It went like this: “They clearly never went to kindergarten-because that’s where you learn to take turns.” Or, “Maybe they only had half-day kindergarten.” You know what? As silly as our jokes were, it worked. We didn’t get upset with the choices people were making. We held fast to peace.
I’m thankful I live in the ‘Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.’ The privileges we get from living in the United States far outweigh the number of challenges we face. I can’t help thinking about all the men and women who sacrificed their time, their families, and sometimes their lives to allow us to live in peace in this great country of ours. ‘American Soldier,’ Toby Keith’s song expressing the thoughts of the military, may say it best. “Beside my brothers and my sisters I will proudly take a stand… I’m out here on the front lines, so you can sleep in peace tonight…” With a grateful heart, I say thank you to the military for defending and protecting the United States so we can live in peace.
Why do we waste any time worrying? Winston Churchill said he heard a story about a man who on his deathbed said he had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which never happened. Isn’t that the truth? Why do we lose sleep fretting about things we can’t change?!? Here’s a sample: We can’t change someone’s mind, we can’t make money appear in our bank accounts, and we can’t make someone do the right thing. Yet we still spend time worrying about it! Jesus said in Matthew 6:27, “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” He went on to say, “Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Today can have its fair share of problems, so we need to address them as we are able. But let’s not waste our precious time, energy, and emotions thinking about the challenges that could happen tomorrow.
As Christians, we’re called upon to be more like Jesus. Most of the time, we do this by focusing on His love. And that’s the right way to start. Jesus said in Matthew 22:37-39, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and with all your mind,” and “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Those commandments are a big undertaking in any life, and we must continually pursue them, but today let’s focus on another character trait of Jesus. The disciple Matthew tells a story about when Jesus and the disciples were crossing over the Sea of Galilee. He said in Matthew 8:24, “Without warning, a furious storm came up…” Sound familiar? Had any furious storms come up in your life? Have any of them come without warning? In this case, the disciples panicked, and surprisingly, many of them were experienced fisherman!