Listen
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (NRSV)
Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. (The Message)
Reflect
- There is a sense of wholeness and everything coming together for good
- Christ is at the center of my life, and I must repeatedly, intentionally place him there
- I am settled and calm as a result
How does this happen?
I have an ongoing monologue with the most important person in my life: Jesus. This conversation is about everything in my life and my world and it’s about my response – and my reminding myself to place Jesus in the center of my life, over and over again.
Let me give you an example from this morning: I have a friend, TM who lives in Myanmar with her husband and son. Right now, the Myanmar military, having taken over from the rightful government, is attacking all sorts of people, including my friend’s people. There are people either who I love or who my friends love in a lot of danger right now. What do I do: I pray. And I cry. It’s hard, but I remember, once again, that Christ is the Lord of the universe, just as he is lord of my life.
Then, I have been hearing from God about provision (he told me to consider the lilies) which has helped me to trust him for new clients AND to let my husband reduce his teaching hours to start up his massage practice. This is a leap of faith for me. But God has really been challenging me about this, and I choose to trust and believe him.
Prayer of Response
Lord, I offer up to you, once again, myself and my loved ones, my concerns and I put you back where you belong: in the center of my life.
Questions to Ponder
- What do you need to talk to Jesus about now, or even daily that concerns you?
- What might be in the center of your life instead of Jesus (security, a loved one, your job, etc.)?
- What else do you want to tell Jesus about, knowing that he has only the best in mind for you?
—Submitted by Patty Jehle
Patty Jehle, MA, is a US/Swiss citizen who has been living in Switzerland for almost 30 years, is married to Patrik and has three adult children. She’s currently a lecturer at the FHNW in Brugg, is a certified spiritual director, and is a certified business coach and supervisor with her own business. She attended the first LSM and helped with LSM-Zürich.
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