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By Dawn Reed
“I need to drive around the lake,” I quietly informed my beloved.
“Uh, oh,” he responded, “are you OK?”
“Yes. My brain just needs a break.”
For many years, a drive around the lake here in Floyd County has been my tension reliever. A decade ago, during a difficult (non-family related) time, I drove it several times each week. Stopping at a favorite picnic area right on the water, I took a seat at the table, and prayed/cried out my anguish to my Heavenly Father.
The Lord was faithful, as always. It took years along with many tearful prayers at the lake, but He parted the Red Sea for me. It was more difficult than I could have imagined, but the victory was wonderfully sweet.
While I live in that valley no longer, I remember it well. I prayed and had to wait for God to move.
A new crisis has come. I need answers; I need direction. And I know where to turn. After much prayer, the smartest thing I can do is to wait on God to answer-moving for me or directing me to move. Oh, that doesn’t mean doing nothing. Actually, it’s just the opposite. I’m inviting my Heavenly Father into the situation. I pour out my anguish aloud to Him and then step back, watching and listening.
While waiting on God’s answer, I immerse myself in His Word every day. I pray and ask Him to speak. I listen to messages or podcasts by godly leaders, and praise and worship music (K-Love is my fave). I remember the valleys He has already brought me through, His faithfulness and goodness. I need to be still (hardest part!)…and wait.
In answer to my need to go around the lake today, my beloved said, “Well, I will take you.” He grabbed his keys.
I had already read God’s Word. I’d presented to Him the new crisis. I had sung, “Yes He Can” by Cain ‘til my head hurt and might have even lifted my hands. I had thanked Him that He hears and would give me direction and an answer. I told myself continuously that He was able. I just couldn’t shut up in my head! A drive around the lake would surely clear my mind.
When Jesus quieted the storm in Mark 4, He didn’t whisper. The wind and the waves were making a big racket. He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves: “Quiet! Be still!”-with an exclamation point.
That’s where I was that day. I needed to “Be still!”-with an exclamation point. I needed the storm in my brain and heart to be calmed with peace that only comes from the presence of Jesus.
In “Flooded”, Nicki Koziarz mentions that the words “silent” and “listen” have the same letters. In essence, we can’t hear if we’re not quiet. She encouraged readers to set a timer for 10 minutes to sit in silence, being still and listening to God. I got halfway through. #workingonit
You may be like me: a work in progress. I DO trust the Lord. I KNOW what He can do. I REMEMBER all that He has done. But, if I am turning it over and over in my head, am I really turning it over to Him? I need to let go and let God take care of it and lead or shove me through it. To hear Him, though, I need to BE STILL at least for a few minutes.
Isaiah 40:31 reads, “Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength…”(KJV). PtL!
Today, they shall also go for a quiet ride around the lake. Jesus loved the lake, you know.