Reflecting & Trusting

It’s a quiet Thursday night.  TV’s off.  No music playing.  Leah’s at Ann Arbor.  It’s me a book, my Bible, my laptop, and a cup of coffee.

Do you get reflective when it’s quiet?  I do.  Not the “look at old photo albums” kind of reflective when you mourn how fast time is going (which is the same speed since creation).  The kind of reflective where I look back and look ahead.

Here’s what I’m thinking about tonight.

1.  I’ve got nothing to whine about.
I wonder if busyness teaches us to take for granted what we should be celebrating.  Too often I don’t take time to really reflect and be thankful.  It seems that it takes less effort to let my mind wander into reasons to complain.

I won’t list what is causing my heart to be thankful right now, it ranges from the really obvious to the private.  As I flip through the pages of blessings in my mind I realize everything is not flawless, but I’ve got nothing to whine about.

2.  I’m never alone, fear is always there to keep me company.
But, Pastors don’t have emotions… especially yucky ones, do they?  This one does.

This is not the time for a religious cliché.

Fear is always around sometimes as parasite and sometimes as a flesh eating elephant.  It may hide behind a thought or it may hide everything else behind it - but it knows when to show up.

I don’t think we are supposed to run from it or pretend it’s not there.  I think the best move is to hold on to the Truth.  Fear doesn’t like that, it feeds on non-truth or twisted truth.

3.  It’s hard to imagine the depth of God’s love.
I don’t know why he loves me so much.  I know me and I’m not that impressed.  When I look back I can think of a few reasons to give up on me.  When I look ahead I can imagine a few more that will come up.  When I look at right now I know He sees both directions and keeps loving.

4.  I really like my church.
We make mistakes.  We’ve got our flaws.  We can’t stand in the “we do everything right” line.  But, I love who God is making us.  We’re people that are growing.  We’re people who need grace and know where to get it.  I can’t imagine me anywhere else right now.

5.  The Holy Spirit is still the Holy Spirit.
I need Him.  We need Him.  As I look to the new season I wonder how many actions I will do that are fully dependent on Him.  I wonder how many times I will quench His work.  I wonder how many times He will whisper to me at just the right moment.

It’s been a very busy summer.  A wonderful summer.  I’m reflecting on the summer and trusting for the fall.

That’s not a bad way to spend a quiet night.

Pastor Dave