WHERE QUIET AND TRUST RESIDE
The feeling of being alone and isolated…of feeling lost and overwhelmed…of being rejected and feeling unworthy…it’s not a good place to find oneself. Whether your situation is the result of other people’s misdirected behavior, i.e. someone leaving a marriage relationship, someone placing undeserved burdens on you, or someone criticizing and blaming you for no good reason, the numerous unwanted feelings can become unbearable. Or perhaps your undesirable situation is the result of your own doing, i.e. withdrawing and isolating yourself, poor choices and decision-making, or taking advantage of a victim mentality in a confusing circumstance. If we are honest, we have all found ourselves in these life situations more often than we care to acknowledge. In truth, I know these situations quite well.
When my wife, Bonnie, and I were traveling north along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia last spring, on our way to a warm and welcoming AirBNB just off the parkway itself, we were scouting for some potential mountain scene overlooks where we might discover and be fortunate enough to capture a breathtaking early evening sunset. There were several excellent locations to choose from, with one, in particular, attracting our attention as we drove by gazing westward; an expansive wide-open view of the Blue Ridge Mountains just as we envisioned them, with a brilliant orange glow as their backdrop. Interestingly, we never bothered to look eastward behind us; the western sunset view was where our interests lay, leaving whatever was at our backs isolated, rejected and unworthy of our time and attention. We would later learn otherwise and see to search for new sunset locations with an entirely refreshing perspective!
When we returned later that early evening and traversed our way up the winding entry to the scenic overlook, this is what we discovered! It totally changed my mindset of this sunset opportunity. Though I didn’t search this tree out, nor did it search for me…in reality, we more or less stumbled upon each other; though I like to think the tree went calling first. Nevertheless, our chance encounter changed my expectations entirely, especially when the descending sun shone its warm glowing light on the worn and weathered tree! It, too, stood alone and isolated…lost and overwhelmed…even rejected and seemingly unworthy of any warm sunset glow, just as I had felt at one time. Yet, however barren and unworthy it may have appeared, it definitely knew just exactly where to keep standing, in hope it would experience yet another miraculous sunset experience. It most certainly did that evening!
There is a verse in the Psalms which serves to remind us of the unique disparate moments we might discover and acknowledge ourselves in. We must stop and realize during important life-changing moments, that there exists some situations which WE, understandably, cannot change or fix. “As for God, his way is perfect. The Lord’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him. For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and keeps my way secure. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he causes me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You make your saving help my shield, and your right hand sustains me; your help has made me great. You provide a broad path for my feet, so that my ankles do not give way. (Psalm 18:30-36 NIV Amplified).
As little as it appeared to offer, the timeworn tree’s REFLECTED LIGHT is what made this beautiful scene so wonderful! We must look to our Creator during these desperate times. Even though we can take refuge in His loving protection…even though His saving help is our shield and keeps our way secure, He still expects us…invites us…to stand on heights with hands trained for battle, and arms of strength to pierce the enemies that steal our joy for life. We must continue to fight, sometimes day by day, knowing His right hand sustains us!
The tree understands this guidance well. Do I? Do we? Return to Him, as many times as it takes…and just rest for a while! It’s where quiet, trust and strength reside.
WHERE QUIET AND TRUST RESIDE…IN REFLECTIVE LIGHT