Every once in awhile I will be reading the bible (something I don't do enough of) and a verse will stand out as if it were written just for me. I'm going to share one of those verses with you today.
I recently accidentally said I would join a group of women for a "Read through the bible in a year" group. It started out with one girl wanting to do it and then a few of us said we wanted to do it too, so we just decided to make a group of it and share out thoughts along the way. I love how God puts people in your path to encourage you to do things outside of your comfort zone! Join a group of women I don't really know and share my thoughts on the bible?! PS my thoughts on the bible aren't usually outstanding. I am NOT a bible scholar by any means. But I have grown up in the church basically from birth and I have been in quite a few bible studies and some of those studies were written by awesome scholarly women. So over the course of my life I have heard a lot of things and I have an awesome study bible that answers a lot of questions that you might have as you read through different passages. The bible I have (just in case you are in the market for a new one) is the Quest Study bible. Here on Amazon. I have had this bible for over 11 years and mine looks like it's been through a war. The cover is falling off, a few pages are so underlined you can hardly read the next page, but it's still kicking and helping me learn new and exciting things.
So the other day while I was doing my daily bible reading I came across Psalm 4:8 and I stopped dead in my tracks. Now when I read the bible (especially if I have a lot of reading to do) I don't really read slowly and meditate on each word and soak it in the way I should. I sort of just read and if something jumps out at me or doesn't make sense I will re-read over it a few times, maybe make a note of it in my prayer journal, and keep right on moving. But on this particular day I literally sat back and took a breath. I swear God wrote that verse just for me.
You see I struggle with anxiety. It usually hits at night while I'm laying in bed. I mean there are different things that set my anxiety off but one of the things I struggle with is worry and night is the worst. I struggle to get to sleep because my mind just won't turn off. I think I hear one of the kids crying, I think about if I remembered to set my alarm, or if Mr J set his alarm, I think of the 101 million things I need to get done the next day, and I make lists in my head. The list of things I think about at night is endless! I have even gotten up (because I can't sleep) and cleaned or made a list or done something to try to ease my mind. So when I saw a verse about sleeping and safety I stopped. I probably read that verse 5 or 6 times. It spoke so deeply to me that I am going to have to have it printed or order a picture of it. This is one of those verses that may not be my life verse but it has such meaning and power to me that I need it with me nightly. Then just a few nights after I read this verse I was laying in bed and swore I heard something. The running joke between Mr J and I is that the axe murderer is somewhere. So if I hear a bump in the night I'll say "Oh it's just the ax murderer". It helps me not be worried of nothing because we can joke about the pretend person. Funny side story, one time our jet tub kept turning on by itself so we decided it was just the ax murderer trying to take a bath. ANYWAYS!!!! So the other night I was laying in bed and I thought I heard or saw something. My mind went into anxiety/panic mode. And then this verse popped into my head. So I prayed this verse (the best I could remember it) over and over and over until I fell asleep. I LOVE that I serve a God that cares about me so much that He will give me peace and safety so that I can sleep.
Has God ever given you a verse that you thought was written just for you? Have you been in The Word lately? God wants to talk to you. He wants to meet you right where you are and give you peace and security. I pray you all seek Him and His peace today!
Love, Lacey
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