Volume 75: Rest in Shalom

 

On my way home from Florida, I listened to one of Levi Lusko's sermons, in which he talked about shalom, peace:

"Peace. It's not just an absence of conflict. Shalom is the idea that runs throughout Scripture of WHOLENESS. You know that feeling when you realize everything is okay right now? That contended sigh that says "Ah, if this moment could last!" That's shalom. Inner, outer, external wholeness."

That statement summed up the week perfectly.

A week of peace. 

And rest. 

Fully present. 

Riding a safari early in the morning, right after the rain stopped and all of the animals were out and about. Shalom. 

Looking up and seeing the birds of the sky, bringing to mind Matthew 6:26, "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" Shalom.

A drawbridge in the middle of Epcot blocking our path, forcing us to stop and look at the sun setting over the park. Shalom.

A beautiful pink sky while exploring the different countries of Epcot. Shalom. 

Blue skies and perfect weather. Shalom. 

The birds of the ocean, flying free, making noise. Shalom. 

Napping on the beach, looking out over God's beautiful and vast creation. Shalom. 

Listening to the song, Love Like an Ocean, while watching a little girl swim, completely free. Shalom.

Yellerton taking in the sunset. Shalom. 

Now, is everything at Disney and the beach always perfect? 

No, of course not!

Disney has long lines. 

It's crowded. 

It's expensive. 

There are kids complaining. 

The beach gets sand everywhere.

The seagulls swarm. 

The sun burns. 

The water is cold.

Yet, never did we complain about such things! Instead, we were fully focused on the joy that surrounded us. The peace that was felt in being in the moment. 

There's always beauty and joy around us. May that be what I focus on finding!

I've written about this one before, but it feels applicable here! In a different Levi Lusko sermon, he said,

"Have you ever been sad after a hike you've been waiting to go on and it ends? You don't feel sad because it wasn't a great hike or hard. But you're sad because you wanted to be able to take in more of the beauty than you could."

I often feel this type of sadness after a trip ends... I want to be able to hold tightly to the joys and fun of the trips.  

But we will never be able to max out our positive emotions here on earth. 

Why?

Because we aren't made for this broken world!

Heaven will be where all of our beauty + joy + hope + comfort + rest will be made FULL!!