Grumpy and Stressed to Finished Work Rest

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul.

Psalm 23: 2-3a

I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. My body ached from an overzealous workout yesterday. As I stumbled downstairs to make my coffee and read my Bible, I found it was still quite humid outside so no opening the door to hear the birds.

I made myself some nice, strong coffee and when I went to sit down to read my Bible it seemed to have disappeared. I spent nearly an hour looking for it. Upstairs, downstairs, in the dining room, in my prayer closet, even outside in the car. It just plain old disappeared and I thought for sure I was losing my mind.

I began to stew and belittle myself, and could not understand why this was happening. Finally, I got good and mad and then I lifted the blanket off the couch and bingo, there underneath it was my Bible and journal. How could I have missed looking there after wandering from room to room?

Then, I finally started to read and had a delicious (full) second cup of coffee. I put the cup down on the little table instead of on the bookshelf where I normally do. But the cup didn't make it onto the table, instead it crashed to the floor and made a huge mess. More than even the mess, I was mad because now I would have to make myself more, and it had been just the perfect cup.

What a way to start the day. My routine had been disturbed not just once but twice. Instead of reading where I normally do, I went over some chapters in the book of Hebrews. I read once again that the whole point of this universe is Jesus. Jesus is everything God wants to say to us!

1 God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself[fn] purged our[fn] sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. Hebrews 1: 1-4

God was so gentle with me, and helped me recover. I eased my aching body with an epsom salt bath. My body began to relax. Yes, of course Lord little irritations rise during the day. Do I need to let them set the framework for a bad mood for the rest of the day? Of course not.

Even as I write this a fly buzzes around the room. I detest flies and their buzzing sound. Do I need to get uptight? No. Christ endured the buzzing flies too. He was the Son of God. Why should He have to suffer all these little annoyances? But He did, and He did it all with joy.

1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.Hebrews 12:1-2

 Jesus saw that there was joy ahead waiting for Him, so He didn't once complain even when He was dying on the cross. What started off to be an awful day because I allowed myself to be stressed out has now become a blessed day. And all because I looked unto the One whom has all the right answers, all the perfect coping mechanisms, and especially unchanging happiness in the face of the deepest difficulties, even paying for the sins of the whole world.

Jesus waits for me to come to Him and refresh myself once again in His streams of perpetual life giving water. Somehow He cares even about something stupid like a misplaced Bible or spilled coffee.  I give Him my petty everyday stress, and He gives me His rest for the most difficult times, the annoying times and everywhere in between.

Seeking His Face

Seek the LORD and His strength; Seek His face evermore! I Chronicles 16:11

In a ladies Bible study I attend, we discussed seeking God's face and what it really means. The "face of God" denotes His manifest presence in our lives. It is a sign of His favor and acceptance. God's face toward His children is always to give them His undivided attention like no person on this earth could do for another. And yet, He is always waiting for us to seek His face, for when we do, that is when He can really bless us like no other material gift or relationship could on this earth.

In seeking His face, we find all our souls are really longing for, something no person on earth can fill. God showed me anytime I expect any human being, (whether husband, child, sibling, parent or friend) to fill the void that only He can fill I am actually living in idolatry. Oh, I may not have a little Buddha on my mantle that I bow down to but if I put anything or any person ahead of the Lord's rightful place in my life, I may as well have a statue to worship. He wants me to run to Him instead!


Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, The help of my countenance and my God. Psalm 42:11


All God wanted to say to us, He really did say through the Person of His Son Jesus Christ. In Hebrews 1:1-4, it tells us:

1 God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.

He also says in Colossians 1: 15-18:

"15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. 18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence."

When He has preeminence in my life, my soul is finally at peace. And as I seek His face, He promises to take care of all the little details of my life, the things that occupy so much of my everyday worries, like how I will continue to survive in a world that grows darker by the day. Jesus offers me a different way to think in Matthew 7:31-34:

“31 Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." Matthew 6: 31-34

The most incredible thing about seeking God's face, to me, is that we are limited only by our own choices in this life as to how much we will seek Him. There is no point at which He would ever say to us, "That is enough seeking for you!!" No, we choose how much we want to know this wonderful, giving God who is the focal point of all human history. This is something we discussed at our study. All believers will appear before His Bema evaluation seat one day. He has given us His Word in its entirety, the Holy Spirit within, pastors and teachers plus the witness of creation all around us and the testimonies of those who have gone before. We have no excuse not to seek Him. And when we do, we find out who we really are, a brand new person who is given a fresh clean slate every day.

Galatians 6: 14-15: 14 But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15 For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.

Now is the day of salvation, now is the time to seek Him, for He is patiently waiting for us. Let us somberly consider God's warning to Solomon, who, though he received more wisdom than anyone on earth, somehow forgot how important it was to seek God's face. I Chronicles 28:9 “As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve Him with a whole heart and a willing mind; for the LORD searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever."

Let us humble ourselves and say to God, along with David: "When You said, “Seek My face,” My heart said to You, “Your face, LORD, I will seek.” Psalm 27:8