“Praise be to the Lord, for he has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.” ~Psalm 28:6-7
I realized yesterday that I have not updated my blog in a long time, which often means I have not slowed down to reflect on the presence of God in my life. Today is the day, a reminder that slowing down and recognizing the beauty God brings to life. Time of reflection and pondering is essential to who I am and who you are as a child of God call to be in this world.
I have been struggling with a lot more stress in life over the past three months than ever before and I am in a place where the people I love most are all about one thousand miles away in different directions. Often in challenging, stressful and trying times we lean on people whom we love to surround us and support us—which is important. I do acknowledge that the people I love most (y’all know who you are J) have supported me and loved me more than I can ever imagine and I praise God for this. There are times though when you just need to be with them, but you can’t. In these moments of challenges I have learned to cry mercy, to cry out to God knowing that before any person can fill my life; God must be at the core of my being. Though I long to be with people near and dear to my heart I first need to seek and cling to God who has created me and called me to be where I am at this moment.
(Note about the word ‘Cling’: This word often has negative connotations, but when using the word cling when talking about having a relationship with God there are positive images that emerge. The top five dictionary definitions include: “to adhere closely; stick to. To hold tight, as by grasping or embracing. To be or remain close. To remain attached and to cohere, be united.” )
Your relationship and connection to God is the most important relationship you have; yes, I find that to sound so cliché. These past few months I have been reminded that having people in our lives to love us and surround us, is incredible, amazing and I wouldn’t change it for the world; I am truly blessed by these people. However, at the core of who we are as children of God, we are called to cling to God and hold him at the center of our lives. I have been reminded to center myself on God who is the rock in my life.
There are times when we say that God is the most important part of life, but yet don’t respond to God’s grace and love. Responding to God is not a onetime acknowledgment; there is no asking Jesus into your heart prayers necessary, for God is in the lives of all people no matter what. As people of God, we are called to respond to God’s grace each and every single day of our lives. Communication is foundational to any relationship; and prayer is communication with God. There is no right or wrong way to pray; look to the book of Psalms for guidance. The last few months when circumstances and situations have been out of my control, I have learned to cry mercy. In utter helplessness and being miles from my favorite people, I know that the strongest support in this place of challenge is clinging to God who is the hope in my life and the light in this world. God is at the core of who we are and that brings strength to all relationships we encounter throughout life.
QUESTIONS TO PONDER: How do you cling to God? How do you keep God at the core of who you are?
