finding calm in the midst of the storm

I can't shake the Sandy Hook tragedy from my mind. Every time I turn on the news and hear more coverage, and then glance down at Clara I start to cry. Every time I sit and rock with her I cry. Every time she snuggles up under my neck I cry. I cannot fathom what the parents of those 20 children are feeling. What they are experiencing. Cannot fathom. Brandon and I keep posing questions to each other like "Can you even imagine what it would be like to drive up to Clara's school after hearing such news, and then find out she didn't make it?"

Everyone seems to have their view point about gun control and/or mental health services and while I do hold my own opinions about both issues, that is not the point of this post.

Tragedies such as the one at Sandy Hook are not fair and certainly don't make one bit of sense. The only thing I know to do in times such as these is to cling to the Creator of Life himself. To find a place of stillness in the midst of the chaos.

Ive been starting every morning over the last few months by reading one or two chapters in Psalms. I have been highlighting verses along the way that bring me hope, peace and comfort.

I thought today would be a good day to share a few with you.

Maybe some of these will bring you a bit of calm, a bit of stillness, in the midst of our nations storm.

Psalm
4:8 "I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety."

5:3 "In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation."

13:5-6 "But I trust in your unfailing love, my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me."

23:4 ". . . I will fear no evil for you are with me;your rod and your staff, they comfort me."

27:13-14 "I am still confident of this;I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord."

28:7 "The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.

30:5 ". . . weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning."

30:11-12 "You turned my wailing into dancing;you removed my sackcloth and clothes me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent."

31:8 "You have not handed me over to the enemy but have set my feet in a spacious place."

32:7 "You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance."

34:18 "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit."

38:15 "I wait for you, O Lord; you will answer, O Lord my God."

40:1-3 "I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord."

There are so many more. . . this is just scraping the surface.

But I will end with this. . .

46:1-6, 10 "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day. Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fail; he lifts his voice, the earth melts... Be still, and know that I am God..."

We are not promised tomorrow. Every new day is a gift. One more opportunity to love on a child and show them Jesus.

Thank you Lord for this day, another day with my precious family of three.

Thank you for another day with our baby girl.