Redeemed in Peace

I've been doing live devotions on Facebook for a few months now. My goal was to be a voice of "peace" in the midst of all the turmoil. I placed a link to today's video at the bottom of this devotion in case you'd like to see it. Today, I talked about a verse in Psalm 55. As I was sharing the verse and my thoughts, I felt it was appropriate for us as caregivers.

Verse 18 of Psalm 55 says this, He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me. For there were many against me. As caregivers, there are so many things that pull at and war against our souls and our sanity too. Our plates are more than full with caregiving tasks. We have laundry, food prep, transfers, bathing, dressing, and a wide variety of other things to do to care for our loved one. Long distance caregiving has its own bumps along the way and plenty of surprise phone calls.

So, when I found this verse this morning, I thought of us and how time after time God has provided peace in the midst of the turmoil. As if caregiving wasn't enough, we also have other cares to add more concern. We must protect ourselves and loved ones from exposure to COVID. And our political environment is quite the mess. So not only do we have the stress of caregiving providing plenty of things to war against us, there is no reprieve "out there" either.

But here's the thing. David said that God reaches into the raging battle to "redeem" our souls in peace. I always wonder why He doesn't make the battle cease. You know? He could just make it all go away. That might be nice - but it wouldn't make us strong and it'd be a little bit boring, don't you think?

Instead, God walks right into the things that are troubling our souls the most. He comes right into the midst of our chaos, the ugliness of life, our fears, and crazy thoughts and emotions. And He gives our souls peace. The battle may continue to rage on around us - but we are in His hands. My heart and soul can rest in His heart even when the battle rages on. That's peace.

Today, I will look past the battle. I'll shift my gaze past all the things warring against my soul and I'll focus on Him. I will accept His peace even though life rages all around. I will embrace His peace and let it reign in my heart. Will you join me?

Today's FB live devotion.

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