compilation
One man announced a painting competition. He longed for a picture that would depict perfect peace and quiet. The artists had to paint anything they thought would best depict complete calmness.
Some painters painted peaceful landscapes with sunsets and fields with beautiful flowers. Others painted a lake with a reflection as clear as glass. Each of them was beautiful, but when the winner was announced, they all gasped in disbelief. The title of the winning painting was ‘Calm in the middle of the storm’.
At first glance, the image shows everything but calmness. The sky is full of black clouds, flashing, waves rolling down a jagged rocky slope and water is raging under them. – How could this show peace and quiet?
But if we look closely at the picture, we notice that just below the waterfalls (and just above the river) there is a nest with a bird and young, hidden under the edge of the rock. In the middle of this huge storm, the bird found a refuge, a safe place to rest. – This is the real picture of calm – the room despite the storm that rages around!
But try to imagine how the bird is trying to fly through the storm, how it hits the waves and how it loses control. Does it often remind you of your own life? How we try to fly through some storm, how we make our way through the days, through traffic jams, how we fight to manage all our tasks. We can completely stress ourselves out of all the ‘little things’ that don’t happen according to our ideas.
And now again to the image. Just as the bird found its refuge under that rock, we too can find safety in the God that is our rock. When problems like water come at us, we can take refuge in our rock and find peace here and recharge our batteries, like the bird in the picture.
God is my rock, my salvation… I find shelter in it. (Psalm 18:3)
Adapted from: https://faithfarmfamilytable.wordpress.com/2015/09/08/peace-in-the-midst-of-the-storm/
Image: Jack E. Dawson
…
How often in our frantic, insecure and fast world full of tension between nations, in our cities, neighborhoods, families, and even in our souls, we long for at least a little bit of peace.
We wish for peace, but he escapes us, we are frantically looking for him, but he is elusive. We often look for it in the wrong places.
Is it possible to find peace in this restless modern world? Yes, above all doubts!
Within today’s reality, we have little hope, but if we exceed this reality, it is possible to find a room that is resistant to any tension. It is a calm that exceeds our human understanding and is not dependent on external conditions. God is greater than all circumstances and is able to turn them into our favor. It can intervene in our lives and give us the solutions we are looking for. He is so powerful that he can turn a tragedy into a triumph. And he can give us the peace we desire, and which is completely within our reach if we ask for it.
As Nehru said: ‘Peace brings peace of mind’.
– Excerpt from the book ‘Treasure of Peace’
…
I told you all this so that you can find security and peace in connection with me. The world will prepare many difficulties for you, but do not lose courage. I won over him. – Jesus (Gospel of John 16:33, translated by SNC)
More similar articles here: https://nekomunatobezalezi.cz/ti-popularni-hvezdy-a-ti-neznami-sluzebnici/
