Rest and Restoration

Fall is coming…

I love fall time. Leaves falling from the trees. The clouds in the sky starting to look full and heavy. Hot mugs and warm sweatshirts always nearby.

This year as we prepare for the change in things we outwardly see, I pray we would also take a moment to prepare our hearts and minds for what God might do within us as we walk together. You don’t need to make a list. You don’t need to know even what it is you are needing. Just stop for a second right now and take a breath.

I took a breath a few days ago. It was the first day that felt like fall. What you will see in the videos below is my very favorite kind of day. Want to walk with me and I’ll show you what I mean?

Glen Eyrie, Colorado Springs, Colorado https://gleneyrie.org/
Glen Eyrie, Colorado Springs, Colorado https://gleneyrie.org/

I love days like these as it makes the world feel quiet. When everything is cloaked in clouds, I can only see what is right in front of me. The world is smaller. Details are nearer. My senses aren’t overloaded. I can hope and expect and wonder and awe as the whole world isn’t right at my fingertips shouting all the things.

My invitation for you today is to intentionally stop for 2 min, right where you are, and look around you. What is it that is right in front of you? Notice some thing and pause on it.

My challenge for you today is to answer a question. Be honest, as this will help you begin this walk towards restoration. If you don’t start with how you would answer in this very moment, I believe you might miss something very special. Let’s begin this walk together with where we are truly at.

Imagine you are sitting in a crowd and someone nudges you and says, “Hey, do you know who that guy is?” You look up and see a man. You have heard his name before. It is Jesus.

Friend, you might not know much about him. Maybe you know a lot.

Right now, what you think as you read this, is where we will begin.

13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”  Matthew 16:13-15 (ESV)

Friend, who do you say that he is? Put words to this.

If you want to share, put your answer in the comments. But if you can’t, that is ok. This exercise is for you to know where you are starting. As you go today, let me pray for you…

Jesus, I believe that what we think of you in the moment you ask us this question matters so much to you. Our honesty and your compassion lays a foundation on which we can enter in to more of an understanding of who you are and what that means for us. I pray specifically for this reader now that you would hear their answer, whatever it is, and that you would invite them to walk awhile with you. We want to understand and to learn more. Thank you. Amen.

See you soon friend. Breathe.