September 17

Hello Hillcrest family,

Today's passage that resignates with me greatly this morning is Isaiah 26:3 & 4. "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. Trust in the LORD forever, for in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength." (NKJV) I don't know about you, but I want peace and strength. My family is moving from one part of Dallas to another today and need the peace of God as much as ever!

Peace according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary's second definition means: freedom from disquieting or oppressive thoughts or emotions. I love that definition because honestly our minds are totally a battle ground where good & evil fight to dominate. I can be in the middle of prayer time or in worship or some other special time when all of the sudden my mind becomes distracted by awful or at least unnecessary thoughts right at that moment and in reaction to that thought I can sometimes become stressed or agitated or put my focus on me instead of God. It happens to ALL of us! Before I know it, my peace is gone.

Well, there's a way to get it back and that is to stay our mind's on the Lord. Stay can mean to stop doing something and to continue in a place or condition and also means to be in waiting or attendance. The way I can get peace is to quiet my mind from the distracting, unnecessary thoughts (no matter how good or how bad those thoughts are) and to purposefully put my mind on Christ and on His Word and attend to Him. As we make a conscious effort to stop thinking about one thing and to start thinking about the Lord and His Word and blessings, our peace returns and our emotions come in check once again. However, the other key part to staying in a state of peace is trusting God.

Peace comes in knowing God and in trusting that what He says is true and will come to pass for YOU (not just someone else)! Knowing God is everything. Do you know Him? Really know Him? Do you purposefully focus your thoughts on Him? Do you believe what He says is true for you not just someone else? If not, I challenge you to bow your knee before Him today and cry out to Him to know Him...to really know Him and trust Him.

Blessings,
Rolanda Green
Hillcrest Children's Minister