Selah

“Selah” is a word used a good bit in Scripture usually as a way to close a thought. It means – “to lift up and exalt.” But it also means to “stop, pause, look around you and reflect on everything you see.”

It is wise counsel and gentle reminder to all of us. As our world seems to continually spiral out of control, as the news depresses us, as busyness overtakes us, as we reach the age where close friends are starting to pass, as it hurts a little bit each morning to get our aging body out of the bed (!) … it is wise to pause and reflect.

Christmas is a tough season for many. For one thing, it is way too busy, way too commercialized and way to stressful. But for many of us, it is a sad time. This is the first Christmas I’ll have without my Dad. My Mom passed away two years ago and my Dad back in April. So, this is the first Christmas I’ve ever experienced without my parents. Other close friends of mine are also experiencing this same thing. It is not easy. My work, this time of year, is very busy as well and the combination of the two has tended to drive me into a bunker of sorts. Jesus never said walking this life was going to be easy. In some ways, the harder I press into Him, the harder my walk in this world becomes. The more I seek to become like Jesus (or maybe better said to try and grow in Him), the more I feel like an alien in this culture/world.

can you relate?

So how am I trying to combat this “malaise”? First, it is by pausing, slowing my pace. It is a constant battle for me. (remember, Jesus never said this was going to be easy). Slowing is a deliberate, intentional act on my part. Second – I decided this week to “daily journal my way out of this”. The deliberate, intentional act on my part to engage in devotionals and the Word and to pull out from it God’s word for me each day.

Today’s journal said this …

“You are not an orphan.

You are at your best when you are sacrificing for others.

You will have difficulty when you do the right thing; keep fighting.”

Selah!