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Listen while you read: "Dear Lord And Father Of Mankind"1 (Lyrics) |
The first family road trip that I remember taking happened when I was eleven years old. From our home on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, we travelled all the way to the Okanagan. Now an easy trip of eight or nine hours, it took us several days, as my dad took his time driving our little Morris Minor up the Fraser Canyon, stopping to see the sights and having a swim in the lakes and icy rivers that we encountered on our way.
My dad liked adventure, and he was so happy to have a holiday, with its change of scenery, and to be away from the daily pressures of his office bookkeeping job. What a great feeling to be free, at least for a few days! After the hours of packing the day before, my dad breathed a contented sigh, having made sure that everything that we would need for a family of four was efficiently packed into the car, lovingly named "Yellow Rose". Early one summer morning, we were on our way, chugging up the mountain highway out of town. Suddenly, slapping the steering wheel for emphasis, he called out dramatically in his unique turn of phrase, "This is the holidays!" We caught his enthusiasm and cheered excitedly. Our summer road trip had begun.
Our family trip was definitely a pause in our daily lives, just like the word used in some of the psalms — the Hebrew word Selah. It was meant to indicate an interlude, a pause for voices, or a note to change the way musical instruments were played, or to highlight a shift of mood. The Amplified Bible gives it an additional meaning: "Pause, and calmly think of that."
Hebrews 4:9 – There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. (NKJV)
How necessary it is to pause in our daily lives! Life seems to consist of going from one commitment to another, not to mention making meals and keeping the house in some semblance of order. Being retired, my husband and I don't leave home every day to go to work, but we still need to pause. How easy it is to build up to periods of frenetic activity and not take time to rest and reflect. Just as the people of Israel were invited to enter the Promised Land as an end to their struggles and slavery, we are told of a rest available to us as believers. That rest is in Jesus, Who "makes me to lie down in green pastures" and Who "restores my soul" (Psalm 23:2,3 NKJV). We can rest there, like sheep do, free from interruptions and annoyances, renewing ourselves in peace.
Let's take up the offer of rest that the Good Shepherd promises us. Pray with me in the words of the hymn writer John Greenleaf Whittier:
Prayer: Dear Lord,
- Drop Thy still dews of quietness,
Till all our strivings cease;
Take from our souls the strain and stress,
And let our ordered lives confess
The beauty of Thy peace.
In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
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Thanks for the encouraging words, Alice.
Thanks for a good word today, Alice.
Blessings.
Lovely devotional Alice.
I hope you are having many moments to pause and reflect!
Thank you, Alice, for sharing this encouraging devotional with us. My mind is filled with similar childhood memories of yearly family road trips across the country to reconnect with our far-flung family. Blessings.
Dear Alice,
Thanks for the wonderful Devotional today. I so enjoy your writings.
Looking forward to more.
Blessings to you and your family.
(Ont.)
Thank you for another of your special devotionals Alice. Great memories for you to reflect on trips with your Dad and so true that in life we need take a break. We can feel amazing peace taking time in our day to reflect on the Lord’s word, to pray, and give thanks for His love and creation. Blessings for these writings you do.
A lovely post which is timely for me as my husband and I start a few days of R&R tomorrow. I was already thinking of all we needed to accomplish first but as I read your words, it reminded me to take a breath. We all definitely need rest so we can return refreshed to continue the life God has given us. Thanks and blessings, Alice!
Alice, thank you. I appreciated your example of being retired from old work schedules and yet needing to make deliberate choices to step back and take a break for those quiet moments of rest and reflection. I liked your question of “who is my shepherd” and “who makes me lie down I green pastures?” Great points to ponder which lead me to praise and thanksgiving.
Dear Alice,
What a great reminder to pause and reflect. I just loved your choice of hymn/prayer! I still hear it in my head a I ‘sang it’ internally several times and let the words and tune give peace and calm – the pause!
Thanks so much for sharing!
Blessings.
Thank you, Alice,
Today’s devotional brought back wonderful memories of travels throughout Canada including in BC.
It also reminds me of the Morris Minor my mom drove when I was a teenager and the many times I had to crank it during the winter it to get it started for her. I’m sure your dad’s was much more “comfortable” with BC’s climate than ours in Ottawa.
Blessings,
(ON)
Good morning, Alice,
Great message. Pause – calm down, reflect, regroup, rest, relax, think. Yes. We do need reminders in our daily lives to do these things. Prayer is a kind of pause for we also need to listen for God’s wisdom.
I loved the description of your road trip and how much your dad enjoyed all the parts of it and showed his delight. It is a pause from the usual routine so it can lift our spirits just planning and getting ready.
Hearing about other people’s life experiences, helps us to remember ours and the joy that we had.
As we pause and regroup on our faith journey, help us to reflect on all the God has provided. Blessings.
Good morning, Alice,
Read your devotional with interest this morning. I remember as a child we were not to read the word Selah aloud, but we were never told why not nor what it meant.
It is good to take time off to do things which are “a must” and to reflect on life as we experience it now, however or wherever that may be. To be honest though, we have reached a stage in our lives that it is practically impossible to travel. We have a daughter in the USA. We have not seen her children for about 5 years, some of our great-grandchildren we have never seen. There are times when we are sad.
Thank you for your good words.
Blessings.
Born in Northern Ontario, living in Toronto, yearly family trips back home were important. The beauty of the north shore Lake Superior reminded us of the beauty of God’s creation and His gift of peace and Hope.
Thank you for sharing this encouraging devotional with us. Blessings