Come and gaze upon Jesus

"Be at peace.  I am the living God. Don't be afraid. Why would you be so frightened? Don't let doubt or fear enter your hearts, for I AM! Come and gaze upon my pierced hands and feet. See for yourselves, it is I, standing here alive. Touch me and know that my wounds are real. See that I have a body of flesh and bone." Luke 24:37-39 The Passion Translation

These are the words Jesus spoke to the Disciples when He stood in their midst, soon after the resurrection. These are words for us too, today, here and now...

Be at peace...

Don't  be afraid...

Don't let doubt or fear enter your hearts...

Come and gaze...

See for yourselves. 

There is something about coming to Jesus, stopping and gazing, being still and choosing to focus your thoughts on Him. One of my favourite scriptures, Psalm 46:10

Be still, and know that I am God;

I will be exalted among the nations,

I will be exalted in the earth!

Psalm 46:10 NKJV

Since returning from the Colour Conference last Thursday afternoon, there has been plenty going on here to bring fear and doubt, probably not surprising given the great input we received from the conference. 

There was a moment on Saturday night when I took a moment to be still, surrender to God, and ask Him what I was to do.

Surrender your anxiety! Be silent and stop your striving and you will see that I am God. I am God above all nations, and I will be exalted throughout the whole earth. Psalm 46:10 The Passion Translation.

An aside question, why did it take me 48 hours to get to this place of surrender? The quick answer, I was so busy striving in my own strength to fix each undesirable situation as it arose, that it wasn't until I went to bed and started talking to God that I realised we were under attack! This had not been a normal 48 hours!

In that time of being still, God reminded me of who He is,

Here he stands!

The Commander!

The mighty Lord of Angel Armies is on our side!

The God of Jacob fights for us!

Psalm 46:11 The Passion Translation

Yesterday morning, on Tuesday, when things were still a bit crazy, during some time of prayer, declaring God's Word, fasting and worship, one of the worship songs I was prompted to play was, Chris Tomlin's, Whom shall I fear [God of Angel Armies]. Here are some of the lyrics

You hear me when I call
You are my morning song
Though darkness fills the night
It cannot hide the light

Whom shall I fear

You crush the enemy
Underneath my feet
You are my sword and shield
Though troubles linger still

Whom shall I fear

I know who goes before me
I know who stands behind

The God of angel armies
Is always by my side

We have a God who is living. He is not dead. He is with us. He is interceding for us. He is near. He wants us to come and gaze at Him, exchanging our fear for His peace. He wants us to know that we are loved by Him, always. 

By Tuesday afternoon the negative circumstances in all four situations had started to change, only through God's grace and mercy, thank you Jesus. 

Let's take time to day to stop, gaze and receive His love and remind ourselves that He is God, creator of Heaven and Earth, sovereign over all and He is always with us.

Precious Jesus, thank you for what you did for each of us on The Cross.  Help us every day to take time to come and gaze, to sit at your feet, to know more of who you are and what you have done for us. Please transform us in those moments so we can be more like you and do more of what you have called us to do. Amen.