Whoooosh!

A cold breeze blows by and bites the skin with a bitter, rushing reminder; it’s the season of cluttered calendars followed by scrambling steps just trying to keep up.

There’s a stream of shoppers scurrying with frantic concern to check off a list that is only growing longer.

The inbox and mailbox multiply with messages by the minute; invites, greetings and the lure to splurge on one last spending spree.

Anything slow-moving or stopping is a buoy to weave around.

Pressing the peddle just to keep up, this speed increases now by the second, beyond limits that are warning to slow down; signs of a sneeze and sniffle, or worse, the numbing compassion for an unshaved man sitting on the corner with his newspapers in hand trying to make a dollar for the day.

At Christmas, it feels like there are no seconds to spare to silence a restless soul.

The beats of my heart tick with urgency to cross off a competing list for attention and tock with a wrestling soul caught up in distracting demands. My prayers grow heavy and deep; the tears wet with sorrow that I’m not just living in the world anymore, but have become the world.

O Lord, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forevermore. Psalm 131:1 NIV

How can we cultivate a calm, quiet, peaceful soul that lives at rest in the swirl of insanity that encompasses Christmas? King David figured it out.

Make peace the desire of your heart.

When life gets busy, it’s easy for our emotions to get trapped in a timetable tornado plotted out in people, parties, and plans. Recognize the hurricane of hurriedness and ask yourself, How is my soul? Am I at rest? Do I have peace? Is there a quiet heart here? Earnestly pray for this peace.

Worship where you are.

Do you want a quiet Christmas spirit? The starting place is to get into position. To find sanity and clarity for his soul, King David set the world aside and worshipped the majesty of God.

The hand of Peace quiets the restless heart. His breath calms an aching spirit. He is the sure and steadfast anchor in swirling soul, a hope that can pierce the innermost place. His arms of peace wrap around every pain and rein in the racing thoughts.

In His warm embrace, find a place with no agenda. Of all things in the universe, you are the object of His obsession and designed to crave time with the Maker. This is where contentment is kept. When we abandon the world’s fractured appointments and embrace His calm and quiet spirit, the companionship of our Creator quenches this thirst for rest and frees an enslaved soul.

Relinquish control.

I have a tendency in the midst of my turmoil to take matters into my own hands. I struggle with the pressure of pride, It’s up to me. I’ve got to do something about this. I’m going to get it done. I’ve got to work it out. I’ve got to handle it. I’ve got to take care of it.

The only safe and sane place to be is in surrender, yielding all control, ambitions, dreams, and desires to a God who stitched your soul and is still seated on the throne over creation. God, I trust that you have my best interest in mind. This is what peaceful, healthy living feels like on the inside.

Realize you’re not in control. You’re not in charge and ultimately, you’re not dictating your days. God has numbered the days. I may make my plans but the Lord directs my steps. Release the stress of trying to control the uncontrollable.

Keep Christ the center focus.

Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul. 3 John 1:2

We did not earn God’s love, we were born into it. This relationship with God is not on worth, it’s by birth. Like a child in its mother’s arms, my soul is calm and quiet because I am content in who God is and the royal family image I am sewn in.

Sometimes the unsettling of a soul comes from living out of other people’s perception of who you should be, how your hours should be spent or even, how you want to be perceived by peers. But the truth is we cannot occupy ourselves with everything that offers itself to us. We are stewards of our own soul. We must set limits and the boundary lines that cultivate the calm and quiet soul.

Heavenly Father, Almighty God… You are my desire in the midst of all the craziness surrounding Christmas. Cradle my soul like a weaned child, so I can experience and enjoy the embrace of my Father. As I tackle the traffic, run my errands, and finish these last few days of work, soothe the ache of being rushed when I’d rather be still with you.

When the demands increase and the noise gets louder, may a collision with Christ in your soul change the world instead of the world altering you.

If you are struggling with the stress of this Christmas season, I pray you discover profound peace and the calm that quiets your spirit. May God spark a fire of unshakable joy in the small spaces salvaged for your stretched soul. May the Lord infuse clarity and sanity in this place. May He nurture the heart in you that is steadfast and sold out for His people. May your eyes stay open and your mind looking for ways to engage those hurting around you.

May we all be reminded often this holiday season to remain committed to connecting others with Jesus. May you live from a genuine, and authentic spirit, devoted to the design God dreamed of in you.