A period a the end of 2013

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2013         FROM 365 BIBLE VERSES A YEAR 2013 PAGE-A-DAY CALENDAR                        The LORD bless thee and keep thee:  the LORD make his face shine upon thee  and be gracious unto thee:             the LORD lift up his countenance upon thee                       and give thee peace.          Numbers 6 : 24-26

This is my "verse for the day".

I just tore it off the plastic stand a bit early.

That once chunky day-by-day calendar is empty, 
save a few pages of ads.

I have a brand new one in the drawer, still in its shiny box.  Filled with 365 pages of colorful pictures and words of great wisdom, God-inspired.

What does that mean, exactly? 

God inspired.

The argument against the power of the Holy Bible is that it was "written by men".

But, as scripture says, and I believe without a shadow of a doubt, all scripture is "God-breathed".

Yes, men through the ages have written down the original words.  Since then, these words have been grouped into sentences, paragraphs, chapters and books.  They have been translated and are still today being painstakingly translated into other languages.

But each word, before chisel taken to stone or reed to scroll or even pen to paper, was silently "spoken" by our Almighty God into the hearts and minds of the variety of authors.

Have you ever experienced this breath of God?

Have thoughts entered into your mind that you KNEW, just knew, weren't of your own imagination?

Have you ever sat down to write of some deep emotion or situation and the pen seemed to push forward of its own power?

I have.

Not that I, for a second, think I am anointed as the authors of the Bible, but I have sensed God's Presence through thoughts and words "breathed" 
into my mind.

Inspiration, we call new and creative ideas.

Divine inspiration takes this to much higher levels.

And so, back to this last glossy page, ragged on the top where it was torn away.

It is a blessing to each of us who believe.

As I read and reread it, a melody lingers in the back of my mind.  I am quite sure these words have been put to music and I sang them with a choir years ago.

How lovely!

Whoever edited this calendar chose an excellent reading for #365.

It serves as a period at the end of a lengthy, rather run-on sentence that was 2013.

Did this past year bring you joy...sadness?

Health...illness?

Clarity...confusion? 

Smiles...tears? 

We live our lives on a continuum of each,

sliding (or bumping) on those 3 little dots.

Back and forth. Tossed about at times.
Despite the ups and downs of living,
the promise within this blessing holds true.
God Himself spoke it to Moses, telling him to teach these exact words to Aaron and his sons so they could use them to bless the People of Israel.
I can close my eyes and imagine the warmth of oil or honey being poured over me as the priest held out his hand and spoke this over me.  A physical response to this blessing.
And I will know peace.
PEACE.
PEACE as we step into 2014.
P-E-A-C-E.
To you.


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TUESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2013 The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: the LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: the LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. ¶ NUMBERS 6 : 24–26