Parents, We need שָׁלוֹם, Shalom. When we started having kids, they just kept coming… 4 in 4 years (1995, 1996, 1998, 1999)… I didn’t know that was possible… our parents kept asking us if “we knew what was causing this.” Along with the many blessings of 4 preschoolers in one home, came the not so much blessing of no sleep. From 1995 through 2005, I did not sleep through the night without being awakened by one of my 4 little blessings. There was lots of rocking in the glider, warm bottles, changing diapers, and just plain scared of the dark. If they all slept through the night, it was a rare occurrence that was celebrated with a happy dance in the morning. The mornings involved a lot of coffee to give us enough energy for the day. The good news was that my kids were very resourceful. Once, when Anita and I and my mother-in-law were so exhausted from a newborn up all night, and we were not physically able get out of bed, my son who was 3 got a chair, climbed in the pantry for cereal, cabinets for bowls, silver drawer for spoons, and the refrigerator for milk for himself and his 2 year old sister. We arrived in the kitchen to their happy laughter as they finished their bowls of cereal.
Did I mention, my brain doesn’t work well on too little sleep? When something happened to upset the applecart, like a child got sick, or an incident happened at the church, I didn’t have many emotional or physical resources to set it back up, so the upset continued and unfortunately everyone around me knew it. I had lost sight of His Shalom. There were days of exhaustion with no end in sight. Anita, however, was the rock, she had some mother energy that I knew not of. I would go to work at the church all day and some nights and would come home to help, but she was on mom duty 24/7. When the kids were having trouble going to sleep, she used to keep teaching them King David’s evening prayer… “I will both lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.” Psalm 4:8 The word David uses for “peace” and here is the meaning packed, Hebrew word Shalom, which also carries the concepts of wholeness, completeness, soundness, health, safety and prosperity, and also carries with it the implication of permanence. It is the kind of peace that comes from God that is not upset by any earthly circumstances. The peace promised by we earthlings is fleeting at best, but God’s peace is so much more.
In the midst of all the turmoil going on in the world… the kinds of things that can keep us up at night, we need Shalom. The weeping prophet Jeremiah tells us to seek it and pray for it for our cities.(Jeremiah 29:7) When Jesus was about to be crucified, and resurrected and ascend to the Father, He promises all those who belong to Him: "Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don't let your heart be troubled or fearful. John 14:27 (CSBBible) His peace is permanent, complete, whole, healing, sound, blessing, and safe. If you are tempted to be fearful, remember Who you belong to. You are His and He promises us a peace that goes beyond understanding and circumstance. When you have Shalom you can bless those around you. You can continue to pray for the Shalom of your city…
Hang in there people! God is with us! I’m praying for you all!
