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My life has been disrupted- my schedule tossed to the four winds and my appointments canceled or rescheduled. The mandatory sheltering has thrown me off balance and, on top of that, there is an invisible threat, a virus that is stalking and can attack any one of us at any time. And, on top of that, my cherished fellowship with my brothers and sisters has been severely blunted.

One morning I knelt before the Lord and all was grey and nebulous in my mind. In the realm of the Spirit, I lost focus of what I am supposed to do. Then I sensed the Lord speaking to me.

God reminded me that my job is to do the work of the priesthood mentioned in 1 Peter 2, verses 5 and 9.

5 You yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house,

to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation,

a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who

called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

He also reminded me through Psalm 100 of who I am (God’s little ewe lamb) and whose I am (the Lord’s Himself, the Great Shepherd of the sheep)(verse 3).

Psalm 100_His Steadfast Love Endures Forever - A Psalm for giving thanks

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!

Serve the Lord with gladness!

Come into his presence with singing!

Know that the Lord, he is God!

It is he who made us, and we are his;

we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving,

and his courts with praise!

Give thanks to him; bless his name!

For the Lord is good;

his steadfast love endures forever,

and his faithfulness to all generations.

Then, in that short psalm (only five verses), if you look at the verbs, they make it quite clear what we are to do. It is no mystery how we are to conduct ourselves. The verses have action words like Shout, Serve, Come, Know, Enter, and Give. You can write down each of these imperatives (commands) as you find them in the verses and then look at the amplifying instructions with each one. For example: Come into His presence (where) with singing (how)! Each time you see that little word “with,” take note as that is the “how” for the action mentioned. Hint: there are two in verse 2 and two in verse 4.

In times like these, the Word of God is an anchor for what we are to think and do and say.

Father in Heaven,

You created me for Your purposes and Your redemptive plan.

You said I am sanctified for a holy purpose: to show forth Your praises,

and to live as a person of light, not darkness.

The anchor of Your Word and Your love will give me strength and steadiness

to continue serving You in priestly work: Praying faithfully for others and

offering You my thanks and my praise.

In the shadow of Your wings, I will rejoice.

Amen.

Shelter in Peace,

Lori Sloan