On Sunday, my husband and I traveled 2 ½ hours to visit a quaint country church we know and love.

The pastor there is one of the most peaceful people I know. As I’ve gotten to know him over the years, I’ve realized the deep and abiding calmness he carries comes from the personal relationship he keeps with the Lord Jesus Christ.

When Jesus told us He was leaving us with peace—His peace—what did He mean? 

Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.  (John 14:27)

In John 14, while still on the earth, Jesus was speaking of a day coming when He would be gone physically, yet would be with us by way of the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The peace Jesus spoke of is not independent of His presence. It is found in His presence—for now He is in us!

Yet we each must choose whether or not to avail ourselves to His peace.

During the Israelites’ “wilderness wandering” (a 40-year plight due to their disobedience and unbelief), God promised them He would “rain down food from heaven.”

But He didn’t drop it all at once.

To trust and experience God’s provision, the Israelites found they had to gather the manna (food) each morning. If they tried to save it for the next day, it wouldn’t last.

Experiencing God’s peace likewise requires daily faithful trust.

The peace I held in my heart yesterday does me no good for today! I must choose to access His peace each day through my relationship with Him.

We are made to live in God’s presence.

Living in His presence, we live in His peace.

Jesus warns us that in this life we will have troubles, but in Him, the Overcomer, we find peace.

I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.   (John 16:33)

When the storms of life come, where will you be found?

Caught up in the tempest without Him? Or resting calmly in the eye of the storm, where His presence—and His peace—is found?

Copyright © 2018 Cheryl Elton

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Every December the street behind our local high school becomes a tourist attraction for young and old. Cars wait in line turning onto the street, people stop to take photos, and the oohs and aahs of delight can be heard—all in front of one house—the one known far and wide for its incredible display of Christmas lights.

There’s one in every town, isn’t there?

During the time of Christ’s birth there were no laser lights and inflatable reindeer, but rather, the most spectacular light display ever—“the glory of the Lord”—that shone round about a few modest shepherds who received word from an angel of the birth of the Messiah.                      

The shepherds quickly went to Bethlehem to see if what they heard was true. After finding Mary, Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger, they told everyone what had happened, returning to their flocks glorifying and praising God for all they had seen and heard.

Light is a prevalent theme throughout Scripture. In Genesis God spoke “let there be light.” First John 1:5 says:

“This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.”

Jesus Christ, the Son of God, declared that He was the light of the world:

“I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” (John 8:12) 

Where light shines, darkness flees!

Where the light of Christ prevails, the dark places in our lives disappear.

As Christians, we’re called to be light-bearers, proclaiming the message of Christ and displaying the light of Christ to a world encased in darkness.

“ . . . that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.” (Philippians 2:15-16) 

We are God’s Christmas lights! 

We were created to bring our heavenly Father glory. As people see Christ living in us, as the shepherds who couldn’t help but share what they had seen and heard, others will also glorify our heavenly Father!

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)

May our light shine brightly, not only this Christmas season, but also every day of the new year!

Copyright © 2016 Cheryl Elton

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With holiday time in full swing, it’s interesting to consider the traditions associated with Christmas. What do decorated trees and wreaths, yule logs, Santa Claus, Christmas cookies, and jingle bells have to do with the birth of Christ?

Answer: Nothing!

What does December 25 have to do with the birth of Jesus Christ?

Answer: Nothing!

Research reveals that Jesus was actually born in the fall of the year. Almost all the customs of Christmas stem from ancient pagan festivals honoring other gods, and didn’t begin until some 300 years after Christ’s death.

And although the Bible records details about the birth of Jesus Christ, there is no record of anyone celebrating it.

So does God really care about all the hoopla surrounding Christmas?

Probably not.

Rather, He cares about our hearts.

Do we become so immersed with activity that we forget about Him? That in our busyness we lose the wonderful peace of His presence?

As we glean the good of the season—helping those in need, talking with others about Jesus at a time of year when needs surface, exchanging gifts with loved ones, appreciating family—may we remember God’s most lavish gift to the world—His Son Jesus Christ.

Please enjoy the following excerpts from Ephesians 1*, reminding us of how special we are to God; the greatest gift, His Son; our wonderful calling to exemplify Christ to the world, and the joy we experience in His presence.

How blessed is God! And what a blessing he is! He’s the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ, and takes us to the high places of blessing in him. Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. He wanted us to enter into the celebration of his lavish gift-giving by the hand of his beloved Son. 

Because of the sacrifice of the Messiah, his blood poured out on the altar of the Cross, we’re a free people—free of penalties and punishments chalked up by all our misdeeds. And not just barely free, either. Abundantly free! He thought of everything, provided for everything we could possibly need, letting us in on the plans he took such delight in making. He set it all out before us in Christ, a long-range plan in which everything would be brought together and summed up in him, everything in deepest heaven, everything on planet earth. 

It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone. 

It’s in Christ that you, once you heard the truth and believed it (this Message of your salvation), found yourselves home free—signed, sealed, and delivered by the Holy Spirit. This signet from God is the first installment on what’s coming, a reminder that we’ll get everything God has planned for us, a praising and glorious life. 

That’s why . . . I ask—ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory—to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength! 

All this energy issues from Christ: God raised him from death and set him on a throne in deep heaven, in charge of running the universe . . . no name and no power exempt from his rule. And not just for the time being, but forever. He is in charge of it all, has the final word on everything. At the center of all this, Christ rules the church. The church is Christ’s body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence.

* From chapter one of Ephesians, Eugene Peterson, The Message (MSG)

Copyright © 2015 Cheryl Elton

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Do you remember the joy in your heart when you first realized—you knew that you knew—that you had eternal life?

I do.

My testimony is nothing dramatic. I have no great story of deliverance from a life of addiction, loss, or sorrow. Yet somehow God knew I would seek Him and believe. That I, at age fourteen, would have the humility of heart to realize that I needed something or someone greater than myself to make it through this life.  

I was a freshman in high school when one of my close friends shared a Bible verse with me that changed my life. It says “whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you shall have them.” (Mark 11:24)

I was shocked at the simplicity of it!  Could prayer really be that simple?

This started me on a quest to learn more about this God of the Bible. A journey that has now taken me through several decades and the valleys and peaks—the heartaches, disappointments and struggles, as well as the joys and triumphs—of life.

I still recall that moment of unspeakable joy and boundless freedom I felt in my heart when I realized death was no longer something to be feared. That when I confessed Jesus Christ as my Lord, and believed that God rose Him from the dead, I was brought into the presence of an Almighty God, a loving Heavenly Father who would never leave me.

The gift of Holy Spirit I received at the time of my new birth in Christ is the assurance of His presence for all eternity.

His presence is my present.

Yours too.

Our gift is not meant to sit upon a shelf and collect dust. It’s there to be carried with us and used, like a well-worn teddy bear goes with a child.

I’m learning to seek His presence not only before I shut my eyes at night—but throughout the day, all the time.

Jesus longs to communicate with you right now.

Are you using your gift? Are you enjoying His presence today?

Copyright © 2014 Cheryl Elton

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