Nancy Reece

Leading from a reservoir of calm

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God Is with Me

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Six months into starting my own business, the dread of having to sell my services, the lack of consistent income, and a feeling of incompetence had me focusing on my fears. I needed a place where I could pour out my fears to the Lord and listen. God seemed far away.

Retreating to Nature

Penuel Ridge Retreat Center provided that place to retreat to nature, providing time and space to stop the swirling in my mind. God had often spoken to me through his creation and I was trusting He would again. I began slowing down and watching birds feed. I didn’t realize how tired I was until I woke a couple of hours later from a deep nap. After spending the evening reading, reflecting, and journaling, the swirling fears in my mind were slowly being replaced by tiny moments of peace. If He provides for the birds, how much more would He for me? God was near.

Listening to God

The next morning, ready to listen to God, I explored the High Ridge Trail. The path was covered in brown leaves, broken twigs and branches, the aftermath of a cold winter. The trail was steep, and my lungs  strained. Halfway up, a small bench appeared. As I rested, I noticed a sea of spring beauties, tiny flowers of pink, shining amidst the dead leaves of winter. They reminded me that He calls us to rest and to wait patiently for Him. I journaled about how starting a business is full of strenuous climbs and often feels like a cold winter. Just as I couldn’t climb that mountain without rest, Jesus was reminding me I can’t fight my daily battles without times of quiet and rest each day.

At the top of the ridge, a yellow butterfly rested on the path.  As I approached, it flew on ahead and landed.  Over and over, it led me down the path, as if the Holy Spirit was leading me. When it alighted, I would sit and listen.  I journaled that God would be with me as my business progressed. He would make known to me the path of life. Just as there was joy in following the butterfly, in His presence is abundant joy.   

Choosing Quiet

Descending down the other side of the ridge, I saw a waterfall – living water, refreshing my soul. After hiking, I spent several hours in quiet, realizing my fears had been washed away as I talked with Jesus, my living water. God is with me. He always is.  

You will show me the path that leads to life; your presence fills me with joy and brings me pleasure forever.  Psalm 16:11

Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for him. Psalm 37:7

“If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.” John 4:10

The Red Thread

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When I left the corporate world a few years ago, I made a choice to get away and seek a time of rest, renewal, and preparation for a new season of service. I decided to go through ten years of prayer journals to discover red threads of wisdom the Lord was teaching me. While some red threads were one to two years in length, there was only one ten-year long thread.  

For that entire period, and quite frankly years before, God was working in my heart to teach me about slowing down and spending time with Him. But slowing down and spending time with Him and others competed with my tightly scheduled calendar.  

Not long after discovering this red thread, I spent two and a half hours over lunch with a friend. It wasn’t planned that way, but there wasn’t anything on my calendar I had to do. We caught up, shared insights, and encouraged each other. More time helped us listen better, ask thoughtful questions, and speak into each other’s lives in a fresh way. It was the first time in my life I’d ever made that kind of time for someone over lunch. As I was driving home, I realized the many times I had cut short a conversation that was important in order to make the next meeting. I began allowing much more time for meetings, conversations, and lunch, providing space and time for God to work. And the red thread of relationship has become more important than my calendar and to-do list.  

‘Spend time with me, slow down, and experience rest and relationship. Find peace for your soul. I will give you My heart that values people over success, self, and stuff. My heart that listens, loves and encourages. My heart that deeply cares about people.’

Psalm 62:1  My soul finds rest in God alone. 

1 Thessalonians 5:11 So speak encouraging words to one another. Build up hope so you’ll all be together in this, no one left out, no one left behind. (MSG) 

Choosing True Rest

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In January 2012, I returned from a 30-day sabbatical and 1400 emails had accumulated on my computer. I deleted them all with the touch of a key – never reading one of them. It felt great!  

2011 had been a tough year. The year was marked by the death of my father and my mother’s ravaging of dementia. And the difficulties continued.  While working with a client, I unexpectedly found myself in the path of Hurricane Sandy. In the midst of the storm, I heard the Lord tell me to take a time of rest. I realized that the past year had been a lot like a hurricane. His gentle love and wisdom were guiding me.  

After making the decision to take a break, I resolved not to read my email while on sabbatical and to delete it unread when I returned. It was important to communicate clearly to my clients that I would not be answering email or phone, nor would I be reading any email that came in while I was gone. In the past, I would review email while on vacation because I didn’t want to be overwhelmed by it later. I knew my myself well enough to know that if I didn’t make a commitment to deleting those emails unread, I would cheat!  And cheating would have diminished the true rest I was seeking. 

I returned from a truly restful sabbatical. The response from my clients was overwhelmingly positive when they realized I had actually deleted the unread emails. God gave me the courage and determination to choose real rest and it was a catalyst for others to do so as well. His gentle love and wisdom will give you the same courage and determination to choose true rest.

Job 11:18  Having hope will give you courage. You will be protected and will rest in safety.

Psalm 23:2-3 He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength.

Choosing Calm in a Season of Sheltering

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I went for a walk yesterday and was singing Raise A Hallelujah at the top of my lungs.  The words of the song – I raise a hallelujah, with everything inside of me; I raise a hallelujah, I will watch the darkness flee, I raise a hallelujah, fear you lost your hold on me – brought peace and calm in the middle of this season of fear and panic in our world.  

Choosing Praise over Fear

About two weeks ago, I wasn’t exactly experiencing calm.  On Thursday March 12th, when we were aware of the virus and a couple of days before things went crazy at the grocery stores, I came home and told my husband I had a spirit of heaviness.  His response surprised me:  “Good, the Lord has a word for you”.  I knew there was a verse about the spirit of heaviness in the Bible and found Isaiah 61:3. God tells us to exchange the spirit of heaviness for the garment of praise.  The Lord did indeed have a word for me and I had a choice to make.

Choosing Time with Jesus

I went to my “Battle Songs” playlist – Surrounded, Waymaker, God of Angel Armies, Victor’s Crown, and Raise a Hallelujah (just a few) – and experienced a time of praise and worship that displaced that spirit of heaviness.  As I chose praise, worship, prayer, and joy, I experienced the sheltering garment of praise.  I know I also have to choose time with Jesus in solitude, stillness and silence.  Solitude is one of the ways we abide in Him; his promise is to produce fruit when we abide.  That fruit is peace, patience, faithfulness and a spirit of power, love and self-discipline…Galatians 5:22-23 & 2 Tim 1:7.  

Choosing Connection

The Lord also had a second word for me on that day as well.  When God created man, He said it was not good for man to be alone.(Gen 2:18) Yet we find ourselves sheltering in place and the enemy of our souls will use this to produce loneliness, isolation, fear, and despair.  It is important for us to reach out to one another and stay connected – via phone calls, video calls, facetime – any way we can see and encourage one another.  Staying home doesn’t mean we have to disconnect.

Choosing Joy

In this season of sheltering at home, I don’t have any excuses to not spend time at Jesus’ feet.  As you walk out your days in these times of sacrifice and struggle, here are some choices you can make to help yourself and others – and to experience calm and peace.  

  • Spend time each day in quiet with Jesus.  List things you are grateful for in this time of trial.  Praise him for those things. 
  • Limit your exposure to 24/7 news. 
  • Really stay home.  It will make a difference.
  • Listen for the Spirit’s wisdom and ask him who you should connect with today. Connect purposefully.  Allow time for an in-depth conversation should it emerge.
  • Create and listen to a “battle songs” playlist that will encourage you and sooth your soul.
  • Claim God’s promises.  2 Peter 1:4
  • Choose joy – 1 Peter 1:6
  • Above all, pray for repentance, realignment and restoration for our broken world. 

Discovering the Treasure of Rest

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the treasure of rest

I frequently talk with people about rest and what that looks like in their life, In our conversation,   they get a far off look in their eyes, and I sense a yearning to slow down and be quiet. In our 24/7 world, we so often ignore the signs and symptoms of our need for rest.  If we don’t discover the treasure of rest, our lives end up overwhelmed, overworked, burned out, frustrated and discouraged. 

Defining Rest

You probably have several things you consider to be rest, but the core of all rest is solitude, stillness, and silence.  Being alone with God in a place that has no distractions, withdrawing from the storm of life to a place where you cease striving, or refraining from creating noise or from speaking, so that you can hear the whisper of God are all opportunities for rest. Rest can also be a great nap! 

Recognizing the Value of Rest

Jesus told the story of the man who was willing to trade all he had for a pearl of great value.(Mat 13:44-45) The allegory taught that the Kingdom of God was a treasure, but that few people would recognize its value and live accordingly.  Discovering the treasure wasn’t about what he had to give up, it was about what he gained. Have you discovered the treasure of rest?  What are you trading rest for?  

  • If I just keep going, I can make more money, get more done, etc. 
  • If I just do one more thing, then I can rest…
  • If I just had more time, then ….

The man who purchased the pearl knew he gained far more than he gave up.  What do you gain when you rest?   God does things in the heart of a leader that only get done in quiet.  If you fail to rest, you miss out on all that God has for you. It’s in solitude , silence, and stillness that we hear some of God’s most important messages for us and we learn just how much He loves us.    What have you gained from a recent time of rest? Here are just a few of the things you might gain:

  • communion with God (Rev 3:20)
  • love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal 5:22)
  • your weakness becomes a platform for His strength (2 Cor 12:9)
  • freedom (2 Cor 3:17)
  • calm in the midst of the storms of life(Mat 8:26), 
  • joy that overflows (Psalm 84:12) and 
  • your soul is restored (Psalms 23:3).

Practical Steps to Help You Choose Rest

  1. Focus on what you gain when you rest.  Make a list. (My soul finds rest in God alone… Psalm 62:1 (NIV 1984). Then compare the blessings you’ve listed to the overwhelmed world you currently experience.  
  2. Choose what’s most important – Answer this question, “What’s most important in my life for me and my family?”  Make a list of the things you spend time doing.  Do they align with what’s most important in your life? Do they honor God?  Knowing what’s most important helps you know when to say yes.
  3. Count the cost of saying yes.  When you say yes to something someone asks you to do, you are actually saying no to something else.  When asked, thank them for asking and then let them know you will pray about it. This gives you time to lay the request before our Lord and to carefully consider what you should do. It will also keep you from saying yes under the pressure of the moment. Ask yourself how you’ll feel when the time comes to do what they’ve asked.  Will you look forward to it, or will you regret having said yes?  What will you not be able to do because you said yes? 

Rest is a treasure waiting to be discovered. God rested on the seventh day. When do you rest?