“Peace like a River”

WHERE: Morrison, CO - go to the large parking lot across from Café Prague and head to the river

WHEN: Anytime, but the afternoons have a lazy peacefulness to them

BLESSED SPOT: The bench behind “The Meadowsweet Gifts and Wellness” shop in the blue building overlooking the river.

“Peace like a river”

I have three kids in their 20’s and we’ve loved going up to Morrison in the summer, walking through the charming shops and having coffee or a happy hour on an outside patio. With this whole C-19, we started walking along the river to get some fresh air and have a chance to connect. Although, last time we walked, my daughter’s boyfriend wore ‘sandals’ – not knowing this was a four mile power walk and not the leisurely stroll by the river he expected! Yep, he came away with some blisters — ooh sorry.

Over the years I’ve contemplated why God compared peace to a river. Living in Colorado all my life and hiking and camping I’ve seen a lot of rivers and this question always tumbles around in my mind whenever I’m next to one. Why ‘peace like a river’…. Why not a lake? They are quiet and still and seem to exemplify peace. Rivers can be so tumultuous… and yet… they can also be quietly drifting along. Nothing stops their downward course – they spill over the rocks, seep into the feet of the trees, twist and turn to find their clear pathway down…. and the water keeps coming and coming. That alone is staggering! It’s like there’s a magical source somewhere that never runs dry – somewhere ‘up there’.

I am so drawn to rivers – I seek out hikes and walks that are along rivers – we chose camping spots that were near rivers over the years. I love to listen and listen to the music of a river, watch transfixed by the constancy, movement and freshness of it and many rivers have lulled my family to sleep while camping (in our trailer- sorry no tents for us.) There’s an undeniable sense of ‘peace’ isn’t there?

PEACE..... it feels like toilet paper right now … we can’t seem to find it or enough of it right? :)

God’s word is bursting with purpose in every word he chose, every comparison he makes – it’s never frivolous or without a deep deep reason for it. Looking deeper into the ‘why’ behind his words is like peeking into a treasure box or coming over the crest of a hill with a breathtaking view you’d never seen before! When you read his words - pause to ponder.

Peace like a river because:

…it never seems to run dry – day after day, year after year it keeps going
John 14:27 - Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid
…the true source of a river is confounding and beyond our understanding
Philippians 4:6-7 - Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
…the river flows over and winds around the obstacles in its way - it doesn’t clear the path of them. Some of those obstacles turn into the smooth river rocks we find. (Remember skipping rocks as a kid?) In the midst of our obstacles peace can surround us and fill in all the small spaces and smooth the rough edges of our troubles.
John 16:33 - I have told you these things, that in me you may have peace. In the world you have oppression, but cheer up! I have overcome the world
…rivers have a clear path- a secret map to the sea, in the midst of seeming random direction. There’s great peace in the assurance there’s a plan in place, no matter how it looks right now.
Ecclesiastes 1:7 - All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where streams flow, there they flow again.
Jeremiah 29:11 - For I know the plans I have for you…

...a river is life-giving – there is an abundance of life at the feet of a river. Trees that stretch their arms to the sky and the plethora of wild creatures that are drawn TO the water and thrive IN the water.
Psalm 1:3 – That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither – whatever they do prospers
…A river is life-saving – lost in the wilderness? find a river. Build a civilization? find a river. The epicenter of the world’s medicines? we know that river - the Amazon
Isaiah 43:19- Behold, I will do something new, now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert.

This spot has been prayed for

I have prayed that the sound of river will seep into your soul and remind you of the peace only God can provide
I have prayed that you will take time to pause when you read God’s word and ask him ‘why’ – why that word, that phrase
I pray that the window to your soul will open to a panoramic view of peace that you have never seen before - take time to look closely at the details
I pray that this week you will experience an eternal instant of ‘a peace that surpasses understanding’

Let the Rivers Clap their Hands, let the mountains sing! - Psalm 98:8

I leave you with some thoughts to tumble around in your mind

Who are the rivers clapping for? Why do you think God would say that? Listen for the clapping.
Many stories and miracles in the Bible involved rivers -what’s the significance?
There’s a ‘River of Life’ in heaven (Rev. 22:1) - why would God place a river there?
Take a video of the river and play it back when you are anxious or worried in this C-19 world right now – let the peaceful murmuring of the river remind you there’s no end to the peace of God
Leave a comment, a prayer or request below

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