You know that moment when you hear or read something and it speaks to you? Like, it really speaks to you in a real un-corny, un-cliche, totally natural way? It moves you? I know that moment. I had one of those moments on the way home from shopping tonight. The song was Cat Steven’s Peace Train.

I haven’t been into Christmas this year. There are so many things to be worried about, to stress over and to have my heart broken by. There is darkness, pain, uncertainty and evil in our world. There is shallowness and pettiness. There is despair. Confusion and separation. From Middle Eastern conflict to the death of beautiful, innocent children, there is so much darkness in our world, in our country, in our hearts.

But on the edge of this darkness, there comes the peace train. Or, in truth, the Prince of Peace. Something good has begun, it began with the birth of Christ in little Bethlehem. Or really, it began with a promise in the garden, when darkness first entered the world. It was a promise made to man and a promise that took great orchestrating to bring to fruition. Just check out the lineage on the first page of Matthew. It’s a long line of sinners, screw up, sluts, and down right stupid heads. But God made it happen anyway. He worked through those sinners and got them to the right stable, in the right little town, right on time. Beautiful.

If our God has authority over the front page of the New Testament, surely we can trust His authority over the front page of the newspaper. We can trust that every need we have will be provided for. We can trust that if we need that tuition money He’ll give it to us. When we need that comfort and peace in times of sadness, and we will because we live in a horribly fallen world, we can trust that He will be a ever present comfort in times of trouble.

Now that is something to be truly excited about. To be comforted by. “Oh peace train take this country, come take me home again”. He will. He will take this country and the whole world as one. Every knee will bow and every tongue confess.

And He will take us home again. I am going home to be with Him. JOY TO THE WORLD.

a boy from school committed suicide last night. i didn’t know him, but you don’t have to know someone to be sad when they take their own life. did he know Jesus? had he ever even heard the gospel? what does his family have to cling to?

you should pray for his family and his friends at school. pray for comfort and peace. pray that someone somewhere would have to opportunity and courage to speak to them about that one place their wounds can be truly healed.

“he heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” psalm 147:3

“you number my wanderings; put my tears into Your bottle; are they not in Your book?” psalm 56:8