God’s Rest

Rainy Days

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by. Psalm 57:1 ESV

Some days the hawk sits silently
While the thunder crashes round
And swallows swoop into the barn
Where the chickens huddle down

Tall cranes stand in the rushes
In her house the blue bird sleeps
While the chickadees are twittering
In the thickets dark and deep

But eagles fly up to their nests
When they hear their children cry
And shelter them under their wings
While the rain is passing by

Then why should you and I do less
Who know our place to fly
Up to God our refuge strong
While the storm is passing by

Rainy Days by Peter Caligiuri
Copyright © 2022
All rights reserved




My Poem Soon Was Crushed

/ pastorpete51 / Leave a comment 
My poem soon was crushed
Under the tramp of hurried feet
That left chaos in my calendar
And trouble on my street

But like the little lizard
Who hides among the leaves
Finding there a place to rest
And safely rides the breeze

I stopped and I remembered
That God commands the dawn
When I may wake to hope again
His work to carry on

Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, 
and you will find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:29 ESV

Finding Rest Along the Path

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment

So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. Hebrews 4:9-11 ESV

After traveling twelve hundred miles for a family reunion and then staying a week or so with old friends, on our final day we stopped to visit Steve and his wife Diane. Our kids grew up together with theirs, and though we had not seen each other in a long time it felt like yesterday that they had been going to youth group together. Knowing that Steve had been battling prostate cancer and now that he has elected home hospice care, we had tried twice before to go, but between various nurse’s visits and his not feeling well, it hadn’t worked out till our final day. We really didn’t know what to expect, but when we stepped into Steve’s room we experienced something totally unexpected: the peace of God.

After a moment of greeting and finding places to sit down, Steve greeted us with a smile. Of course we asked the silliest of questions to ask a dying person, “How are you Steve?”

But Steve didn’t seem at all uncomfortable to answer and he knew we meant more than just a report on how he was feeling. So he smiled and said, saying, “I’m okay. I have peace. I know I am going to be with Jesus, but I am sad for my family. Please pray for them, especially Diane.”

Feeling that genuine peace emanating from Steve, we began reminiscing, sharing photos of our grandkids and exchanging stories. Of all the dozens of people with whom we had spent time with on our trip, no one seemed more at rest than Steve. He wasn’t worried about the future, the bills or what he could accomplish. He just knew, without need of explanation, that everything was in the hands of God. Half an hour later, as we stepped out of the doorway, got into our car, and drove away, we left Steve behind, but the reality of his trust in Jesus journeyed home with us. Now in my quiet times, when I am alone, Steve’s smile, and absolute certainty of God’s grace, challenge me to also rest in Christ along the narrow path that He has called for me to walk.