No storm can shake your inmost calm

Late Friday night, I went to get milk at Price Chopper. The store was quite the sight. It reminded me of back during covid. The parking lot and the aisles were packed. The people I saw were visibly nervous. The store seemed to radiate anxiety. For many people, this has been a week of anxiety. Lots of people have been very anxious about international and domestic politics this last week. Close to home, people are anxious about the weather soon to descend on us. People are nervous and anxious for many different reasons.

Life gives us moments like this, and it is times like this that our faith is precisely for. Jesus told us to let go of our anxiety. He told us that by worrying we could not add a single hair to our heads. We worry over many things much as the people of ancient Israel worried over their next meal. Immediately after feeding the 5,000, Jesus tells the people they should not worry about bread, but instead focus on the bread of life, him. When we can truly focus on Jesus, when we can make him the center of our lives, we can detach from so much of the anxiety of the world around us. Like the line in one of my favorite hymns:

“No storm can shake my inmost calm

while to that Rock I’m clinging.

Since Love is lord of heav’n and earth,

how can I keep from singing?”

Take care of yourself during the bad weather, but do not worry. Cling to the rock that is Jesus Christ, and no storm will shake your inmost calm. If you find yourself anxious amid life’s storms both literal and figurative, focus on Jesus. He will not disappoint, and he will see you through.

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Be safe and stay warm!