My Holy Place

This past week I spent some time at my Holy Place. It is the place where I was bullied as a child, yet I always felt safe there. It's the place where I had my first smoke, my first drink and experimented with other "things" for the first time, yet I always felt safe there. It's the place where I realized, I can try to run from God, but I can never hide. It's the place where I finally decided to stop running and turned around to come face to face with my God. I realized that He has always protected me, always been there to ensure that although I came close to the edge at times, I did not fall off. I realized there was no reason to run, that as stubborn and independant as I am, He is there to work with me, not to push me into things I do not want to do or am not ready for. On the contrary, it was in this Holy Place that I came to terms with God wanting me to use my skills and life experiences to work with Him.

That place is Jackson's Point. As soon as I stepped out of the car on Monday, I felt the weight of the world slide off my shoulders, and again I had that sense of safety and peace that I have so accutely felt there for as long as I can remember. I was there for 3 days for a conference. It was a very intense 3 days, as the subject material was disturbing (Human Trafficking for the Purposes of Sexual Exploitation). Yet in that Holy Place, God worked as we discussed the strategies the Salvation Army is taking Internationally, Nationally, and within each of our Divisions.

I went for a walk during lunch time on the second day to clear my head a little. It was wonderful, as God revealed his mighty power, yet his loving gentleness at the same time. I miss that Holy Place. I have yet to find someplace here in Alberta where I can feel that same sense of peace, safety and holiness. But God knows all our needs. There is such a place here for me, and He will help me find it.

Evidence of God's power. The rockbed docks have been crushed like toothpicks by the winter ice on the lake.

Evidence of God's loving gentleness. The growth of new plants at the edge of the recently thawed creek.

A spot at my Holy Place