‘It’s like a 3-ring circus,’ my dad used to say, describing
anything that was a bit chaotic. I wonder if 3-ring circuses even exist
anymore? Mmm, in my memory I can smell the hay and the animals, sense the
steamy heat in the Big Top Tent, and thrill to the energetic music as the
Ringmaster ran into the centre and introduced the acts taking place in the
three rings, all at the same time. Clowns, trapeze artists, animal acts. As a
child, it was just amazing. (I hasten to say that I don’t agree with animals in
circuses, but the memory lingers on...)
I sat down to be with God this morning, and my mind was like
a 3-ring circus. I was reading the Bible when I realised that though my
conscious mind was recognising the words in their coherent order, below that
level I was thinking about my mother’s insurance and my nagging tooth ... it
was a 3-ring circus, without the razzmatazz, just the chaos.
Jesus spoke peace into the storm at sea, and the wind and
waves ceased and peace was restored. I reminded myself of a verse from a recent
reading, Psalm 34:4: I sought the Lord and he answered me, he delivered me from
all my fears, and I breathed deeply. My peace, Jesus claimed, is different from
any other peace. You’ll never understand it, but it is real and it is powerful
and it calmed my mind and helped me regain focus on him.
Shalom.
