A vanilla caramel latte, please!

Aol has an ad with a housewife sitting in her living room. Her kids and dog are going wild in the room behind her and her house is in utter chaos. She sits there smiling, unaffected by her problems. It's because she's sipping on a vanilla caramel latte! Reality is that a latte might help her feel better for a few minutes, but what kind of real help does a latte give? She has a perpetual mess on her hands! Our newspaper featured an article today on the "12 Steps to De-stressing". Some of these steps might be helpful, but Jesus, Who is the Prince of Peace (Is. 9:6) exhorts us to learn from Him (Matt 11:28-30). He calls all who are weary and over burdened to come to Him. He promises to give rest (He will ease, relieve, and refresh your soul-Greek trans.). He said to take His burden (or yoke) upon ourselves. His yoke is light and easy, wholesome, useful, good, not harsh, sharp or pressing. It is also balanced, comfortable, gracious, and pleasant (Hebrew trans). These are characteristics of what I call the "Sabbath Rest Principle". It's the entrance into the abundant life Jesus came to give us (Jn 10:10). Tell me, how can I get this yoke? I have to make every effort, every day to enter into and live in a supernatural place of tranquility called the "Sabbath Rest" (Please read Heb. 3&4 Amp). Actually, this is how the true people of God are to live (Heb. 4:9). In the sabbath rest, we acquire confidence (or faith) and subsequently an inner peace that God is working everything out and He will take care of us. It's NOT sticking your head in the sand like an ostrich or denying reality. It is not just surviving either. It's listening to and obeying God's voice, and actually enjoying our life's journey. In Heb. 3:15-18 we see that God reveals why some of the Israelites did not enter into His rest. These were rebellious and self-reliant individuals. They were ungrateful, complainers, and murmurers. (God forgive me for my petty murmuring!) They subsequently died in the wilderness (Heb.4:11). It also says in Heb. 3:17 that those who were resistant in the wilderness actually irritated (or grieved and saddened) Him! I definitely don't want to irritate the Lord! Only those who enter that rest get to their "Promised Land"( a truly God-blessed life). How many of us Christians live in His peace and experience the blessed life Christ has promised? We may need to get with God to re-evealuate and prioritize our life. Moses was considered the meekest man ever to live (Exodus 33:14-15). Meekness is defined as humble compliance and flexibility. The key indication that Moses was humble and compliant is in Ex. 33:15. Moses told the Lord that if His presence didn't go with him, he didn't want to go on from there in search of the promised land. How many of us go on our own analysis of a situation in search of the "promises", whether we are confident that God is with us or not? Numbers 33:13-18 reveals Moses' heart. His desire was to know God deeply and to know God's ways. He desired to see God's glory above all else! I want this to be my passion: to know God deeply and to know His ways above all else. I long to see His glory. God told Moses in vs. 17 that he had found favor with Him, loving-kindness, and mercy. God also told him that He knew him personally and by name. What an honor! What joy and delight! Nothing in this world compares to knowing Him! Knowing Christ is salvation. One might call Him Lord, but if that one does not KNOW HIM, he will not be saved (Matt. 7:21-23). The A.Paul states in Phil 3:10-14 that it was his determined purpose to know Christ, to be continually transformed to His likeness by death to self, pressing on and forgetting what lies behind, and by making every effort to fulfill God's will. I pray that everyday we all will take up the cross of laying down our own will for the will of God in our lives. The crucified life is the blessed life!