Living out in the country has its benefits. I was looking out the window one day when a fluttering appeared in front of me and this yellow bird perched on the bush outside the window. It sat there for a few minutes bestowing a peaceful song on me as it looked right at me as if to make sure I was listening.
“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart.
And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give.
So don’t be troubled or afraid.”
John 14:27, NLT
There are gifts we would like to give to people but might not be fitting or they might be beyond our means to purchase. But there are gifts of ourselves that always fit and can freely be given.
“So Jesus said to them again,
“Peace be to you;
just as the Father has sent Me,
I also send you.”
John 20:21
Bestowment of peace is that moment when you feel His peace descending in your spirit. Bestowment is a word that we don’t use very much today. It means the act of conferring an honor or presenting a gift. As it is used in this sentence then, peace is conferred or presented as an honor or a gift. It’s not something we earn.
Picture yourself lying on a gurney awaiting surgery. You just want to get it over with. Then the anesthesiologist administers the chemicals that will put you into la-la land. Ah! The physical peace descends as your body rests. You feel it coming and then you’re out of it and relaxed. God’s peace is somewhat like that in that it descends upon us and we can feel the difference in our spirit, but it doesn’t knock us out like anesthesia does. It calms us and gives us a sense of security in Him, feeling His presence close to us. It’s like a spiritual shot in the arm. It gives us that boost of spirit that we need.
Bestowment comes in many forms. The photo I used above was taken close to 20+ years ago and yet I remember the scene and feel its peacefulness as if it was a moment ago. Pictures are so important to help us remember moments of life that might escape from our memories. I love to sit down and look through the photos on my computer once in a while. Over my lifetime, I had black-and-white photos, then color slides, Polaroid photos, and color photos, but they cost money to develop, took up space, and no one ever wanted to look at them. So when digital cameras came along, I was happy to transfer most of my photos to the computer which saved money and space. No one still ever asks to look at them with me, but at least I have the memories available for me to enjoy.
Cards and letters are also memorable bestowments—yes, the old-fashioned paper and ink handwritten kind! While I haven’t saved any letters, I do save a few cards for a time. If I kept every card I ever received, I could be accused of being a hoarder. Pulling open my desk drawer and seeing some of the recent cards from family and friends bestows a smile and sense of peace on me as I enjoy the pictures and read the kind words in the cards.
Along with the bestowment of peace comes bestowment of God’s blessings on our lives. When we follow Him, He blesses us with good things as well as His peace. Take time today to take a chair outside or sit on a park bench and not only soak in the sun’s rays but also soak in the blessings God has given you. Not sure what they are? Think about what God has done for you lately and then thank Him for it. We don’t think enough about what God does for us…at least I don’t. So this year in my journal, at the end of each day’s entry, I include “Today God…” and then think about my day and what God has done in my life today. It makes me stop and think but also makes me aware of the little things that God bestows on me every day.