Swan of Peace

For the past few days, the Lord’s been inspiring me to doodle—again and again—this image of a swan.

I didn’t know why exactly, besides the obvious symbolism of peace and purity and pretty tranquility (gotta love my alliterative tendencies. And technically-not-grammatically-correct-but-oh-well sentence structures).

However, He has since redirected me back to a long-enjoyed verse …

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee” (Is 26:3, KJ21).

Or, as the Amplified Bible phrases it …

“You will keep in perfect and constant peace the one whose mind is steadfast [that is, committed and focused on You—in both inclination and character], Because he trusts and takes refuge in You [with hope and confident expectation]” (Is 26:3, AMP).

Friends, in our struggles, the Lord rarely reveals His great, overarching plans; we couldn’t fully fathom them even if He did (Is 55:9)! No, instead, He gives us a gift worth much more than mere comprehension: we get Christ.

The same One Who has authority over all, satisfies barren souls, pours out His Spirit, attends to the weary (hence why this sticker is shaped like a tear drop; He bottles all of our tears!), offers up wisdom and worry-free joy, and strengths us by the blood of His sacrifice … is with us (Matt 28:18, Luke 10:19, Is 40:29, Ps 56:8, Acts 1:8, Matt 1:23). In the celebrations and storms alike—whether our swan-y selves are floating on still waters or floundering in roaring waves—He is near. Which reminds me …

Did you know that the Old Testament regularly documents God working through whirlwinds?

Elijah is sent to Heaven (2 Kings 2:1-11).

He appears to Ezekiel (Ez 1:2-5).

The Tabernacle is enshrouded (Num 9:15).

Asaph recognizes His voice (Ps 77:18).

Nahum senses His Presence (Na 1:3).

And He declares that He will return “like a whirlwind” at the end of the age (Is 66:15).

But the New Testament goes one step further:

Jesus sleeps peacefully during storms (Matt 8:23-27).

He walks upon tumultuous waters and empowers us to do the same (Matt 14:22-33).

With Christ, we get a fully picture of the Lord’s overwhelming, all-powerful nature, because we can see that He’s not just present in challenging situations, but sovereign over them (Matt 28:18).  

He the why we can be at peace, regardless of the situations and circumstances surrounding us. When we fix our mind’s eye on Him, there is nothing that we cannot overcome because He has already overcome it (Is 26:3, John 16:33). We, simply, must let Him lead, ‘cause as it so happens, we’re not the only swans out there on the water.

As Jesus Himself states, He is like a momma bird and we are His cherished chicks (Luke 13:34). He will guide us into His perfect peace, Living Waters, abundant life.

We just have to follow Him.

Focus on His pure white, swan-y form before us.

And trust, regardless of where He leads us.

Because when His wings become our Refuge, we are always, eternally, safe (Ps 91:4).