Is sleep ever elusive for you?

Is it tonight?

Have you ever experienced nights where slumber was challenging to find?

Well, you're not alone.

And tonight, you're in the right place.

A very little about our lives is peaceful,

and yet scripture calls us to have a peaceful spirit.

So for tonight, we will call on the presence of God

to cultivate a spirit of peace into our utterly unpeaceful world.

The spirit of peace that transcends the chaos, a place to rest,

the place to be secure in the ultimate promises that give us peace,

no matter what has come your way.

So begin now to close your eyes without effort.

And feel your breath once more, fall soft and slow.

In this meditation from Genesis chapter 33,

you may remember the earlier story of Jacob and Esau.

Jacob had stolen Esau's birthright in the blessing of their father Isaac.

Now, years later, Jacob hears his brother is coming with four hundred men behind him.

When have you felt like Jacob?

Have you ever imagined hearing the approaching footsteps of certain doom?

When have you felt like Esau and carried anger and resentment?

Rest now in the shadows of the night.

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