Our assignment this week at #TheLoft is to write about what the picture above evokes in us.

     When I look at this picture, I am filled with peace. I can feel the cool mist of the fog on my skin and smell the earthy scent of grass and hay. The simplicity of the picture - from the green, green grass to the perfectly-rounded bales of hay, gives me a sense of serenity and comfort, and I feel one with the beautiful earth that God created. I could picture myself lying atop those hay bales, surrounded by quiet, the noise of the world shut out.

"How blessed the man you train, GOD, the woman you instruct in your Word, providing a circle of quiet within the clamor of evil.."

Psalm 94:12-13, MSG

     Although I'm not likely to find this beautiful, peaceful scene anywhere near the sandy beaches of Florida where I live, it is vital that I make it a priority to find peace and quiet amidst the noise and confusion in the world around me. I just love these verses from Psalm 94! God is telling us that, in His Word, we find a "circle of quiet within the clamor of evil." Though we live in a world that can be hard and cruel, and evil is continually attempting to lead us astray, we need only to open the pages of His Word to receive training and instruction for how to keep our feet firmly planted on His path. Though chaos so often reigns all around us and the world can speak too loudly in our ears, we need only to open the pages of His Word to find that "circle of quiet," where God speaks peace to us.

     This picture is a perfect illustration of these verses from Psalm 94 to me, and although we may not be able to "get away from it all" and lie atop bales of hay everyday, we may always find our "circle of quiet" in Him.