We live in Seattle. Beautiful, and yes, sometimes rainy, Seattle. Our home is at the edge of the city, but it doesn’t take long to be in some type of wooded city park or forest. There are trees everywhere. I understand why Seattle is called the Emerald City. I joke that it feels like we live in a tree house because from every window trees are the view and I love it. But my favorite part is the water. Because there are so many trees, unless you live on a hillside with minimal trees directly overlooking the Puget Sound, it’s easy to forget that it’s there.

Recently, I was running some errands in a part of town I don’t normally visit. My head was full of work things, family things, all the things. I was carrying these thoughts not just in my head but in my body as well. I could feel how tense I was. Lost in my thoughts, I drove up a hill, and on reaching the top, my thoughts were silenced. All that water. The road opened and there was the glory of the Puget Sound. It’s an incredible sight. A breadth of ocean, five miles across, and on the other side sits the majestic Olympic Mountain Range. It’s everything you think of when you picture the Pacific Northwest. Taking it all in, I felt my body instantly relax. My mind quieted. I soaked in the beauty, praised God for His creation and was at peace.

It’s like this every time I see the Sound. In considering why the water has this effect on me, I’ve come to a few conclusions:

1. The water grounds me. It reminds me that the world is a bigger place than me; that God’s creation has stood for centuries and will for even more time. It puts all my issues into perspective.
2. The water is a reminder of God as Creator. The God who made such beauty cannot be a distant hard-hearted God. It just isn’t possible. He draws me near through His creation. He beckons me to come closer through its natural splendor.
3. The water is a physical representation of the many times Jesus reminds me that He is the living water. He restores my soul. He wants to give me life abundantly. If I am constantly feeling dried up and worn out, maybe I’m seeking to fill my thirst in the wrong places.

Driving down the hill into town to complete my errands, my soul shifted. My body no longer carried the burdens of that day. Nothing is magically fixed or made better. But it doesn’t need to be. This is what peace is. Peace is not an ease of circumstances, but rather exists despite circumstance. It’s knowing that we are loved, we are complete and we will be okay because of a Father who cares for us so deeply as to send His Son to reconcile us to Him. Everything else is less overwhelming, less catastrophic, when we are grounded in Him. Have your thirst quenched by the Living Water today and be at peace. 

Experiencing GOD:

• What are the things that remind you of God’s care for you? 
• In what ways do you experience God restoring your soul and bringing you peace?

Supporting Scripture: 

“The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams.”

Psalm 23:1-2

This article was originally titled “Peace like the Puget Sound” in the September 2024 issue of The War Cry.