And He will be called...

Isaiah 9:6 "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called
 Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." 

I have heard those verses read on hundreds of occassions through my lifetime, and yet this year, the verse stands out in a new way. I love that about Scripture. You can read a passage countless times, almost to a point of being mundane, but even still, you can capture new meanings all the time.
 It's how God speaks to us.
His Word.

I have thought on these verses more this year than I have previous years, though, because each of those names given to our Savior hold true for who He is, but in different seasons of life, we embrace specific names more strongly than others.
  I find beauty in all of them, but in this season of life, the words Prince of Peace are ringing the truest for me this Christmas season.

 I started out December saying I was going to slow down. I wanted to purposefully be still. But I have not succeeded in that. And some days, it's not that my schedule is jam packed; it's more that my mind is full. I can't turn off the thoughts. You can call it the writer in me, or the emotional woman that I am, but whatever the case, my mind is often exhausted at the end of the day from all the different thoughts it's processing.
  Some are silly, others serious.
 Some are tough scenarios, others are dumb situations.
   Sometimes it's the battle of the mind, fighting off all the old negative thoughts and replacing them with the positive truthful ones, which takes a lot of energy for me.
  2015 has been an amazing year for me, one which I am excited to share more about over the next few days/weeks. But, I still battle anxiety.
 It is part of me, part of my story.
  Anxiety to me is like what diabetes is to a diabetic.
 It is an every day journey, some days high, some days low, but medication helps regulate it, and it's part of my story.
 A diabetic can help me understand what is needed for their body to function properly.
 I can help others understand what anxiety is, and what I need to be healthy.

Agree or disagree with me; anxiety often times is a central debate among the world.
                        But it's part of my story, and I am OK with that.

The point is, I have anxiety, so when the verse says he will be called... Prince of Peace... I embrace those words, because peace is what my mind most often needs.

Peace is defined as freedom from disturbance; quiet and tranquility. Which is what I have been longing for, but see how the anxiety interrupts that?

Prince is defined as a male ruler.

Put that together: Jesus is the male ruler of quiet, tranquility and freedom from disturbance.

Oh, how my soul longs for that and I am so glad that God sent His Son so many years ago on Christmas day to be that for me! I just have to learn to sit still long enough to let that sink in to my heart and mind.

  So, the verse takes on new meaning for me this year as I dwell on it.
What does your soul long for today? Is it the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father? Or are you like me and need the Prince of Peace?

 He is all of those and more.... we just have to sit still and let Him show His love in those ways.
                                                            One day at a time.