Faith Over Chaos

Well… it happened again. I sat down with the Word this morning, minding my own business, and suddenly—boom—rabbit hole. You know the kind. One minute you’re reading peacefully, the next something grabs your attention like a toddler with sticky hands and suddenly you must know more. Sometimes it’s a distraction; sometimes it’s a divine “hey, look at this.” Today was definitely the latter.

So naturally, I followed it. And if I’m going down a rabbit hole, I’m taking you with me.

I was in Hosea when this jumped off the page:

“The pride of Israel testifies to his face…” — Hosea 5:5 (ESV)

“To his face.” I love that. It sounds like something we’d say today—“fix your face,” “use your poker face,” or the ever‑popular (and ever‑rude) “resting b‑‑‑‑ face.” You know the one. No need for me to spell it out.

But how wild is it to see something that feels so modern tucked into Scripture? It’s like God was side‑eyeing Israel long before side‑eye was a thing. Imagine Him telling Hosea, “Go tell them to fix their face. I can see it.”

And that’s when the rabbit hole widened.

The Hebrew word for “face” here is panim. Yes, it means face—but Hebrew loves to multitask. Panim also means countenance and presence. Suddenly this isn’t just about eyebrows and cheekbones. It’s about the whole vibe you bring into a room.

Think about when you walk into a place you absolutely do not want to be, and your friend whispers, “Fix your face.” Your presence is screaming before you ever speak. That’s panim—your face revealing your presence, your presence revealing your heart. And Israel’s pride? Oh, it was written all over theirs.

And here’s where it gets real for us. If panim is our face, our presence, our whole vibe… then sometimes our panim is not exactly radiating Jesus. Sometimes it’s radiating “I need a nap,” “I’m over it,” or “Lord, hold my tongue before I say something I’ll regret.”

We carry His name, but our face is carrying something else.

Our presence is part of our witness. People read our panim before we ever open our mouths. God isn’t asking us to fake joy or slap on a church‑lady smile. He’s inviting us to let His fullness shape what shows up on our face.

Because when our panim is tainted—by pride, bitterness, exhaustion, resentment, or just plain “I don’t wanna”—we’re not just carrying a mood. We’re carrying a distorted version of His presence. And that’s not condemnation; that’s invitation. God isn’t saying, “Fix your face, you’re an embarrassment.” He’s saying, “Let Me fill you so fully that your face can’t help but reflect Me.”

Imagine walking into a room and your panim quietly says, “I belong to Someone who restores me.” Not because you’re perfect, but because you’re surrendered. Not because you’re cheerful, but because you’re anchored.

So maybe the real question isn’t, “Is my face behaving?” but “What is my presence saying before I speak?” Because like it or not, our panim walks in first.

The good news? God transforms us from the inside out—until even our presence starts telling the truth about who we belong to.

Rabbit hole complete. For now.

Helping you find peace in the garden again— even when your rabbit hole detours turn into full‑blown adventures with God.

So on this New Year’s Day, instead of making resolutions we’ll abandon by next Thursday, let’s ask something deeper. What is my presence saying before I speak? Here are a few questions to help you carry God’s fullness on your panim into the new year.

1. Where is my presence carrying something other than Christ—like pride, resentment, exhaustion, or that “don’t talk to me” vibe?
2. What would my panim look like if it were shaped by surrender instead of stress?
3. When people encounter me, do they feel invited, dismissed, overwhelmed, or encouraged? (Yes, this one stings a little.)
4. What would it look like to let God restore my presence before I try to restore my expression?
5. What do I want my panim to testify about God as I step into this new year?