Wednesday without words...almost

Heading to see this little punkin later today...

 

Notice that little tooth above? And below, Emma's with Daddy before a local race (he won his age group!)

 

Above: a belly laugh.  Below: first swimming pool experience at BB's house.

God as refuge and strength

God is our refuge and strength, an everpresent help in trouble.  Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth give way, and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, andthe mountains shake with their surging. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the most high dwells. God is in the midst of her; she will not be moved. God will help her at break of day.
~Psalm 46: 1-5

These are words of comfort when you've had one of those days when the worst in your character seems on display for all to see. At such times, remembering that Jesus died for this exact sinful proclivity in me, and that I live, not based on my work or merits, but on His, can make all the difference. Repentance can actually bring freshness when God is your refuge and strength. And for that, I am very grateful!

Emma's Easter

Since I got new photos today, (many thanks, Nikki!)  I figured I would start sharing... Here are some views of Emma's Easter.

Japan

Those of you wondering why my dh has been working such long hours lately might be interested in watching this informative video about the crisis in Japan.  Dave thinks it does an excellent, brief job of explaining things to laymen like me.



My appologies if this is cut -off: it won't let me manipulate the size.  You can always go watch it here.

Wednesday without words...

Dry and parched

We are having an "April showers" kind of day here today, but minus the showers part.  It is cool and cloudy, and you can smell the moisture in the air, but little-to-none is actually reaching the dry, parched ground. We are getting desperate for rain here in the desert Southwest, where we are inches behind our scant "normal" rainfall. 

Sometimes I feel this way spiritually: dry and parched, and ready for rain to pour.  So I pray, "Maranatha, Lord Jesus!  Come quickly and water my parched heart:  bring moisture and life to that which is cracked and dry." 

Change

The spring wind storms are blowing here in New Mexico, but today we changed from early spring to summer, with temps in the high 70's.  I have been longing for spring, and now it's gone and summer has arrived, as often happens here in the Southern Rockies.

Change is hard.  I don't like change. But the truth is, being static isn't all it's made out to be either.  Change can be a good process.  So on with Springtime/Summer, and on to the new adventures ahead. May God keep us from fear of change, Gentle Readers!

Sabbath Songs

I Will Glory in My Redeemer by Steve and Vikki Cook

I will glory in my Redeemer
Whose priceless blood has ransomed me
Mine was the sin that drove the bitter nails
And hung Him on that judgment tree
I will glory in my Redeemer
Who crushed the power of sin and death
My only Savior before the Holy Judge
The Lamb Who is my righteousness
The Lamb Who is my righteousness
I will glory in my Redeemer
My life He bought, my love He owns
I have no longings for another
I’m satisfied in Him alone
I will glory in my Redeemer
His faithfulness my standing place
Though foes are mighty and rush upon me
My feet are firm, held by His grace
My feet are firm, held by His grace
I will glory in my Redeemer
Who carries me on eagle’s wings
He crowns my life with lovingkindness
His triumph song I’ll ever sing
I will glory in my Redeemer
Who waits for me at gates of gold
And when He calls me it will be paradise
His face forever to behold
His face forever to behold
His face forever to behold

Students become friends...

On this beautiful Spring morning i am on my way to pick up a former student from the airport.  Her family has left town now, and she will stay with us over the weekend while she's here for a celebration. What a blessed reminder this friendship is of God's providence! Mentor becomes friend and sister in Christ.  At least some of what I have shared has become part of her, and she will impart it to those coming after her. 

God didn't have to give me these little blessings.  He would have been perfectly justified in keeping his plans to himself.  But he shares this little glimpse to encourage me. And today, I am grateful for students become friends, and the great cloud of witnesses that we both follow and lead.

Hope

In honor of National poetry Month, I decided to download audio from Librivox of something poetic to listen to while I sew.  I came across Edgar Lee Masters's Spoon River Anthology, and remembered it vaguely and fondly from high school.  So I have been listening to these sad, charming, broken and funny thoughts from beyond the grave by the citizens of the fictitious Spoon River, Illinois. 

Funny how one's perspective changes as one gets older.  I am still finding Master's voice charming and poignant in places, heart-breaking in others.  But so much is so sad and without hope.  It is causing me to ponder the brokenness of the world around us, and wonder how those who do not have eternal hopes make sense out of this life. The Spoon River portrayed by Masters's beautiful words is populated by folks who lived complicated, and messy lives.  But most of them died without hope.

The truth is that hope cannot come just from my feelings, my aspirations, my tugging hard enough on my own boot straps. That sort of hope leaves you in the grave mouldering in the end, and often exhausted before that. Hope has to be found in something more permanent, more good, more grace-filled than me.

Last fall, as Dave and I walked through a graveyard on Maryland's Eastern Shore, along the Chesapeake Bay, I was struck by the tombstone pictured above.  Its epitaph reads simply, "Death is swallowed up in victory".  Now that is hope.  May you be living hope-filled lives today, Gentle Readers. And if you are not, drop me a line, and let me explain where I have found Hope.

Wednesday without words...

Longing for the heavenly city...

Yesterday I had an exhilaratingly productive day.  I worked hard until about 8:00 last night, and then dropped into relaxation and sleep with a smile on my face.

And today, I have taught all morning, also productively, but I am feeling tired and not nearly so exhilarated. Ever notice how one high-energy day seems to lead to a low-energy one?  It makes me long for heaven, for that New Jerusalem, where all balance will be restored, and we will be done with sin and self-indulgence. Then we won't have to worry about whether we're tired, or just lazy.

I love this passage I read in Revelation this morning.  It gives me hope on tiring days:

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away...And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
     ~Revelation 21: 1-4; 22-27

Latest quilting project

 

This is "Pinwheels and Posies for Emma's Easter." The quilting really makes it pop, but the pictures aren't really showing it.   I can't wait to see Emma cuddle it!

Sabbath Songs

This morning we sang one of my favorite hymns: "Stricken, Smitten and Afflicted".  These beautiful words were penned by Thomas Kelley in 1804. How could this solemn, minor-keyed hymn be one of my favorites? Because it speaks the truth that my soul thirsts for over and over again. It reminds me of the precious price paid for me, and the abundant grace of my Saviour.  Listen to the Fernando Ortega version below.  May it bless you today as it has blessed me, Gentle Reader!