Wednesday without words

Sabbath Songs

I love this musical version of Psalm 17.  I don't necessarily love the video, but I love the music!

Praying today to be a kept woman: kept as the apple of the Lord's eye, and kept sheltered under His wing. Praying the same for you today, Gentle Reader!

Flashback Friday: Camping in the Jemez

This must have been 28 or 29 years ago.  And I believe this is the trip when the infamous cow-pie story happened.  If you don't know the story of camping with 3 and 2 year old boys, only 5 gallons of water, and fresh open-range cow pies, you are likely better off, Gentle Reader!

Wednesday without words

35 years

One of the great blessings of my life has been to know this man and count him as my friend for almost 40 years, and my husband for 35 years today.  He is my rock.  I am his cross to bear.  But God has been about building something beautiful in our marriage, and I am very, very blessed and grateful.

Happy anniversary, dearest Dave!

Come and Dance

 

The June lilies are spent,

and autumn’s leggy-ness spreads over the garden.

We still look with anticipation to the fullness of harvest,

you and I, searching out those succulents we can pluck.

The hard work of spring and the hot days of summer

are behind us.

 

Come, dance with me,

palm against palm, chest against chest,

in the cool of the twilight, in the space between day and night.

Sway to the rhythm of the gift: this life, this world,

while harmonies play at the edge.

Come, and dance.

Nights at the Opera

This has been our week for nights at the opera in Santa Fe.  If you have never been there, it is a beautiful, open-air opera house, with beautiful architecture and wonderful acoustics, and not a bad seat. To the west are the Jemez Mountains, and to the east are the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, so there is not a bad view in any direction.  And arriving just before sunset is also a plus!

On Tuesday, we attended the final dress rehearsal of Salome, and on Friday, we went to Daughter of the Regiment with our good friends Kelley and Robert.  We entered into the fancy tail-gating tradition and enjoyed our evening with good food, good friends, and wonderful music.

As for my reviews, for anyone interested, see them below.  

Tuesday's Strauss was dark, as is the nature of the beast, I suppose.  The staging was strange and still, with lots of writhing, both external and internal, being portrayed.  The beheaded corpse of John the Baptist was not too realistic or ghoulish at first, but the final scenes with Salome and the head were horrifically effective, and a brutal picture of where lust leads-- despite the fact that the libretto keeps referring to it as "love".  Love has nothing to do with this story.  And this production-- story, staging, and music-- is not for the faint of heart. 

There could not be more of a contrast between operas than between Salome and Daughter of the Regiment.  Donizetti's lyrical, almost Gilbert-and-Sullivan style, spoke words, light theme, happy ending, is every way the opposite of the Strauss.  Tenor Alek Shrader did an excellent, apparently effortless job with all those high Cs, and Anna Christy's light voice was delightful, if slightly strained on the highest of high notes. And our friend Richard has two extended violin solos which were just gorgeous, despite the humor on stage during them. It was rollicking and fun!

If you are anywhere around, go to the Santa Fe Opera.  It is a summer experience not to be missed!

Thoughts about waiting on the Lord

I recently spoke at a dear young friend's wedding shower.  This young lady waited for the Lord to bring the right young man, and struggled faithfully to be patient. And that patient waiting on the Lord is a good thing.

So, here are some thoughts for those who wait patiently on the Lord for the right spouse, and those of us seeking to live faithfully with those spouses the Lord has provided. The spiritual discipline of waiting on the Lord is never a waste of time.

…They who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength;    they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary;    they shall walk and not faint.~Isaiah 40:31
It seems to me that much of life is spent in waiting, and none of us likes it.  But the truth is, learning to wait is a tool of mercy and grace in our lives.  The spiritual discipline of settling our hearts and minds to wait upon the Lord and the good that He has planned for us is undervalued in our culture and is often ignored in our churches.  But the lessons learned by waiting upon the Lord, will serve us  well in many roles in life.
That discipline to wait on the Lord comes in handy as we wait for the Lord as He completes the good work He has started in our husbands, to make them into the men God desires them to be.  Look forward to that with joy! Quiet yourself to pray for your husband and wait upon the Lord instead of doing that very womanly thing of trying to make your husband over in your own image of what you think a husband should be.  Instead, let God make him into Christ’s image. And wait as the Lord does the same for you.  Seek Him with expectation.
Use that disciplined waiting as the Lord builds your family. As a wife, you will likely have times of waiting for your husband to come home. Perhaps there will be a time of waiting for the Lord to bring children and to expand your family.  Jesus has a perfect plan for you, and you can rest with Him and wait upon Him.
Use that disciplined waiting upon the Lord as you expand the influence of your family through ministry and hospitality. Watch for the opportunities the Lord brings your way, and serve Him wholeheartedly through them.  And if the Lord brings periods of drought or loneliness your way, trust Him there, too, and wait patiently on Him. He is just as close to us when He feels far away as He is when He feels near.
And finally, use that disciplined waiting as you face the trials and hardships that life in a fallen world will surely bring.  The first three verses of Psalm 40 say this:
I waited patiently for the LORD;    he inclined to me and heard my cry.He drew me up from the pit of destruction,    out of the miry bog,and set my feet upon a rock,    making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth,    a song of praise to our God.Many will see and fear,    and put their trust in the LORD.
My prayer for each of us as wives is that our great and good God puts such a beautiful new song in our mouths that others will be captivated by Christ through our singing. And that we will continue to wait upon the Lord to make our steps secure in the future.
I am so excited to see what the Lord will do!

Wednesday without words