A word for the day: Joy is strength!

The joy of the Lord is our strength

The joy of the Lord is your strength.

Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing! for the Lord has comforted His people and will have compassion on His afflicted. — “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” — The Lord is my strength and my shield; in Him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to Him. — My soul shall exult in my God, for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation; He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to be proud of my work for God. — We also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. — I will take joy in the God of my salvation.

Neh. 8:10; Isa. 49:13; Isa. 12:2; Ps. 28:7; Isa. 61:10; Rom. 15:17; Rom. 5:11; Hab. 3:18

Selah.

Thoughts between daughter and Father IX

KNOWING ONLY TO FOLLOW

Her thoughts said, “How can I know that it is the time to move?”

Her Father said,

“And it shall be when thou shalt hear a sound of going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt go out to battle. Thou shalt certainly hear that sound. There will be a quiet sense of sureness and a sense of peace.”

The daughter said, “If another also heard that sound it would be easier.”

Her Father said,

That may not always be. The sound of going is like the voice of the shepherd that the sheep know, but how they know they could not tell, knowing only to follow.”

THE TOKEN

The daughter said, “But how can I be sure?”

Her Father said,

When He putteth forth His own sheep, He goeth before them, and the sheep follow Him; for they know His voice. And a stranger they will not follow, but will flee from him; for they know not the voice of strangers. Therein lies the token. Thou wilt recognize the Voice of the Shepherd. The voice of the stranger will be nothing to thee.”

NO POWER CAN BAR THE WAY

Her thoughts said, “I wish that the sea might be made into dry land and the waters divide – then all would understand that Thou art leading me.”

Her Father said,

That crossing of the sea was the first and the easier obedience. The crossing of the river later on asked for a more daring faith. The way did not open in Jordan until the feet of the priests were dipped in the water. But it did open then. Rivers turn to roads, mountains become valleys, when He who is named Remover of Hindrances goeth before. Then no one can forbid. No power can bar the way.”

LOVE AND THOU SEEST

The daughter thought of Absalom, who dwelt two full years in Jerusalem and say not the King’s face. What if she be like Absalom?

And she remembered Bartimaeus, and how, casting away his garment, he sprang up and came to the Lord Jesus. Was there a garment that she had not cast away?

Her Father said,

“O foolish and blind, if there be any hindering thing known to thee, cast it away now; if such there be and thou dost not know it, I will reveal it to thee. Be not anxious even about that. Dost thou not love? I know that thou lovest. Love and thou comest. Love and thou seest.”

Love and thou seest!

Selah.

Prayer

Dear God of my rivers and deserts, help me today to serve you in faithful obedience. Help me to hear the sound of moving in the mulberry trees of the spirit, and then to move... holding nothing back, casting away the garments that have held me and framed me in lesser things, I spring up to follow you. Then others who do not hear the sound of moving may see it in my life, and be blessed. Then will they understand, according to your will -- yet may I not use that lack of understanding as a garment crutch! May I be to you today as Abraham and Sarah, who journeyed across the wilderness in faith, to the land of promise. May I be today as the priests who walked into the river, and found it a road!

Today, Father, I claim the promise that at your right hand are pleasures forevermore, and you know best, far and away, what is best for me! Today I will sing and wait for you, causing you the delight of those who bring you pleasure by waiting on you, as though the promise had already arrived!

Thank you that you are working in me -- this day -- both to will and do your good pleasure. I wait for you and give you my praise! Grant a new filling of the Spirit in my life to fulfill this prayer. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

Selah.

Note: More thoughts from the private conversation of Amy Carmichael, as she talked to her Father about the issues of life and personal challenges around her. God used her to rescue many young girls from ritual Hindu temple prostitution, and wrought miracles through her prayer life. Here is glimpse into that prayer life. May it bless you today!

A word for the day: a new heart, God's chosen

I will sprinkle clean water upon you

Ezekiel 36:24-26, 28

I will take you from the nations,
and gather you from all the countries.
I will sprinkle clean water upon you,
and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses.
A new heart I will give you,
and put a new spirit within you,
And I will remove from your body the heart of stone
and give you a heart of flesh.
You shall be my people,
and I will be your God!

Selah.

A word for the day: *Hesed -- covenant love

The healing *Hesed of God

Psalm 103

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all His benefits.
He forgives all your sins
and heals all your infirmities;
He redeems your life from the grave
and crowns you with mercy and loving-kindness;
He satisfies you with good things,
and your youth is renewed like an eagle's.
The Lord executes righteousness
and judgment for all who are oppressed.
He made His ways known to Moses
and His works to the children of Israel.

Alleluia!

The Lord is full of compassion and mercy,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
He will not always accuse us,
nor will He keep His anger for ever.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
nor rewarded us according to our wickedness.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so is His mercy great upon those who fear Him.
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has He removed our sins from us.
As a father cares for his children,
so does the Lord care for those who fear Him.
For He himself knows whereof we are made;
Hremembers that we are but dust.
Our days are like the grass;
we flourish like a flower of the field;
When the wind goes over it, it is gone,
and its place shall know it no more.
But the merciful goodness of the Lord
endures for ever on those who fear Him,
and His righteousness on children's children;
On those who keep His covenant
and remember His commandments and do them.
The Lord has set His throne in heaven,
and His kingship has dominion over all.
Bless the Lord, you angels of His,
you mighty ones who do His bidding,
and hearken to the voice of His word.
Bless the Lord, all you His hosts,
you ministers of His who do His will.
Bless the Lord, all you works of His,
in all places of His dominion;
bless the Lord, O my soul!

Alleluia!

Selah.

A word for the day: constancy

I will stand at my watch-post

Habakkuk 2:1-4

I will stand at my watch-post,
and station myself on the rampart;
I will keep watch to see what He will say to me,
and what He will answer concerning my complaint.
Then the Lord answered me and said:
Write the vision;
make it plain on tablets,
so that a runner may read it.
For there is still a vision for the appointed time;
it speaks of the end, and does not lie.
If it seems to tarry, wait for it;
it will surely come, it will not delay.
Look at the proud!
Their spirit is not right in them,
but the righteous live by their faith!

Selah.

"Come to Me," saith One

Art thou weary, art thou languid?

Words: John Mason Neale, 1862
Tune: Cuttle Mills

Art thou weary, art thou languid,
art thou sore distressed?
"Come to Me," saith One, "and coming,
be at rest. "

Hath He marks to lead me to Him,
if He be my guide?
In His feet and hands are wound prints
and His side.

Is there diadem, as monarch,
that His brow adorns?
Yes, a crown in very surety,
but of thorns.

If I find Him, if I follow,
what His guerdon here?
Many a sorrow, many a labor,
many a tear.

If I still hold closely to Him,
what hath He at last?
Sorrow vanquished, labor ended,
Jordan passed.

If I ask Him to receive me,
will He say me nay?
Not till earth and not till heaven
pass away.

Finding, following, keeping, struggling,
is He sure to bless?
Saints, apostles, prophets, martyrs,
answer, yes!

Alleluia!

Selah.

Still will we trust

Still will we trust, though earth seem dark and dreary

Words: Words: William Henry Burleigh (1812-1871)
Music: Stanstead

Still will we trust, though earth seem dark and dreary,
and the heart faint beneath his chastening rod;
though rough and steep our pathway, worn and weary,
still will we trust in God!

Our eyes see dimly till by faith anointed,
and our blind choosing brings us grief and pain;
through him alone who hath our way appointed,
we find our peace again.

Choose for us, God! Nor let our weak preferring
cheat our poor souls of good thou has designed;
choose for us, God! Thy wisdom is unerring,
and we are fools and blind.

So from our sky the night shall furl her shadows,
and day pour gladness through his golden gates,
our rough path lead to flower-enameled meadows,
where joy our coming waits.

Let us press on, in patient self denial,
accept the hardship, shrink not from the loss;
our portion lies beyond the hour of trial,
our crown beyond the cross!

Selah.

A rainbow of fire and promise

After an early evening thunderstorm, a beautiful covered the lake. Here is just a fraction of the beautiful show, nature's best reflection of divine glory. :-)

In taking the photo and worshiping under the grand, vaulted canopy, storm in distance and sun in the West... clouds and rainbow fire over the lake... I was reminded of these words of God from Genesis chapter nine:

And God said,

"This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth."

So God said... "This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth."

The time of destructive flood is past. Life will begin again. See the sign, and live, Live, my friend! Even now the waters recede, and you are called to your true part... sing, dance, trust!

Alleluia.

Selah.

Tony Snow: the true strength of humble virtue

Through selflessness and service...

Tony Snow has gone to his eternal reward. He has entered into divine rest, and he is sorely missed. We surely could use his character, his person, his humble virtue in our time. God grant that his memory is blessed with others who pick up his mantle.

A man is measured by his life -- and words uttered in line with that life have great power. Consider these words from Tony, and let them stir your heart to humility:

There's nothing wilder than a life of humble virtue -- for it is through selflessness and service that God wrings from our bodies and spirits the most we ever could give, the most we ever could offer, and the most we ever could do...

God bids us to choose: Do we believe, or do we not?

Will we be bold enough to love, daring enough to serve, humble enough to submit, and strong enough to acknowledge our limitations? Can we surrender our concern in things that don't matter so that we might devote our remaining days to things that do?

Let these words stir your heart to humble virtue, and thus greatness! Our world needs you to be great like this!

Selah.

Hat tip to Roger for sharing these words! And the picture. Read his post here.

Related reading: The Bana Project for Lesotho, S.A.

Abba: my refuge and my home

Loving the Father as a child

by George MacDonald

How terribly, then, have the theologians misrepresented God in the measure of the low and showy, not the lofty and simple humanities! Nearly all of them represent Him as a great king on a grand throne, thinking how grand He is, and making it the business of His being and the end of His universe to keep up His glory, wielding the bolts of a Jupiter against them that take His name in vain.

They would not admit such a statement, but follow out what they say and it amounts to this.

Brothers, have you found our king? There He is, kissing little children and saying they are like God. There He is at the table with the head of a fisherman lying on His bosom, and somewhat heavy at heart that even he, the beloved disciple, cannot understand Him well. The simplest peasant who loves his children and his sheep is – no, not a “truer,” for the other is false, but – a true type of our God beside the monstrosity of a monarch that the theologians present.

Who is our God? It is He who is ever uttering himself in the changeful profusions of nature. It is He who takes millions of years to form a soul that shall understand Him and be blessed. It is He who never needs to be, and never is, in haste. It is He who welcomes the simplest thought of truth or beauty as the return for the seed he has sown upon the old fallows of eternity. It is He who rejoices in the response of a faltering moment to the age-long cry of His wisdom in the streets.

He is the God of music, of painting, of building, the Lord of Hosts, the God of mountains and oceans. It is He whose laws go forth from one unseen point of wisdom, and thither return without an atom of loss. He is the God of history working in time unto Christianity.

And this is God is the God of little children! He alone can be perfectly, abandonedly simple and devoted.

The deepest, purest love of a woman has its well-spring in Him. Our longing desires can no more exhaust the fullness of the treasures of the Godhead than our imagination can touch their measure. Of Him not a thought, not a joy, not a hope of one of His creatures can pass unseen. And while one of them remains unsatisfied, He is not Lord over all.

Therefore, with angels and archangels, and with the spirits of the just made perfect, with the little children of the kingdom, yea, with the Lord himself, and for all them that know Him not, we praise and magnify and laud His name in itself, saying, Our Father.

We do not draw back because we are unworthy, nor even because we are hardhearted and care not for the good. For it is His childlikeness that makes Him our God and Father. The perfection of His relation to us swallows up all our imperfections, all our defects, all our evils. For our childhood is born of His fatherhood.

The person is perfect in faith who can come to God in the utter emptiness of feeling and desire, without a glow or an aspiration, with the weight of low thoughts, failures, neglects, and wandering forgetfulness, and say to Him, “Thou art my refuge, because thou art my home.”

Selah.

George MacDonald, "The Child in the Midst," The Truth in Jesus: The Nature of Truth and How We Come to Know It, edited by Michael Phillips (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2006), 161-62

Through the vale of lamentation

If there be that skills to reckon

Words: attributed to Thomas Kempis (1379-1471); trans. John Mason Neale

If there be that skills to reckon
all the number of the blest,
he perchance can weigh the gladness
of the everlasting rest,
which, their earthly exile finished,
they by merit have possessed.

Through the vale of lamentation
happily and safely past,
now the years of their affliction
in their memory they recast,
and the end of all perfection
they can contemplate at last.

There the gifts of each and single
all in common right possess;
there each member hath his portion
in the Body's blessedness;
so that he, the least in merits,
share the guerdon none the less.

In a glass through types and riddles
dwelling here, we see alone;
then serenely, purely, clearly,
we shall know as we are known,
fixing our enlightened vision
on the glory of the throne.

There the Trinity of persons
unbeclouded shall we see;
there the Unity of essence
perfectly revealed shall be;
while we hail the threefold Godhead
and the simple Unity.

Wherefore man, take heart and courage,
whatso'er thy present pain;
such untold reward through suffering
thou may'st merit to attain:
and for ever in his glory
with the Light of light to reign!

Selah.

A joy of mountain wildflowers

Fresh to you from near Mt. Rainier! Enjoy! :-)

He doth still my trust renew

All my hope on God is founded

by Robert Bridges (1844-1930)

All my hope on God is founded;
He doth still my trust renew,
me through change and chance He guideth,
only good and only true.
God unknown,
He alone
calls my heart to be His own.

Pride of man and earthly glory,
sword and crown betray His trust;
what with care and toil He buildeth,
tower and temple fall to dust.
But God's power,
hour by hour,
is my temple and my tower.

God's great goodness aye endureth,
deep His wisdom, passing thought:
splendor, light and life attend Him,
beauty springeth out of naught.
Evermore
from His store
newborn worlds rise and adore.

Daily doth the almighty Giver
bounteous gifts on us bestow;
His desire our soul delighteth,
pleasure leads us where we go.
Love doth stand
at His hand;
joy doth wait on His command.

Still from man to God eternal
sacrifice of praise be done,
high above all praises praising
for the gift of Christ, His Son.
Christ doth call
one and all:
ye who follow shall not fall!

Selah.

Purple mountain majesties II

Here's another shot of Rainier, just in time for the fourth of July! enjoy!

Purple mountain majesties

Here's a shot of Mt. Rainier from my recent trip to Oregon and WA -- got some great photos and breathed deeply in the mountain air! This photo, though, brings to mind the prayer of America, America... enjoy!

And sing the song, maybe hum it quietly to yourself, as you view:

O beautiful, for spacious skies,

For amber waves of grain,

For purple mountain majesties

Above the fruited plain!

America! America! God shed His grace on thee,

And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea.

O beautiful, for pilgrim feet

Whose stern, impassioned stress

A thoroughfare for freedom beat

Across the wilderness!

America! America! God mend thine ev'ry flaw;

Confirm thy soul in self control, thy liberty in law!

O beautiful, for heroes proved

In liberating strife,

Who more than self their country loved

And mercy more than life!

America! America! May God thy gold refine,

'Til all success be nobleness, and ev'ry gain divine!

O beautiful, for patriot dream

That sees beyond the years,

Thine alabaster cities gleam

Undimmed by human tears!

America! America! God shed His grace on thee,

And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea!

Selah.

A prayer for the 4th of July

O God of earth and altar

by G.K. Chesterton

O God of earth and altar,
bow down and hear our cry,
our earthly rulers falter,
our people drift and die;
the walls of gold entomb us,
the swords of scorn divide,
take not thy thunder from us,
but take away our pride.

From all that terror teaches,
from lies of tongue and pen,
from all the easy speeches
that comfort cruel men,
from sale and profanation
of honor, and the sword,
from sleep and from damnation,
deliver us, good Lord!

Tie in a living tether
the prince and priest and thrall,
bind all our lives together,
smite us and save us all;
in ire and exultation
aflame with faith, and free,
lift up a living nation,
a single sword to thee!

Selah.

Paragraph Farmer: Standing strong on the ramparts

While I was jetting coast to coast and then driving everywhere in between [slight hyperbole, but truth in there somewhere, lol] Patrick O'Hannigan over at Paragraph Farmer was busy, penning a a gentle critique of Obama's operative hermeneutic.

If you are of an intellectual bent, and are so inclined, jump over to his blog and read the article. It won't waste your time! And definitely a patriotic thing to do today, in case you're short of ideas... :-)

Happy Fourth!