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I was telling someone this past week;
“It isnt that reading the Bible causes great things to happen in my life. Reading the Bible helps me to see God’s DAILY blessings!!”
It made me think of Pilgrims Progress. He knew what to do yet it took him til almost the end of his journey and still lots of weak moments to fully rely on God’s instructions. It was all those weak moments that he fully realized his weakness. I still have a long journey to go but those weak moments are piling fast. What daily encouragement and correction I can find in God’s Word.
As I was heading down Wal-mart’s grocery isle, I spied an elderly gentleman, struggling with his walker, each step of the way. He was stooped low. He was slower than my 18month old daughter walking, I normally wouldnt have glanced a second time at this man. However, he was struggling along singing, in this rich deep voice;
“I am weak but Thou art strong… Jesus, keep me from all wrong.”
My heart stopped, my throat constricted. I too slowed my steps. If angels in heaven have such a voice as this, eternity will be all to short in time. My friend was with me this day. I was in a rush to get back home so I could finish some of the mundain things that seem to occupy all my time these days. But as I grabbed a loaf of bread for my neighbor, I just had to hear that voice again. I dont normally stalk people but I was drawn to that voice… So we headed to the shampoo isle.
“Just a closer walk with Thee….”
Shuffle. Shuffle. Screech.
“Graaaant Jesus… Is My pleeeaa”.
Pause to look at some expensive brand I’ll never get.
“Daily walking close to Thee. Let it be, Oh dear Lord, Let it be.”
God did not only speak to me that day in a choir of singers. He did not only speak to me through powerful preachers on the radio, He spoke to me, by a single gentleman at Walmart. A man, that if he was just shuffling along silently, I would have never noticed.
I now have that song stuck in my heart. Quite often, I catch myself humming it, and pausing to reflect this memory. It will never ever depart me. This is my daily prayer.
Jesus, keep me from all wrong;
I’ll be satisfied as long
As I walk, let me walk close to Thee.
- Refrain:
Just a closer walk with Thee,
Grant it, Jesus, is my plea,
Daily walking close to Thee,
Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.
If I falter, Lord, who cares?
Who with me my burden shares?
None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee.
Time for me will be no more;
Guide me gently, safely o’er
To Thy kingdom shore, to Thy shore.
Its kind of amazing what happens on a rainy day here in the desert. Rain is so so good for the desert. It softens the thirsty soil. It refreshes the plants. It provides water to the animals. It settles the dest for a time. And it gives a fresh air for our lungs. I always love the rain. I love the gentle pitter patter it makes on the roof. I love the smell it gives. I even love the humidity it brings. I sleep so well with the rain going. Its refreshing, I’m revived. It gives me energy to work outside for a time being. It gives fresh outlook on life. I love the rain!
Rain and scripture are simular. Scripture revives us. It gives us water to our thirsty souls. It settles the dust or troubles we are facing. It provides health and comfort. We are no longer a droubt. It makes us thirsty for more, its so refreshing, we should NEVER be satisfied after reading scripture. We should want more. We should learn, not just read but learn and apply it. Use the rain.
Rain has a purpose, so does scripture. We need rain, we need scripture. Interestingly, if you do a reference search for rain, In the Bible, God withheld rain when His wrath was kindled. Rain= blessing/favor.
” When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain, because they have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and confess Your name and turn from their sin when You afflict themBut rain had its consequences as well. Noah and the flood. 1 Kings 8:35
But rain had its consequences as well, Noah and the flood, and;
” Is it not the wheat harvest today? I will call to the LORD, that He may send thunder and rain Then you will know and see that your wickedness is great which you have done in the sight of the LORD by asking for yourselves a king.
So Samuel called to the LORD, and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel.” 1 Samuel 12:17-18
Anyway, just some rambling thoughts.
Jeremiah 5:24
‘They do not say in their heart,”Let us now fear the LORD our God,Who gives rain in its season,Both the autumn rain and the spring rain,Who keeps for usThe appointed weeks of the harvest.”
Being busy does not always mean real work. The object of all work is production or accomplishment and to either of these ends there must be forethought, system, planning, intelligence, and honest purpose, as well as perspiration. Seeming to do is not doing.
~~~Thomas A. Edison~~~
Is it just me that cannot seem to keep a new-year goal going consistently? No, I know I’m not the only one. But on some days it sure seems like everyone has the schedules down and their goals nigh on to being acomplished while your still trying to figure out where to start on yours, or even just being consistent on one thing.
I have one primary goal to focus on this year. All things will fall into place if I just focus on this one. Namely, reading the Word of God faithfully. Shamefully I confess that its a great acomplishment if I get to open it Sundays in church. And that, not because I do not want too but because I’m usually trying to get Stephen quiet, Emma to sit still, or just to hear the sermon. I always have this goal. To read it faithfully. I love it when I can go for a month or two doing it. I feel refreshed. So why is it that it takes only one day to fall behind and then the rest of the days just fall? Its like that hymn I so dearly love to sing,
“One thing’s needful; Lord this treasure
Teach me highly to regard;
All else, though it first give pleasure,
Is a yoke that presses hard.
Beneath it the heart is still fretting and striving,
No true, lasting happiness ever deriving.
The gain of this one thing all loss can requite
And teach me in all things to find true delight.”
(The Lutheran Hymnal- One Thing’s Neeful; Lord This Treasure by Johann H. Schroeder)
I still enjoy being a mommy and learning the “Mommy tasks” - Mainly which consists of rearing my children up to serve and love the Lord.
It is not the easiest task to acomplish. Some days I wonder how the Lord saw me as a mother for His children.
My little one is crying…speaking of motherhood. God be with you til I write again. Thank you to my faithful readers for not giving up on me, but encouraging me through the different chapters and roads of life.
Long time ago in Bethlehem,
So the Holy Bible say,
Mary’s boy child, Jesus Christ,
Was born on Christmas day.
Hark, now hear the angels sing,
A new king born today,
And man will live forever more,
Because of Christmas Day.
While shepherds watched their flocks by night,
Them see a bright new shining star,
Them hear a choir sing,
The music seemed to come from afar.
`Now Joseph and his wife Mary,
Come to Bethlehem that night,
Them find no place to born her child,
Not a single room was in sight.
Hark, now hear the angels sing…etc.
By and by they find a little nook
In a stable all forlorn,
And in a manger cold and dark,
Mary’s little boy was born.
Hark, now here the angels sings…etc.
Trumpets sound and angels sing,
Listen to what they say,
That man will live forever more,
Because of Christmas Day.
Merry Christmas. Cuddle with your love ones this day and remember a stable many years ago where a small babe wrapped in only swaddle clothes lay in a manger and a mother, probably very tired from traveling and having to give birth to a son, spent the night.
As I have said, we do Reformation Day rather than Halloween. Its the same date and I prefer the Reformation aspect of it, being a Christian and all that. 
Anyway, last year I read a Luther book. Pretty good sized one too (300 pg +) by Kittleson. This year however my husband and I are going through the large catechism. But I thought that would be too indepth for Emma girl. I asked a dear friend of mine, Dell, what she used for her girls. She always finds the best books for schooling. She recommended this one, by Paul Mairer.
I love this book already! I am always so leary of condensed children’s books. They never seem to have enough information in them or written too childish. I love how simplistic but packed with information this is. The illustrations are so beautiful that I would love to frame them. Already my husband is planning for evening readings with Emma. Which tells me a lot since he is more into serious and thicker stuff than this. He gave it to thumbs up.
I am always so leary of putting Martin Luther on too high a pedestal. I have had reservations on celebrating a day that started a church controversary. But, in retrospect, what he did, changed church history for the better. Its a good reminder to us to look at the corruptness of the church and how reformed theology has taught us for years to follow. But let us not point figures at a church predominance. Our church needs reformation today! Statistically speaking there are more people attending church then ever. But how many are truly Christians? How many truly follow the teachings and scriptures of Christ? How many follow the Bible only? Sola Scriptora (sp?)!
Let us always be looking to Christ as the Supreme Reformer, who changed history forever and one to follow always! Luther was a man, Christ was God!
I had a lovely weekend. Did you?
In two days I knitted two matching hats for my twin nephews for their birthday Sunday. We celebrated Emma’s birthday with family at the park. While it was not windy, it was very cold. Emma wore her wool sweater and still managed candied apple cheeks. She recieved a ball from Mama and Papa and many various gifts from her Aunts, Grandparents, etc. Aunt Jenna lovingly knitted her a nice warm hat. Such a beautiful color too!
Aunt Braelyn put some money towards her “College fund”, and Aunt Morgann purchased this really cool Dora ball jungle gym thingie. Ya blow it up with air and you can crawl around putting balls through this spinning, twirling thingie. Aren’t I eloquent with words/descriptions? Anyway, Its staying at Grandma’s house so Emma can play with it when she goes over. Uncle Timmy and his family gave a really soft cuddly bunny and a toy flashlight. Diapers were among the gifts. Diapers are the best gift a one-year old can have!
I shall not forget to mention her new motorcycle… 
I am picturing many afternoons with “Vroom Vroom” around the yard.
We were very blessed and Emma had a wonderful time playing and toddling about. There is no picture with cake in the face because we did Jello instead. Gluten Free and all that. 
She loved it.
I am now happily being busy trying to finish various projects… working in the garden when the weather permits. Oct. is usually a very windy month for our little town. This year it turned chilly sooner than usual. But I shall not put away the short sleeves yet. Everytime I do, it gets hot again. LOL.
Reformation time is upon us. We have been reading Luther’s Large Catechism. We also plan to learn more about the time period of the Reformation so as to understand the nailing of the 95 Theses that started a Reformation in the Church. We hope you’ll join us. Its a good study. Reformation Day is Oct. 31, same as Halloween.
What a busy time it has been. The days seem to grow shorter and the “to-do” list longer. We have about 2 months or less for Jr. Muffin’s arrival. So much to acomplish! So little time.
We still plan and pray to have a homebirth. The hospital bag is packed just in case though. Today I “rummaged” through some old photo’s and found the ones we took soon after Euphemia was born. Hard to believe it was only a year ago. The time flew by so quickly. Can you believe she will be one in less than two weeks? That thud you heard was me… fainting.
Baby update. Baby is well. I have been more couch confined or using a walker when the going gets rough. The baby is sitting on some nerves or something like that so its painful to walk and it doesn’t steady me enough. God is good though and through His stregnth this last stretch shall be over soon.
The garden has been doing fairly well. We are experiancing some bad tomato worm problems. Grrr. Emma has gladly taken on the task of torturing them before death. We have had to explain a few time though that these aren’t the gummy worms or sour worms that you find in the store. Non edible dearie. *shudder*
Harvesting the radishes has been fun! We still have plenty and have been sharing our bounty with family and friends.
It’s hard to believe that this is only after three weeks from planting! They do SO well out here.
Emma has been learning to cook. See how well she helps me with the hand-beater?
I absolutley LOVE my hand beater. I have decided to make cookies when I go into labor. I am not joking here. I am going to put on, Pride and Prejudice (nice long humourous movie) and make gingersnaps. All that muscle work will feel good! Of course I also have an idea to scrub the carpets as well. Whatever the plan is, its not to lay down. Work with gravity this time! Woo hoo!
I got to thinking as I was making these cookies how wonderful it is that the Word of God is NOt like a cookie. Cookies are wonderful treats. They are not meant to be eaten daily otherwise they just loose their sense of speicalness and well being a treat. All that sugar daily. You’d get sick of them very fast. God’s Word, the Bible, is our Daily Bread. We NEED it for that daily substance of something more filling, more satisfying, more needed. How wonderful it is that we have this book right at our fingertips! Even web-based sites have all versions of the Bible listed on them. Free access anywhere/everywhere. So why do we sometime use the Bible as the occasional cookie treat? I am very guilty of this. It been a constant reminder to me as I treat on the cookies, or when I make the dinner meal (which is usually the Big meal of the day for us). Have I found the nourishment in the Spiritual feeding as well? There is so many articles and devotion books out there that stress the importance of daily reading of teh Bible. Encouragment. Etc. So why in this day and age do we find it so hard to just sit down and meditate on God’s Word?
In Hubby’s recent readings of Patrick O’Brian’s books (Master and Commander, Far side of the World, Etc) He stubbled across this quote which we thought to share with our readers.
Not far into the second book of the Aubrey/Maturin novels by Patrick O’Brian, Stephen Maturin becomes acquainted with a young widow named Diana Villiers, who lives with her aunt and three cousins in the vicinity of the residence that Captain Aubrey and Stephen Maturin occupy. At a ball given by Diana’s aunt, Mrs. Williams, Stephen and Diana are engaged in a conversation, a portion of which revolves around Diana’s forceful comments:
“…You must know that married men are the worst enemies women can have…They offer what they call friendship or some stuff of that kind – the name don’t matter – and all they want in return for this great favour is your heart, your life, your future, your – I will not be coarse, but you know very well what I mean. There is no friendship in men….Listen, Maturin, I speak openly to you, because I like you; I like you very much, and I believe you have a kindness for me – you are almost the only man I have met in England I can treat as a friend – trust as a friend.”
“You have my friendship, sure,” said Stephen heavily. After a long pause he said with a fair attempt at lightness, “You are not altogether just. You look as desirable as you can – that dress, particularly the bosom of that dress, would inflame Saint Anthony, as you know very well. It is unjust to provoke a man and then to complain he is a satyr if the provocation succeeds…”
“Do you tell me I am provocative?” cried Diana.
“Certainly I do. That is exactly what I am saying. But I do not suppose you know how much you make men suffer. In any case, you are arguing from the particular to the general: you have met some men who wish to take advantage of you, and you go too far. Not all French waiters have red hair.” ………
~Post Captain By Patrick O’Brian page 50-51 ~
Typed out by David.
I have been like a dry well in my spiritual life recently. I have been extra focused on the daily living and the coming baby that much has been neglected. Many have said that when you first turn your day over to God, He will give you the time you need to acomplish the important tasks. I dare not say taht I have not found this to be true but it still seems like there is more acomplished when I set aside that time only for the brief 5 minutes before bed. However, the sweet communication between a Friend so near and dear begins to fade like the day. Each task still comes up anew each day and my life seems less meaningful. I question my vocation, I question my purpose in life, I question life itself. Where is God? He has not left me… I have left Him. Does a bride leave her groom at the alter?
The road is long and weary. I cannot deny this fact. But God has not promised a sweet meadow and cushioned feet. Christian had fallen into that snare in Pilgrims Progress. The wonderful meadow proved to be death to all that enjoyed it. The snare of being too content, to well satisfied, but not satisfied.
So, I trudge along, knowing that I should get up earlier, make more time for Him that has given me all time, and my life. But the old same old story comes, You get up and see something out of place and put it away and then your whole day is filled with cleaning up messes and wiping dirty faces and counters.
I sing hymns to keep me going through the day. But I remember how much more meaningful those hymns meant when I would think of a particular one after reading a chapter in the Bible, or a devotion. Quite often I find myself humming, “One Thing’s Needful, Lord this Treasure”. I can hear that gentle rebuke, Martha, Martha.
So is what I am doing so unecessary? So pitiful? So unworthy of my attention? Not at all! Or as Paul said, God forbid! We are called to do this! We are called to scrub the dishes, wipe the faces, vaccum the carpets, do the errands, etc. But when it becomes a question of, “Why”? Or “Is there any purpose in life?” It is time to dust the cover of the tear stained, blood stained Bible and repent.
It is during these times that I remember,
Down the pilgrim road I have tread;
Forgetting my constant companion,
I knelt and said,
“God why hast Thou forsaken me?”
A peirced hand was on my shoulder
A voice I knew too well said to me;
“My friend, since when dist thy heart turn colder,
Or when did you forget who died for thee?”
“Tis not that I have left thee,
But the cares of the present time has thrust itself forth
But thou in thy worries hast forgotten Me,
And forgotten the Pilgrim course.”
Oh what faithful wounds from a Friend,
The reminder of Truth and constancy,
Our fellowship is now amend.
and blissful life for eternity.
I may have forgotten His constancy but He has always been there. I have taken His presence for granted. I cling to the old rugged cross wherein is inscribed,
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteousness to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
