I Am Not Forsaken

This quote has been on our chalk board for over a year now. Yes, even the pumpkins have been their for a year too! Like I said earlier, life has been full. I think it might be time to change them out for something else. I love this quote. It has been a wonderful reminder for me over the last year!

Whatever my God ordains is right,

Here shall my stand be taken;

Though sorrow, or need, or death be mine,

Yet I am not forsaken,

My Father's care circles me there,

He holds me that I shall not fall,

And so to Him I leave it all.

~ Samuel Rodgast

Sorrow is one of the things that are lent, not given.
A thing that is lent may be taken away;
a thing that is given is not taken away.
Joy is given;
sorrow is lent.
We are not our own,
we are bought with a price...
[Our sorrow] is lent us for just a little while
that we may use it for eternal purposes.
Then it will be taken away 
and everlasting joy will be 
our Father's gift to us,
and the Lord God will wipe away
all the tears from off all faces.
-Amy Carmichael

Praise And Thanksgiving

I just came across this wonderful prayer of thanksgiving in The Valley of Vision. If you are not familiar with this book, it is a compilation of puritan prayers. I love reading through these beautiful prayers, they always inspire me to deeper worship and praise of our wonderful Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I pray that all of you will have a wonderful Thanksgiving as we give thanks to our Lord for all the wonderful blessings that He has given to each one of us.

Praise and Thanksgiving

O My God,

Thou fairest, greatest, first of all objects, 
my heart admires, adores, loves thee,

for my little vessel is as full as it can be,

and I would pour out all that fullness before thee in ceaseless flow.

When I think upon the converse with thee

ten thousand delightful thoughts spring up,

ten thousand sources of pleasure are unsealed,

ten thousand refreshing joys spread over my heart,

crowding into my every moment of happiness.

I bless thee for the soul thou hast created,

for adorning it, sanctifying it, 
though it is fixed in barren soil;

for the body thou hast given me,

for preserving its strength and vigour,

for providing senses to enjoy delights,

for the ease and freedom of my limbs,

for hands, eyes, ears that do thy bidding;

for thy royal bounty providing my daily support,

for a full table and overflowing cup, 
for appetite, taste, sweetness,

for social joys of relatives and friends,

for ability to serve others,

for a heart that feels sorrows and necessities,

for a mind to care for my fellow-men,

for opportunities of spreading happiness around,

for loved ones in the joys of heaven,

for my own expectations of seeing thee clearly.

I love thee above the powers of language to express,

for what thou art to thy creatures.

Increase my love, O my God, through time and eternity.

The Valley of Vision

Pg. 26 - 27
image from allposters.com

"To love Christ more, is the deepest need, the constant cry of my soul.... 

Out in the woods and on my bed and out driving, 

when I am happy and busy and when I am sad and idle, 

the whisper keeps going up for more love, more love, more love!"

                                                                Elizabeth Prentiss

Oh Lord, this is my desire to know You and love You more; to love You more in every part of my day, and in every trial or blessing You send my way.

Wait for the Lord; be strong and 

take heart and wait for the Lord. 

Psalm 27:14

This is the verse that I read the other day....

Elisabeth Elliot shared the story of Abraham and Isaac and 

how Abraham named the place where he had offered up Isaac 

"The Lord Will Provide".......

How many times do we worry or fret over smaller things then Abraham had to. 

What a great example this is to us that the Lord is faithfull. 

We just need to be ready to follow Him. 

Next time you are tempted to worry about something or get impatient over waiting for something,

remember "The Lord Will Provide".

~~~

Here is what Elisabeth Elliot went on to say, "Waiting requires patience-a willingness calmly to accept what we have or have not, where we are or where we wish we were, whomever we live or work with.

To want what we don't have is impatience, for one thing, and it is to mistrust God. Is He not in complete control of all circumstances, events and conditions? If some are beyond His control, He is not God.

A spirit of resistance cannot wait on God. I believe it is this spirit which is the reason for some of our greatest sufferings. Opposing the workings of the Lord in and through our "problems" only exacerbates them. It is here and now that we must win our victories or suffer defeats. Spiritual victories are won in the quiet acceptance of ordinary events, which are God's "bright servants," standing all around us."

~~~

Elisabeth Elliot says....

"His Message to me every day

Is wait, be still, trust, and obey."

Rest in the Lord and His faithfulness, He will provide.

Quotes taken from "Keep A Quiet Heart" by Elisabeth Elliot
Photo from allposters.com

Lord, we give You thanks for all that You in Your mercy have given us to be and to do and to have. Deliver us, Lord, from all greed to be and to do and to have anything not in accord with Your holy purposes. Teach us to rest quietly in Your promise to supply, recognizing that if we don't have it we don't need it. Teach us to desire Your will - nothing more, nothing less, and nothing else. For Jesus' sake. Amen.

by Elisabeth Elliot from "Keep a Quiet Heart" pg. 126

I came across this wonderful quote by Elisabeth Elliot yesturday! It was very convicting to me and made me stop and examine my life, how I love others and if I am truly thankful for all that the Lord has given to me. I hope you will all take a moment to read this beautiful quote!

"If I imagine that I love my neighbor let me test my love by asking how glad I am that he has achieved what I have failed to achieve; that he has managed to acquire what I have long wished to acquire; that he is loved by someone or by many or in some way that has never been granted to me. Do I rejoice because he (my neighbor) has reasons to rejoice that have been denied me? Can I honestly praise God for His goodness to my neighbor? Can I praise Him wholeheartedly for His gifts to me? If I love my neighbor as myself, there will be no reason at all for the least twinge of jealousy--because I will be just as happy that he has what I wanted as I would be if I had it."

From Elisabeth Elliot's book the Music of His Promises
Picture from Here

Great Is Thy Faithfulness

The words to this wonderful old hymn have been on my heart these last few weeks. The words have served as a great reminder and comfort to me.

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;

There is no shadow of turning with Thee;

Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;

As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Refrain
Great is Thy faithfulness!
 Great is Thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see.

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth

Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;

Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,

Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Create In Me

One of my favorite things are worship songs! They help keep me focused on my Lord as I go through my day. I enjoy many of Sovereign Grace's music. Recently we got their new CD "Psalms". The words from "Create In Me", one of the songs on this CD, based on Psalms 51, caught my ear and I have been meditating on the words all week.

Please have mercy on me , O God

According to Your steadfast love

Blot out my iniquity

Whiter than the snow that falls

Is the soul washed in Your blood

I'm guilty; come cover me

Create in me a clean heart, a pure heart

You are the joy of my salvation

Create in me a clean heart, a pure heart

Here in Your presence I will sing

Sin has brought me to my knees

Mercy lifts me to my feet

Gratefulness is filling me

Just as I am, without one plea

But that You shed Your blood for me

And You bid me come

O Lamb of God, I come

Do The Next Thing

I came across this quote while reading Shopping for Time this weekend. This Quote was such a great reminder for me to keep pressing on towards the goal that the Lord has set before me. No matter what the set back, what the trial, we need to do the next thing.

Many a questioning, many a fear,

Many a doubt, hath its quieting here.

Moment by moment, let down from Heaven,

Time, opportunity, guidance, are given.

Fear not tomorrows, Child of the King,

Trust them with Jesus, DO THE NEXT THING.

Do it immediately; do it with prayer;

Do it reliantly, casting all care;

Do it with reverence, tracing His Hand

Who placed it before thee with earnest command.

Stayed on Omnipotence, safe 'neath His wing,

Leave all resultings, DO THE NEXT THING.

Author unknown

This is a quote from Shopping For Time about taking the next step.

"We can do the next thing because we know that God orders the seasons of our lives. Even the most difficult ones. As Romans 8:28 reminds us, "We know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose". John Piper comments on this verse: "If you live inside the massive promise, your life is as solid as the rock of Gibraltar. Nothing can blow you over inside the walls of Romans 8:28. Outside Romans 8:28 all is confusion and anxiety and fear and uncertainty." So inside the walls of Romans 8:28, let's take the next step, do the next thing."

Take encouragement that what ever your trial or hardship, it is the Lord who has placed you where He wants you to be. He has orchestrated every aspect of your life. We need to now take what He has given us and faithfully and diligently serve Him by doing the next thing.

At Any Cost

My Goal is God Himself, not joy, nor peace,

Nor even blessing, but Himself, my God;

Tis His to lead me there, not mine, but His -

At any cost, dear Lord, by any road!

~

So faith bounds forward to its goal in God,

And love can trust Her Lord to lead her there;

Upheld by Him, my soul is following hard

Till God hath full fulfilled my deepest prayer.

~

No matter if the way be sometimes dark,

No matter though the cost be ofttimes great,

He knoweth how I best shall reach the mark,

The way that leads to Him must needs be straight.

~

One thing I know, I cannot say Him nay;

One thing I do, I press towards my Lord;

My God my glory here, from day to day,

And in the glory there my great Reward.

~

by Mrs. Charles E. Cowman from Streams in the Dessert

quoted by Dr. John S. Barnett in The Joy of a Word Filled Family

"Living For Jesus"

"Living for Jesus a life that is true, striving to please

Him in all that I do, yielding allegiance, glad-hearted

and free-this is the pathway of blessing for me.

~~~

Living for Jesus who died in my place, bearing on Calv'ry

my sin and disgrace-such love constrains me to answer

His call, follow His leading and give Him my all.

~~~

Living for Jesus, Wherever I am, Doing each duty

in His holy Name; Willing to suffer affliction and

loss, Deeming each trial a part of my cross.

~~~

Living for Jesus thru earth's little while, my dearest tre-

sure the light of His smile, seeking the lost ones He died

to redeem, bringing the weary to find rest in Him.

~~~

Chorus: O Jesus, Lord and Savior, I give myself to Thee,

for Thou in Thine atonement didst give Thyself for me. I

Own no other Master-My heart shall be Thy throne: My

life I give, henceforth to live, O Christ, for Thee alone."

This prayer that was latter made into a Hymn was quoted in The Joy of a Word Filled Family by Dr. John S. Barnett. Thomas Obadiah Chisholm wrote these words when he was 51 unable to finish his career, weak, sickly, unemployed, and trying to make a living selling things door to door. Because of his sickly state he spent most of his time sitting at a writing table. He loved to write and wrote more than 1,200 poems, of which 800 were published. What a great example of devotion!