Singing His Words

Psalm 119:54
I set your instructions to music and sing them as I walk this pilgrim way.

Ahh...the healing power of His Word set to music!  Humming His directions gives incredible strength and builds our faith to a whole new level!  Clear direct advice for us right here in black and white. 

Conversely, there is much to be lost in our closeness with the Savior when we listen to music that is saturated with dark discouraging lyrics.  Why?  Because those despair riddled words will immediately flood our minds when we are in challenging circumstances.  Those careless ideas of hopelessness and isolation, that are unfortunately quite prevalent in our society today, have the end result of submerging the listener into a sinking pit of emptiness.  Don't allow it in!  Guard against it.

God's word is like fresh water.  Without it we cannot survive.

This is a beautiful verse of instruction for our children as well.  If you are raising children, I challenge you to go through their play lists and make certain that what they are hearing is lifting them up and building a God confidence rather than a self consciousness.  During an especially challenging time in one of my children's lives, I purchased a CD at our local Christian store that set to music specific scripture that applied to the situation.  The incredible comfort gained from the simple exercise of playing the CD in the background essentially every time we were home or in the car, was immeasurable!  We were also able to memorize the verses, allowing His direction to play continually in our minds even when the music was not available!  It was life changing for us!

While writing this post today, I decided to look for scripture set to music on the Internet.  I found a beautiful blog created by a family who has applied today's scripture and made it a way of life.  If you are interested in hearing just one of their creations, click here and enjoy!  Their blog provides a large volume of scripture put to music and they have even included sheet music for free!  The URL is:  www.scripturemelodies.blogspot.com. 

Lord,
Thank You once again for Your words that guide and direct us in very simple and concise ways.  May Your strength rise up anew within us this week as we choose a leader for our country.  May Your perfect will be done.
In Christ's Name,
Amen

 

The Steep Course

Psalm 119:33(MSG)
God, teach me lessons for living so I can stay the course.

The birds are singing; the sun is shining; the grass is growing.  Spring is definitely getting an early start around here.  As I jumped onto the old green machine and carefully turned the key, I grinned at the old familiar sound I have actually grown a little fond of.  Our riding lawn mower has been with us since we moved into this house over ten years ago.  When the previous owner sold us the home, he said he would throw it in.  He sort of grinned when he said it....I think I understand now. 
You see, to mow our yard takes....well...many lessons.  I received my lessons from my sweet hubby.  He really didn't (and still doesn't) want me to take over the task of mowing  the yard, but I really do enjoy it, so I insisted that he show me the ropes.  With a great deal of reservation, he cooperated.  Now, I think there are several reasons that he would rather I not mow.  Mostly, it is because he is chivalrous and doesn't want me to be doing a "man's job".  This carries over into all areas of life with this incredible man that I have been married to for almost twenty-four years.  He opens doors for me, pumps gas for me, helps me in with the groceries, fixes this silly computer for me when it freezes, and the list goes on and on.

The other reason that he isn't really into me mowing is because our yard has some really steep hills.  "The hills are tricky," he says.  "You don't want to get sideways on a hill, or you might flip the mower over on yourself."  Well, that most certainly got my attention and I have heeded that warning ever sense.  His words still ring in my head every time I begin the descent down those hills. 

Yesterday was Monday, and I have deemed it to be the official weekly "mowing day".  I backed the mower out of the garage and whipped through half of the yard in no time flat.  Gingerly I headed down the last steep hill for the day.  As I got closer to the bottom, I had to strategically plan my turn or I would plow smack dab into the middle of one of the beautiful berms that my husband had meticulously constructed a few years back.  Oh no....had I miscalculated the angle of the slope?  It felt like I was tipping as I turned.  I quickly jerked the wheel back, but that made the course of the mower headed straight for berm...........crash!!  Right into the rocks and bush I went.  Oh boy.  I climbed off.  It was stuck.  Couldn't go back...couldn't go forward...

I started digging rocks up in an effort to move the mower.  Nope, that wasn't going to work.  I got in front of it and tried to push it up the hill.  Nope, that wasn't the solution either.  "I know what to do"...I thought.  I can call my nephew (the 6'2" marine), quick before my Hubby gets home!!  He'll know what to do!    

My sweet nephew was up for the challenge, but my Hubby made it home before the caper could be carried out.  My wonderfully observant spouse saw the evidence of the mower, well shall we say, gone "off the course".  As is so like him, he smiled at me and went right outside and took care of everything.  The mower is back in the garage and I am left with very little pride, but I am determined to return to the mowing position next Monday.  (If Mr. Hubby will let me...that is.)

God's light revealed in His creation.

I saw a billboard as I  was driving today.  It read:  "The world's source of light is the Son."  I love that!  The number one lesson I must remember to be able to stay on course, no matter how steep the slope gets,  is that Jesus Christ is my source for light.  He will illuminate my path and guide me every step of the way as I remain in Him.  What a wonderful peace and confidence this verse brings to my heart tonight!

God,
You are our source of light.  Your light shines in the darkest of places.  Help me to bring Your love to those who are desperately needing it.  Open my eyes to the needs of Your children and equip me to serve them in unselfish abandon.
In the glorious name of Jesus,
Amen

Guardians Of The Night

Psalm 136:9(MSG)
Moon and stars as guardians of the night, His love never quits.

Pretty incredible to think about the moon and the stars.  I always thought it would be cool to study astronomy in depth, but I never have.  When I begin to ponder the way everything in the universe is aligned and the way the stars all just sort of "hang out" up there without falling down, I get more than a little awe struck!

But tonight, for some reason, (maybe because the last two verses were on light), I am drawn to the spiritual side of this statement.....not just the physical presence of light in the darkness.  This verse has me thinking about His phenomenal love for us in that He provided protection in the darkness....."guardians of the night"....as it states.  I can stand on this in the darkest hours of my life, knowing that I have armor bearers watching out for me....spiritual warriors shielding me from the darts of the enemy.

Psalm 91:4,11(NIV)~He will cover you with His feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.  For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;  

I am gaining so much strength as I focus on His love for me.  I am praying that as you read this, you are sensing His enormous love for you as well!   

The Skies Of Light

Psalm 136:7(MSG)
The God who filled the skies with light, His love never quits.

I love the way the light is reflecting off of the water in this picture.  If you study it closely, you can even see the clouds in the sky mirrored in the gentle ripples.  In order for our path to be illuminated we must have light's presence.  I can't see anything in the dark!  Light is a gift from the Lord that He knew we would need and a daily reminder of His love for us!

I frequently repeat His word, literally out loud, and often in my mind when I am struggling with any number of things.  The following verse has given me courage (not the absence of fear, but the ability to proceed) in many times of trouble.  In a particularly difficult season of my young daughter's life, she was experiencing a great deal of fear, so we memorized this verse together.  The strength she received was extremely faith building for both of us.  His Word is so powerful!

Psalm 27:1(NIV)
The Lord is my light and my salvation--whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the stronghold of my life-- of whom shall I be afraid? (Italics mine.)

Father,

Thank you for the physical light that You provide for us every day.  Thank you also for the light of Your word to guide my steps and give me a sure foundation of hope to stand on in all circumstances. 

Amen

The Lighthouse

Psalm 139:19(MSG)

And please, God, do away with wickedness for good! And you murderers-out of here!

 

At the end of the island on Sanibel stands this beautiful lighthouse!  It is a historic island fixture constructed in 1884 to serve as a beacon for travelers moving through the coastal waters of Florida.  I absolutely loved walking around it and imagining what it has seen through the span of time. 

 

Towering tall over the trees and looming powerful over the sand this structure commands attention.  However, even more intriguing to me, were the two birds perched on it's railings.  These birds (which I have sense learned are Osprey) were firm in their commitment to watch over their territory.  As we walked closer to get a more detailed look at the tower, they barely took their eyes off of us.  Even as we stood at the bottom, they leaned over and locked in on our every move. 

Really, I can't even think of a more fitting picture of the light and guidance that God gives me every day than a lighthouse.  The Lord is an ever watchful eye protecting and guiding me away from the wickedness that attempts to come my way. 

The Psalmist plea is my prayer today~

"Please God, do away with wickedness for good." 

Immersed in His Light

Psalm 139:11(MSG)
Then I said to myself, "Oh, he even sees me in the dark!  At night I'm immersed in the light!"



Light reflecting off the lake water.


It's hard to completely describe my strong and rather amazing husband.  He really exemplifies the love of Christ in our home and has become a strong tower that I have grown to trust and lean on in all situations.  Today marks our twenty third year of marriage!  Those years have been filled with much love and a few trials.  There has been a lot of laughter and a few tears.  We have shared mountain top experiences and a hand full of deep valley travels.  Through it all, we have persevered and clung to our faith in God and His goodness in all things.  

My husband has a consistent saying that he will utilize when things get a little bit rough for us.....whatever that happens to be at the time varies, but it usually is a situation that is not turning out the way we had intended for it to.  Ironically, I got to hear it today.  You see, yesterday we scooped up the kids and took them to the lake for some fresh air, a little diving, swimming and a good old fashioned camp fire.  (It's good for the soul....gettin' out in nature....have I mentioned I LOVE the outdoors?)  Anyway, we were all together and that is exactly the way we wanted to spend our anniversary....together...the four of us.  It was awesome. 

We enjoyed the evening relaxing by the fire and throwing a marshmallow over the flame.  We got up this morning and splashed right into the lake for a full day of sun and fun.  By evening, it was a quick pack up and out the door for the drive home.  That's when it happened.  Yeap....craziest thing.....I'm backing out to head back home and bang~crash....!!  Someone put a tree right in the middle of the road....and I slammed right into it!  We all jumped out to see that I single handily smashed an entire section of the car!  Oh bother....I really hate it when that happens.  (No...the tree wasn't in the middle of the road...I guess I backed up crooked and sort of ran right into it......good grief!)

Now, is when my compassionate man decided to use his "consistent saying".  Are you ready to hear it?  He says, "Ah...that's ok Babe....'In the light of eternity~what does this really matter?  This isn't that big of a deal!'"  He proceeds to give me a huge hug and usher me right back into the car.  Who does that???  Seriously?!  Could I be anymore blessed?  Nope...I didn't think so. 

I am immersed in His light tonight....and thankful for a husband who stands in His light as well.