July 31st, 2014

July 30th, 2014

"Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in 

believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of 

the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13

July 29th, 2014

Thou always thinkest of me, O God. The bowels of thy love continually yearn towards me. Thou art always making providence work for my good. Thou hast set me as a signet upon thine arm; thy love is strong as death, many waters cannot quench it; neither can the floods drown it. Surprising grace! Thou seest me in Christ, and though in myself abhorred, thou beholdest me as wearing Christ's garments, and washed in his blood, and thus I stand accepted in thy presence. I am thus continually in thy favour--"continually with thee." Here is comfort for the tried and afflicted soul; vexed with the tempest within--look at the calm without. "Nevertheless"--O say it in thy heart, and take the peace it gives. "Nevertheless I am continually with thee."

-Charles Spurgeon

July 28th, 2014

July 27th, 2014

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; I do not give it to you as the world does. Do not let your hearts be distressed or lacking in courage." John 14:27

July 25th, 2014

"Praise and service are great healers. When life grows sore and wounding, and it is difficult to be bring, praise God!  Sing something, and you will rally your own heart with the song!  You must learn to swim and hold your head above the water even when the sense of His Presence is not with you to hold up your chin."

-From Springs in the Valley by Mrs Charles Cowman

July 24th, 2014

                          My Heart is Fixed on Jesus

by Lavinia Brauff

My heart is fixed on Jesus, the sun of all my tho’t;

What wondrous work of grace His love within my soul hath wrought!

He found me poor and helpless, by ev’ry sin oppressed,

And died that I might be redeemed, and have eternal rest.

Refrain:

My heart is fixed on Jesus,

No other hope have I;

I could not live without Him,

And without Him dare not die.

 My heart is fixed on Jesus, without Him life is vain;

His promise is thro’ all my days to comfort and sustain;

I love to hear Him whisper – “Be not afraid – ’tis I!’

As o’er the stormy sea I sail beneath a clouded sky. [Refrain]

My heart is fixed on Jesus, since I to Him belong,

For every day He gives me hope, for every night a song;

Thro trial and deep water His promises are sweet,

And, sheltered ’neath His wings of love I find a safe retreat. [Refrain]

July 23, 2014

July 22, 2014

July 21, 2014

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his steadfast love endures forever;

to him who alone does great wonders,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
to him who by understanding made the heavens,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
to him who spread out the earth above the waters,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
to him who made the great lights,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
the sun to rule over the day,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
the moon and stars to rule over the night,
for his steadfast love endures forever;

Psalm 136 ESV

July 20, 2014

“Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not…”Isaiah 35:4

“Nothing is hid from His all-seeing eye,

Never a teardrop nor even a sigh;

Anxious and troubled you never need be--

Trust Him completely and doubtings will flee.”

“Be not afraid of sudden fear…when it cometh.” Proverbs 3:25

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” Isaiah 41:10

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7

Next time fear knocks at your door, let faith open it.

July 18, 2014

"Why go I mourning?"

Psalm 42:9

Canst thou answer this, believer? Canst thou find any reason why thou art so often mourning instead of rejoicing? Why yield to gloomy anticipations? Who told thee that the night would never end in day? Who told thee that the sea of circumstances would ebb out till there should be nothing left but long leagues of the mud of horrible poverty? Who told thee that the winter of thy discontent would proceed from frost to frost, from snow, and ice, and hail, to deeper snow, and yet more heavy tempest of despair? Knowest thou not that day follows night, that flood comes after ebb, that spring and summer succeed winter? Hope thou then! Hope thou ever! For God fails thee not. Dost thou not know that thy God loves thee in the midst of all this? Mountains, when in darkness hidden, are as real as in day, and God's love is as true to thee now as it was in thy brightest moments. No father chastens always: thy Lord hates the rod as much as thou dost; he only cares to use it for that reason which should make thee willing to receive it, namely, that it works thy lasting good. Thou shalt yet climb Jacob's ladder with the angels, and behold him who sits at the top of it--thy covenant God. Thou shalt yet, amidst the splendours of eternity, forget the trials of time, or only remember them to bless the God who led thee through them, and wrought thy lasting good by them. Come, sing in the midst of tribulation. Rejoice even while passing through the furnace. Make the wilderness to blossom like the rose! Cause the desert to ring with thine exulting joys, for these light afflictions will soon be over, and then "forever with the Lord," thy bliss shall never wane.

"Faint not nor fear, his arms are near,

He changeth not, and thou art dear;

Only believe and thou shalt see,

That Christ is all in all to thee."

-Charles Spurgeon

July 17, 2014

July 16, 2014

Consider it wholly joyful, my brethren, whenever you are enveloped in or encounter trials of any sort or fall into various temptations.

 Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance and steadfastness and patience.

But let endurance and steadfastness and patience have full play and do a thorough work, so that you may be [people] perfectly and fully developed [with no defects], lacking in nothing.

If any of you is deficient in wisdom, let him ask of God [Who gives] to everyone liberally and ungrudgingly, without reproaching or faultfinding, and it will be given him.

Only it must be in faith that he asks with no wavering (no hesitating, no doubting). For the one who wavers (hesitates, doubts) is like the billowing surge out at sea that is blown hither and thither and tossed by the wind.

James 1 from the Amplified Bible

July 15th, 2014

July 14, 2014

Like a river glorious, is God’s perfect peace,

Over all victorious, in its bright increase;

Perfect, yet it floweth, fuller every day,

Perfect, yet it groweth, deeper all the way. 

Refrain 

Stayed upon Jehovah, hearts are fully blest

Finding, as He promised, perfect peace and rest.

Hidden in the hollow of His blessed hand,

Never foe can follow, neve traitor stand;

Not a surge of worry, not a shade of care,

Not a blast of hurry touch the spirit there. 

Refrain

 Every joy or trial falleth from above,

Traced upon our dial by the Sun of Love;

We may trust Him fully all for us to do.

They who trust Him wholly find Him wholly true.

-Francis Ridley Havergal

July 11th, 2014

QUITE SUDDENLY

Quite suddenly- it may be at the turning of a lane,

Where I stand to watch a skylark from out the swelling grain,

That the trump of God shall thrill me, with its call so loud and clear,

And I’m called away to meet Him, whom of all I hold most dear.

Quite suddenly- it may be as I tread the busy street,

Strong to endure life’s stress and strain, its very call to meet,

That through the roar of traffic, a trumpet, silvery clear,

Shall stir my startled senses and proclaim His coming near.

Quite suddenly- it may be in His house I bend my knee,

When the kingly voice, long hoped for, comes at last to summon me;

And the fellowship of earth-life that has seemed so passing sweet,

Proves nothing but the shadow of our meeting round His feet.

Quite suddenly- it may be as I lie in dreamless sleep,

God’s gift to many a sorrowing heart, with no more tears to weep,

That a call shall break my slumber and a Voice sound in my ear;

‘ Rise up, my love, and come away! Behold, the Bridegroom’s here!”

~Authur Unknown~

July 9th, 2014

July 8th, 2014

July 6th, 2014

"Faith TESTED is faith STRENGTHENED; it is to have learned your weakness, but to have learned the faithfulness of God, His tender care even in sending the difficulties, that we may be there with HIM." -Pilgrim Portions

"Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to Him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator." I Peter 4:19

"Casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you...the God of all grace, who hath called us unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you." 

I Peter 5:7 & 10

-compiled by Joanna Bartlett from the Joyful Mothers

July 5th, 2014

I think sometimes in life it is easy to stay in our comfort zone, to not act because standing still seems safer.  We stay still because we are afraid of the unknown.  We are afraid of making a mistake.  We are afraid of looking stupid.  We are afraid of failure.

We are afraid to trust God.

Because he gives us the choice.  In fact, in any potential leap of faith there are usually three important choices along the way.   All three require trust.

First, we have to make the choice to listen.   We will never hear the call to action if we don’t take the time to be quiet and just listen to what God might be telling us.  In my own prayer time, as in much of life, I generally like to be the one in control.  I have a list of prayer requests I need to address, and agenda for exactly how I’d like my devotion session to go.  But every once in a while I actually manage to Just. Stop. Talking.   And I listen.  And those are the moments where God is waiting to speak.

Second, we have to make the choice to obey.  When that whisper, that nudge, that deep conviction appears, we can’t push it away.  Our temptation is to argue, or to ignore it, or to tell ourselves we are crazy, that the whisper isn’t real.  But we know, deep down, that we have been called to obey.

And so we must say yes.

Yes without knowing what may happen.  Yes without necessarily having any actions steps in place.  Yes to the plans that he has for us.

Finally, we have to make the choice to follow through.  This is where the rubber meets the road.  We can’t just say yes and keep standing there.  There comes a moment where we have to close our eyes and jump and just trust God.  To let go of the notion that we are in control and instead open ourselves up to all the possibility that comes ahead.  We have to keep going, even when we feel like quitting, and trust that he who begins a good work in us will always, always see it through to completion.

Read more at http://www.livingwellspendingless.com/2014/07/25/leap-of-faith/#IrP2fEA8iWrbwpc8.99 - Ruth Soukup

July 4th, 2014

July 2nd, 2014

July 1st, 2014

My High Tower

by Paul Gerhardt

Is God for me? I fear not, though all against me rise;

I call on Christ my Saviour, the host of evil flies.

My friend the Lord Almighty, and He who loves me, God,

What enemy shall harm me, though coming as a flood?

I know it, I believe it, I say it fearlessly,

That God, the Highest, Mightiest, for ever loveth me;

At all times, in all places, He standeth at my side,

He rules the battle fury, the tempest and the tide.

A Rock that stands for ever is Christ my Righteousness,

And there I stand unfearing in everlasting bliss;

No earthly thing is needful to this my life from Heaven,

And nought of love is worthy, save that which Christ has given.

Christ, all my praise and glory, my Light most sweet and fair,

The ship wherein He saileth is scatheless everywhere;

In Him I dare be joyful, a hero in the war,

The judgment of the sinner affrighteth me no more.

There is no condemnation, there is no hell for me,

The torment and the fire my eyes shall never see;

For me there is no sentence, for me has death no stings,

Because the Lord Who saved me shall shield me with His wings.

Above my soul’s dark waters His Spirit hovers still,

He guards me from all sorrow, from terror and from ill;

In me He works and blesses the life-seed He has sown,

From Him I learn the Abba, that prayer of faith alone.

And if in lonely places, a fearful child, I shrink,

He prays the prayers within me I cannot ask or think;

In deep unspoken language, known only to that Love

Who fathoms the heart’s mystery from the Throne of Light above.

His Spirit to my spirit sweet words of comfort saith,

How God the weak one strengthens who leans on Him in faith;

How He hath built a City, of love, and light, and song,

Where the eye at last beholdeth what the heart had loved so long.

And there is mine inheritance, my kingly palace-home;

The leaf may fall and perish, not less the spring will come;

As wind and rain of winter, our earthly sighs and tears,

Till the golden summer dawneth of the endless Year of years.

The world may pass and perish, Thou, God, wilt not remove—

No hatred of all devils can part me from Thy Love;

No hungering nor thirsting, no poverty nor care,

No wrath of mighty princes can reach my shelter there.

No Angel, and no Heaven, no throne, nor power, nor might,

No love, no tribulation, no danger, fear, nor fight,

No height, no depth, no creature that has been or can be,

Can drive me from Thy bosom, can sever me from Thee.

My heart in joy upleapeth, grief cannot linger there—

While singing high in glory amidst the sunshine fair;

The source of all my singing is high in Heaven above;

The Sun that shines upon me is Jesus and His Love.