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The Lord is faithful in all his words
and kind in all his works.
The Lord upholds all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
You open your hand;
you satisfy the desire of every living thing.
The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and kind in all his works.
The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he also hears their cry and saves them.
The Lord preserves all who love him,
but the wicked he will destroy.
Psalm 145:13b-20
Our soul waits for the Lord;
He is our help and our shield.
For our heart is glad in him,
because we trust in his holy name.
Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us
even as we hope in you.
Psalm 33:20-22
Crown Him with many crowns, the Lamb upon His throne.
Hark! How the heav’nly anthem drowns all music but its own.
Awake, my soul, and sing of Him who died for thee,
And hail Him as thy matchless King through all eternity.
Crown Him the virgin’s Son, the God incarnate born,
Whose arm those crimson trophies won which now His brow adorn;
Fruit of the mystic rose, as of that rose the stem;
The root whence mercy ever flows, the Babe of Bethlehem.
Crown Him the Son of God, before the worlds began,
And ye who tread where He hath trod, crown Him the Son of Man;
Who every grief hath known that wrings the human breast,
And takes and bears them for His own, that all in Him may rest.
Crown Him the Lord of life, who triumphed o’er the grave,
And rose victorious in the strife for those He came to save.
His glories now we sing, who died, and rose on high,
Who died eternal life to bring, and lives that death may die.
Crown Him the Lord of peace, whose power a scepter sways
From pole to pole, that wars may cease, and all be prayer and praise.
His reign shall know no end, and round His piercèd feet
Fair flowers of paradise extend their fragrance ever sweet.
Crown Him the Lord of love, behold His hands and side,
Those wounds, yet visible above, in beauty glorified.
No angel in the sky can fully bear that sight,
But downward bends his burning eye at mysteries so bright.
Crown Him the Lord of Heav’n, enthroned in worlds above,
Crown Him the King to whom is giv’n the wondrous name of Love.
Crown Him with many crowns, as thrones before Him fall;
Crown Him, ye kings, with many crowns, for He is King of all.
Crown Him the Lord of lords, who over all doth reign,
Who once on earth, the incarnate Word, for ransomed sinners slain,
Now lives in realms of light, where saints with angels sing
Their songs before Him day and night, their God, Redeemer, King.
Crown Him the Lord of years, the Potentate of time,
Creator of the rolling spheres, ineffably sublime.
All hail, Redeemer, hail! For Thou has died for me;
Thy praise and glory shall not fail throughout eternity.
-Matthew Bridges, Godfrey Thring
It seems like such a long time since I’ve posted anything my fingers feel a little rusty on the keypad. During the past year, every time a group of guests leave the lodge I’m sick for several days. This time I must have been really depleted because a couple of days ago I slept for about 30 hours straight through, waking only to take more meds. I’m thankful that I’m feeling a lot better this morning and am even enjoying my coffee. Progress!
It’s snowing and blowing outside, looking like the dead of winter. I’m yearning, yearning for spring.
Every duty calls for more grace than I now possess,
but not more than is found in Thee, the divine treasure
in whom all fullness dwells.
To Thee I repair for grace upon grace,
until every void made by sin be replenished
and I am filled with all Thy fullness.
My my desires be enlarged and my hopes emboldened,
that I may honour Thee by my entire dependency
and the greatness of my expectation.
Do Thou be with me, and prepare me for all
the smiles of prosperity, the frowns of adversity,
the losses of substance, the death of friends,
the days of darkness, the changes of life,
the the last great change of all.
May I find Thy grace sufficient for all my needs.
Jesus, keep me near the cross,
There a precious fountain
Free to all, a healing stream
Flows from Calvary’s mountain.
Refrain:
In the cross, in the cross,
Be my glory ever;
Till my raptured soul shall find
Rest beyond the river.
Near the cross, a trembling soul,
Love and mercy found me;
There the bright and morning star
Sheds its beams around me.
Refrain
Near the cross! O Lamb of God,
Bring its scenes before me;
Help me walk from day to day,
With its shadows o’er me.
Refrain
Near the cross I’ll watch and wait
Hoping, trusting ever,
Till I reach the golden strand,
Just beyond the river.
In the cross, in the cross,
Be my glory ever;
Till my raptured soul shall find
Rest beyond the river.
-Fanny Crosby, 1869
On this Thursday I’m thankful…
for sunshine today, snow tomorrow—we need the moisture.
for fresh vegetables and fruit, especially strawberries that actually taste like strawberries.
that my sisters have sewn dresses for children at the RHFH Rescue Center in Haiti—they’ve made 24 so far! Isn’t that great?
the work of God in the lives of the folks who are currently at our lodge.
for the cross of Christ. Oh, the wonder.
Every Thursday I’m joining Kim from The Upward Call and others in expressing thanks to God for all that we have through him. Join in, won’t you?
Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone! Unlike a lot of you, I’m doing nothing that signifies the day. We have guests at the lodge and I’m guessing from experience that most of them would turn their noses at corned beef and cabbage. Too bad; I love it. Maybe I’ll make some Irish Soda Bread as a little nod.
The arrival of daffodils in the grocery store always makes me happy. I can’t resist having a jug of them on my table—or on my header!
On another note, I’m not a fan of daylight saving time—don’t like having it dark when I head out to work. I hear an owl hooting away in a tree; I think he’s complaining about the same thing.
Off to prepare breakfast for our guests! Have a nice day.
Merciful God, O abounding in love,
Faithful to all who draw near You;
Hearing the cries of the humble in heart,
Showing the cross they may cling to.
Broken I come, helpless in sin,
Found at the feet of Your mercy.
Father, forgive; may my sin be remembered no more.
Merciful God, O abounding in love,
Faithful through times we have failed You;
Selfish in thought and uncaring in deed,
Foolish in word and ungrateful.
Spirit of God, conquer our hearts
With love that flows from forgiveness;
Cause us to yield and return to the mercy of God.
Merciful God, O abounding in love,
Faithful to keep us from falling;
Guiding our ways with Your fatherly heart,
Growing our faith with each testing.
God speed the day struggles will end;
Faultless we’ll gaze on Your glory.
Then we will stand overwhelmed by the mercy of God.
Words and Music by Keith Getty, Kristyn Getty, and Stuart Townend
Copyright © 2006 Thankyou Music
Three weeks ago I experienced an almost total hearing loss in my left ear. My doctor could see no cause for it. I am so, so thankful to the Lord that during the last three days my hearing has improved greatly. A definite answer to prayer!
The growths on our yellow lab, Libby, are merely “old-age fat.” Hmm. That sounds vaguely familiar…. Kindred spirits, Libby and I.
I’m thankful for books written by godly men and women that teach me more of God, thereby increasing my love for Him.
I’m thankful for men and women who have lived and died for the cause of Christ. May God comfort the families of the World Vision staff members in Pakistan who were murdered yesterday.
And this most of all: “Amazing love! How can it be, that Thou my God shouldst die for me?”
Every Thursday I’m joining Kim from The Upward Call and others in expressing thanks to God for His abundant blessings. Join in, won’t you?
• If you seek humility, try hard work; if you would know your nothingness, attempt some great thing for Jesus. If you want to feel how utterly powerless you are apart from the living God, attempt especially the great work of proclaiming the unsearchable riches of Christ, and you will know, as you never knew before, what a weak, unworthy thing you are.
• The path of trouble is the way home.
• Faith’s way of walking is to cast all care upon the Lord, and then to anticipate good results from the worst calamities. Like Gideon’s men, she does not fret over the broken pitcher but rejoices that the lamp shines with even more brilliance. Out of the rough oyster-shell of difficulty she extracts the rare pearl of honor, and from the deep ocean-caves of distress she discovers the priceless coral of experience. When her flood of prosperity ebbs, she finds treasures hidden in the sands; and when her sun of delight goes down, she turns her telescope of hope to the starry promises of heaven.
