Thanksgiving on Thursday...

 

 

Recently, my daughters and I, along with 3 other friends too a road trip to
 a neighboring state to help with a widow's retreat.
 What a blessing to prepare for and serve 300 widows!

 

We were so blessed be able to fellowship with friends of like precious faith.

I was reminded of how I longed for several years for more fellowship,

and how God has brought me to a place of being totally in Him.

But oh, the benefits He daily loads me with,

including fellowship almost daily with people who seek to honor Him.

 

The last hour of our 4.5 hour ride home, we were encouraging one another in

psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, taking turns suggesting songs to sing.

 

One of us chose, "Be Thou My Vision" and while I have enjoyed that hymn

many times over, for some reason, as I drove homeward that evening,

the words struck a chord in my heart.

 

Oh may we live the words of this song prayerfully and carefully every day.

 

It is a blessing when we let Christ be our vision every moment.

A blessing indeed!

 

 

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

Words At­trib­ut­ed to Dal­lan For­gaill, 8th Cen­tu­ry (Rob tu mo bhoile, a Com­di cri­de); trans­lat­ed from an­cient Ir­ish to Eng­lish by Ma­ry E. Byrne, in “Eriú,” Jour­nal of the School of Ir­ish Learn­ing, 1905, and versed by El­ea­nor H. Hull, 1912, alt.

Music: Slane, of Ir­ish folk or­i­gin (MI­DI, score). Slane Hill is about ten miles from Ta­ra in Coun­ty Meath. It was on Slane Hill around 433 AD that St. Pat­rick de­fied a roy­al edict by light­ing can­dles on East­er Eve. High King Lo­gaire of Ta­ra had de­creed that no one could light a fire be­fore Lo­gaire be­gan the pa­gan spring fes­ti­val by light­ing a fire on Ta­ra Hill. Lo­gaire was so im­pressed by Pat­rick’s de­vo­tion that, de­spite his de­fi­ance (or per­haps be­cause of it­), he let him con­tin­ue his mis­sion­ary work. The rest is his­to­ry.