In Psalms and Hymns and Spiritual Songs...

I was going to do my normal Saturday posting of a song but I have several to share from the past few weeks while I was away. Be blessed, be encouraged. And go forth in His name!

 

"You Raise Me Up"

 

While I was at Bible School, there were several hard things

I was dealing with, including hearing the heart cries of

various young women in hard circumstances.

This song blessed me almost every day as I

either prepared for the day, or as I sat alone with God

before I retired for the night.

 

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"Forth in Thy Name, O Lord, I go,
My daily labor to pursue;
Thee, only Thee, resolved to know
In all I think or speak or do.

 

The task Thy wisdom hath assigned,
O let me cheerfully fulfill;
In all my works Thy presence find,
And prove Thy good and perfect will.

 

Preserve me from my calling’s snare,
And hide my simple heart above,
Above the thorns of choking care,
The gilded baits of worldly love.

 

Thee may I set at my right hand,
Whose eyes mine inmost substance see,
And labor on at Thy command,
And offer all my works to Thee.

 

Give me to bear Thy easy yoke,
And every moment watch and pray,
And still to things eternal look,
And hasten to Thy glorious day.

 

For Thee delightfully employ
Whate’er Thy bounteous grace hath giv’n;
And run my course with even joy,
And closely walk with Thee to Heav’n."

 

This was one of the songs sung

by the chorus at Bible School which

has often been part of my heart cry to God

through the years. Especially the line

"The task Thy wisdom hath assigned

oh let me cheerfully fulfill"...

There have been tasks His wisdom has assigned me,

and I have stared at them, down a seeming dark tunnel

with no light or end in sight.

BUT, like I told some of my friends while

visiting recently,

"The best decision I ever made was to believe

and call on the name of the Lord Jesus for salvation.

And the second best decision I ever made is

that I would die to all of me so that He can

live and work through me. It has been my

purpose to die quickly so that His life

can live more fully in me."

So it doesn't matter if the way looks dark

or the tasks seem huge.

I know HIM and the power of HIS might.

That is all I need, right?!

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

"His Love Cannot Fail"

yet another song the Bible School chorus sang

that resonates in my soul...

Where ever would I be without that love???

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

"I Then Shall Live"

 

and finally, let us look up,

for our redemption draws near!

 

I look back over this year and reflect on

lessons learned, pathways walked with Him.

I would have to say that this song in particular

summarizes my year of ponderings,

and climbing.

I would have to say that after several years of

heartache and seeking the Lord in intense

soul searching and with many questions,

I come to the Higher Ground of

walking by faith and not by sight...

I come to the place of not needing to know

why or what or how or when

but am content to just BE His and enjoy

His being MINE...

 

One day we will all stand before the judgment seat

of Christ and give an account of what we chose

to do with Him while we lived on Earth.

Because of Him, I look forward to that day!

 

Hallelujah!

He lives.

 

 

For the short remainder of this year 2013,

This blog may be on slight delay of the normal daily posts

you have been accustomed to since its beginning.

 

I have quite a few things I would like to devote my attention to

this winter, Lord willing...

~sewing with my girls,

~writing a book (maybe)

~discipling young women He has brought into my life

~schooling my children

~several out-of-state trips planned

~hosting company

~deep cleaning my home

 

Feel free to check in here often.

But I thought I should warn you that posting

may be fairly sparse for awhile...

God bless you.

 



Thanksgiving on Thursday...

Well, here I am, back after a very slow time on this blog. I've been busy with youth Bible School and then a family trip to the south and west and Midwest.

I come home from being away 3 weeks and am deeply grateful to my heavenly Father...

~for my family who truly is 'the dearest on earth to me'. That is no small statement, given that at one time this poor woman was an emotional wreck with nary a vision for godly family life or marriage!

~for enlightening the eyes of my understanding and for taking me seriously when I asked that He would make me more like Jesus every day. Painful to the flesh it has been but oh, such sweetness and richness in Him!

 

~that when fathers and mothers forsake their children, the Lord truly does take them up...

~that when we are free in Him, we are free INDEED!

 

 

~that my 'knight in shining armor' continues to give me unwavering love and loyalty...

in spite of all my faults and stumblings.

 

 

~that I have wonderful daughters who love home and family

 and willingly serve in the home God gave them.

 

some of the wonderful young women who stayed with me
 during the week of Bible school

~that I have been privileged to work with wonderful youth at Bible school this year again. So many who love the Lord and want to honor Him with their lives! I don't think they know how much they encourage this 'elderly matron' (a nickname for me with an interesting beginning!) who sometimes has staggered at the masses falling away from the Truth...

~that all through the past 2 weeks I have met with those who earnestly seek Him from Oklahoma to Texas to Missouri...the people of the living God are truly my favorites in the whole wide world! And even while on the road, I had contact from other places with people of the living God, greatly encouraging me and strengthening my hand in Him!

 

~that I have sweet friends, people of the living God, to come home to here in New York

(after 3 weeks of being away)...

 

we made it in fine spirits to the top of the lighthouse rock
 in Palo Duro Canyon, TX
a 6 mile "not your walk in the park" round trip hike!
something I could not have done a few years ago

~that after years of wandering thru sickness both in my soul and body, I have been healed.

 

 

~that I have a son who has a heart of gold...who cares about his mama and makes sure that I am cared for when he feels I might be threatened or need assistance (such as in rough places when hiking).

 

~that we have freezers and shelves filled with the harvest and the fruit of our hands from summer... we shall not be afraid of winter.

 

 

~that reconciliations in friendships still happen today...even though they might have been 20 years in coming. What a reason to continue to hope for the relationships that are divided by kingdom loyalties. They cause a lot of hurt and heartache...

but reconcilations sure cause the heart to rejoice and hope!

 

~that my name is written in the palm of His hand and NOTHING or NO ONE can take me from His hand. I am abiding under the shadow of the Almighty and He truly is my shield and my fortress...my refuge, my God, in whom I will trust.

 

So today, while we in America traditionally observe Thanksgiving day, I also want to stand up and proclaim that every day shall be a Thanks Living Day...because He lives. Without Him I am nothing.

 

my theme verse of the year!

This past year has been one of the most painful ones I have ever lived but it has been filled with a sense of deep peace in the sustaining hand of my Father God. This year I have learned more about the power of praising God than I ever have before. Praise cannot wait until all is 'well' in my circumstances. Praise is telling God that I cannot but I know Him and the power of His might. Praise tells Him that He is God and that I completely (even tho on wobbly feet at times) trust Him and that He truly will and does work all things out to those who love Him. Nothing in this old, sinful world is perfect. But to know HIM is to fill my heart with the hope of eternal life, that one day, I shall see Him face to face and know, even as I am known now.

 

Until, then, I am content in whatever state I am. Truly. And my heart is deeply thankful to Him who did not slay me, though many times He had the right to do so...but instead, He has given me Life and life more abundantly through Him who died for me!

 

 

 

Hallelujah!

 

 

"The LORD is my strength and my shield;

my heart trusted in him,

and I am helped:

 therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth;

and with my song will I praise him"

Psalm 28:7

Sheep Eating Sheep...

" It's interesting..
that when we PROFESS likeness with Christ,
nobody's feathers are ruffled,
 but when we begin to be identified with Him
by how our lives are lived out, it becomes a bit offensive,
mostly to other Christians.
 Shouldn't we be cheering one another on in the fight for faith,
the battle for souls, seeing the captives set free?
No matter where it takes us or how "radical" it may look..
we only get one chance."

 -D'Lynn Watts

"Why do sheep keep eating sheep?"
I heard the desperation and sadness
even in her email over the weekend.
And my heart bled because I have seen so many
sheep eating sheep.
Or are they wolves?
But maybe sometimes they are sheep...

Paul had this problem in his day.

"For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this;
Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
¹⁵ But if ye bite and devour one another,
take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.
¹⁶ This I say then,
Walk in the Spirit,
and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh."

(Gal. 5:14-16)

So...there truly is no new thing under the sun.

All we can do is love the Lord our God with our all...
Which includes loving our neighbor as ourselves.
No gossip.
No slander.
No rudeness.

No matter how right we are.
No matter how wrong they are.

Grace turns a wrongdoer over to God for Him to deal with.
Grace turns the other cheek and humbly lets the
wolf/sheep-eating sheep
walk by on the other side.

BUT...
grace does not compromise truth.
Grace is not about doing things like others think I should
if they are wrong things and cause me to compromise.
Grace is about me humbly and quietly fulfilling the Lord's
plans for me, no matter who does or who doesn't.

Please excuse the seeming randomness of this post.
It was born from several years of ponderings,
musings, and personal experiences
combined with observing and hearing the heart cry of
others who have been bitten by sheep.

Even so come, LORD Jesus!

Just Over Yonder

(recently, as I hosted some beautiful daughters of the King
during a youth Bible school, one of these dear ones was singing
the song above as we worked in the kitchen.
 Eventually another girl chimed in and then I did, too.
Fond memory I will carry in my heart...
And yes, I long to be Home with Him!)
 

 

People of the Living God...



Today I wept as I sat in the simple but beautiful wedding of a very dear friend. I was so moved by her care of her father, who walked her down the aisle to her waiting bridegroom. I wept as I thought of the many good discussions she and I had had over our short but meaningful relationship. I wept as I thought of how God orchestrates our lives and brings into our lives what joys and sorrows we need to help us to glorify Him.

And then I was very blessed at the reception to encounter people of the living God at every turn! We loved visiting over lunch with a fine couple who shared part of their journey to understanding and obeying the Scriptures often overlooked or abandoned by mainstream Christianity.

I was blessed to meet a Google + friend whom I had never seen before and tell her that I was encouraged by her posts. We had sweet fellowship for a short time.

I was encouraged to hug some very special friends, dear heart sisters whose lives have intertwined with mine for 5 years now, and who have often encouraged me in their love for simplicity in Christ.

Oh, how can one heart contain such joy and blessing?! I am so overwhelmed with gratitude once again at seeing the people of the living God from different parts of this country gathering to witness and support a new godly home beginning.

Through many years of wondering many times where the people of God really are, God has always shown me that they exist today and that there are still those who love Him from the inside out.

I am thankful. The storms of life come raging around me and although many righteous dreams of mine lie ground into powder at my feet, I am content in Him. He knows. And that is enough for me.

God bless you all,
Marcia

 

 

The Church's One Foundation



Not Fear...

“We stand, when we are young, on the sunny slope among the pines, and look across an unknown country to the mountains. There are clouds, but they are edged with light. We do not fear as we dip into the valley; we do not fear the clouds. Thank God for the splendid fearlessness of youth. And as for older travelers whom the Lord has led over the hill and the dale, they have not been given the spirit of fear. They think of the way they have come since they stood on that bright hillside, and their word is always this: There are reasons and reasons for hope and for happiness, and never one for fear.”  

― Amy Carmichael