Encouragement Post - Coronavirus Distancing Day 54 (Tuesday)

Encouragement Post #54 (Tuesday) - "Who would've thought that a Lamb could rescue the souls of men? Oh, You rescue the souls of men."

1 Peter 1:17-19 "If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth; knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ."

Encouragement Post - Coronavirus Distancing Day 47 (Friday)

2 Corinthians 4:6 "For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ."

Romans 5:1-2 "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God."

Matthew 11:28-30 "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

Captivate Us
by Watermark

Your face is beautiful
And Your eyes are like the stars
Your gentle hands have healing
There inside the scars
Your loving arms they draw me near
And Your smile it brings me peace
Draw me closer oh my Lord
Draw me closer Lord to Thee

Captivate us Lord Jesus set our eyes on You
Devastate us with your presence falling down
And rushing river draw us nearer
Holy fountain consume us with You
Captivate us Lord Jesus with You

Your voice is powerful
And Your words are radiant bright
In Your breath and shadow
I will come close and abide
You whisper love and life divine
And Your fellowship is free
Draw us closer oh my Lord
Draw me closer Lord to thee

Captivate us Lord Jesus set our eyes on You
Devastate us with Your presence falling down
And rushing river draw us nearer
Holy fountain consume us with You
Captivate us Lord Jesus with You

And let everything be lost in the shadows
Of the light of your face
And let every chain be broken from me
As I'm bound in Your grace
For Your yoke is easy Your burden is light
You're full of wisdom power and might
And every eye will see You
And captivate us Lord Jesus with You
Captivate us

Encouragement Post - Coronavirus Distancing Day 25 (Thusday)

Encouragement Post – Day #25 (Thursday) Beautiful song filled with truth… perfect for this week. Glorious Day!

Romans 8:31-39 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, 'For Your sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.'But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Encouragement Post - Coronavirus Distancing Day 21 (Palm Sunday)

Encouragement Post - Day #21 (Sunday) This is one of my very favorite new worship songs. It tells my story. Does it tell yours?

Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."





In our neighborhood, we wanted to display outwardly that we were celebrating Palm Sunday even though we were not gathering in our places of worship to do that.  So, we chose to put some greenery tied with a red ribbon on our front door (pretty much just stuck in the wreath).

 

Hosanna in the highest!

 

All is calm, all is bright...

After a very busy month with the art show (which I will post more about in a later post), emergency wisdom tooth removal after the discovery of a 5th wisdom tooth (yes, this really is possible, and yes, you can still have to have your wisdom teeth out at 50+), and this week a lovely stomach bug (NOT!)...

today was such a WONDERFUL day beginning with celebrating our Lord at church this morning, then lunch with my mom and step-dad, then opening gifts with our children, and then more gifts with my mother- and father-in-law... then playing with gifts and enjoying one another's company.  And now we're sitting -- feet propped up -- watching Little Women.  All is calm and all is bright... peaceful and joyful deep down. 

Thankful for what Christmas really means... 

it means in spite of my nerves in a dentist's chair about wisdom teeth removal, 

or my nerves about painting live in a mall window with people watching me the entire time (for the first time), 

or my heart's ache for my step-father who lost his 43 year-old son this summer

(who left four beautiful boys 13 and under and a beautiful wife behind),

or the fact that the eldest of those four beautiful boys is battling cancer himself,

or the fact that my bout with a four day stomach virus or food poisoning fog these last five days has derailed my best laid plans for Christmas...

Jesus has me right where He wants me.  He knows His plans for me, and He knows His plans for my step-father's family, and He knows His plans for my children, and He knows His plans for you, too.  I don't have to know HIS plan, I just have to trust HIS hand.

I wrote this in 2012 and it still applies even more today.  

Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace! Hail the Sun of Righteousness! Hail the incarnate Deity! Jesus, our Emmanuel... Hark! The herald angels sing, "Glory to the King of kings!" (This last line is how Wesley wrote it originally; it was later revised by George Whitfield.) As I look at the many blessings of life, including my precious family, I am struck that even as precious and wonderful as our family times are, and as much as I treasure EACH and EVERY memory we make… even family is not what Christmas is all about. It is about One thing and One thing only: Jesus desired so much to bring my sinful self back into relationship with Himself that He was willing to lay aside the glory of heaven and His right to stay there, to put on the flesh of a helpless babe and later walk as a man, and then to be the sacrifice necessary to pay the penalty for my sin. It is with wonder that I think about this and all it means. And because of His sacrifice, I receive all the benefits: peace that passes understanding in a world riddled with anxiety and fear, contentment in a world that would sell me dissatisfaction, joy in a world that offers great sadness, love in a world filled with hate… and on top of all that the promise of eternity with Him. Christmas is not feelings or faith or even family … Christmas is Emmanuel, the God Who is with us… and that is Everything.