Gray Day

Looking out our back windows this morning all I can see is gray. Gray clouds, gray mist, grayish rain, and the pond looks gray as it reflects it all. It's so easy on a day like today to feel down and dismal. There is no cheery light coming in the windows. It seems like a good day to crawl into bed or curl up on the couch with a book and a cup of tea. But there are things to be done: home schooling, preparing for American Heritage Girls tonight, cleaning, grading Spanish tests for Friday's co-op class, and teaching piano this afternoon. 

My solution? Open up the front door. We have azaleas blooming by our front door...

...and our neighbor across the street has more:

Even on such a dreary day these promises of Spring can cheer the heart and lighten the mood.

Now I just need to play some nice music on either my CD player or on Pandora...

What I just listened to on Pandora

I really like using Pandora online radio.  Right now, as the kids and I do homeschooling, I have a channel on that is hymns and praise songs.  We just listened to Louise Stead's "Tis so Sweet to Trust in Jesus."  I really love that song!  Whoops, gotta go, "Praise to the Lord the Almighty" just came on...

’Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to take Him at His word;
Just to rest upon His promise;
Just to know, Thus saith the Lord.

• Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him,
  How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er,
  Jesus, Jesus, Precious Jesus!
    O for grace to trust Him more.

O how sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to trust His cleansing blood;
Just in simple faith to plunge me,
’Neath the healing, cleansing flood.

Yes, ’tis sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just from sin and self to cease;
Just from Jesus simply taking
Life, and rest, and joy, and peace.

I’m so glad I learned to trust Thee,
Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend;
And I know that Thou art with me,
Wilt be with me to the end.

Source: http://www.hymnal.net/hymn.php/h/568#ixzz2Mm38QUc2

Tough Questions

This week we're going to the Ligonier national conference in Orlando, Florida.  I'm excited to once again hear great teaching and wonderful music.  This year's topic is "Tough Questions Christians Face."  A few of the questions they are tackling:

Why did Jesus have to die?
What is evil and where did it come from?
Why do Christians still sin?
Is the Bible just another book?
Is the exclusivity of Christ unjust?
Why does the universe look so old?
Can we enjoy heaven knowing of loved ones who went to hell?

It will be interesting to hear the various speakers address these questions, some of which I have actually been asked by non-Christians or by recently saved Christians.  I hope that they do point out, collectively, that the answers to some of these questions are based on faith, which is itself a gift from God.

What a difference a tuning makes....

Yesterday we had our piano tuned.  YAY!  It had gotten to the point where I didn't want to sit down and play anything because it had gotten so out of tune.  One key in particular, the F just below middle C, sounded flatter than a board-book, and in the lower register there was a whole octave that wasn't playing right--all the keys were moving downward when you pressed just one.  But when the piano tuner was done yesterday, it sounded like a wholly different instrument, and playing was once again pleasurable.  Now, it took about two hours of painstaking work for the tuner to bring the piano back into tune.  It isn't an easy thing to do.  I watched and listened as he carefully tested each note, comparing it to the electronic tuner he had, twisting the pin to tighten the string or loosen it until the key played the note perfectly.  If even one note is off, an entire song can be ruined.  So he tested them, tuned them, and played them individually and then together to make sure the sound was right.  He fixed the F that was out of tune.  He found a pencil that had rolled into the piano in the bass section and, voila, those keys began playing correctly again.

So....this morning I'm ruminating on the piano tuning, and thinking that God does a lot of similar things in our lives as Christians.  He sometimes twists and turns us, tightening things in our lives to bring us in tune with Him.  He shows us "pencils in the works," things that have rolled into our lives (or we've invited in) that are keeping us from functioning correctly.  He removes those things from our lives when we ask Him to, and carefully aligns us with Him.  What a loving and gracious God!  

To the tune of the Beatles' "Yesterday"

Allergies...
rhinitis is taking over me...
more snot than I thought that there could be...
oh, I'm beset...by allergies

Help me, please...
sneezing, coughing now exhaustingly...
is there any simple remedy?
oh, allergies have bested me...

why..they...will not go, I don't know! they're here for keeps...
my head's stuffed up tight and at night I cannot sleep... (oh, oh, oh)

Allergies...
and "non-drowsy" antihistamines...
will I ever see the end of these?
Oh, suffering from allergies...

Suffering...from allergies.

UPDATE:
Allergies...
off to see the ENT at 3:00.
A nice man whose name is RASHleigh...
otorhinolaryngology.

Seventeen Years...

...ago today Eric and I were married. Words cannot adequately describe how blessed I am to have Eric as my husband. God has given me a godly, sweet, caring, intelligent and funny man to be married to for life. During our marriage we have lived in three states and the country of India, had three children, gone through a cerebral aneurysm with one child and cancer with another, and seen Eric's profession of school psychologist change to the calling of being a minister. The foundation that has kept us solid through all of this is our relationship with the Lord. I don't know how anyone who doesn't know the Lord can go through some of the things that we have endured. But because the center of our marriage is God, the center holds when other things seem to be spinning wildly. The Lord has promised good to me, His word my hope secures. He will my shield and portion be as long as life endures.

Eric, I love you! Happy anniversary.

I ponder as I wander...

As I go through my daily routine, I have one or two songs that play over and over in my head, usually songs that I have been playing on the piano or that we have sung in church. Last week I was playing through my hymnal, and this song has been in my head ever since:

May the mind of Christ, my Savior,
Live in me from day to day,
By His love and power controlling
All I do and say.

May the Word of God dwell richly
In my heart from hour to hour,
So that all may see I triumph
Only through His power.

May the peace of God my Father
Rule my life in everything,
That I may be calm to comfort
Sick and sorrowing.

May the love of Jesus fill me
As the waters fill the sea;
Him exalting, self abasing,
This is victory.

May I run the race before me,
Strong and brave to face the foe,
Looking only unto Jesus
As I onward go.

May His beauty rest upon me,
As I seek the lost to win,
And may they forget the channel,
Seeing only Him.

Published in 1925 by Kate B. Wilkinson, this hymn was inspired by two of my favorite Scripture passages. The first is Philippians 2:5 "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus..." The passage goes on to explain just what that mind of Christ entails. This is perhaps my favorite passage in all of Scripture--verses 5-11 in Philippians 2. The other verses that Wilkinson clearly alludes to are Hebrews 12:1-2 "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." I'm pretty sure there are other verses referenced, also, but those are the two main ones.

I love the lyrics to this hymn, as the author asks for the mind of Christ, the word of God, the peace of God, the love of Jesus, and His beauty, to live in, dwell in, rule, fill, and rest upon her. I have been singing these words over and over (in my head) for the past few days. I'm not sure if we are supposed to meditate on things other than Scripture, but I think this song falls within the guidelines of Philippians 4:8 as something that should be thought upon. So I'll continue to keep playing it over and over in my head as "background music."

Are there any songs on your mind these days?

A Year Ago....

Today marks one year since we returned from living in India so that our son Bobby could be treated for lymphoma. I can hardly believe it's been that long, and yet on the other hand it seems like it's been forever. I can truthfully say that it has been the hardest year of my life. We have faced the possible death of our son, watched him go through chemo and all that it brings, waited for results of scans to see if he's cancer-free (still waiting...) and had a total change of career and
direction in life. We are still waiting in that regard, also. What I have learned is that I must not give up trusting in the Lord and having faith that He is in control. Even when things seem dark and hopeless, "there is no pit so deep that God's love is not deeper still," as Corrie Ten Boom and her sister Betsy said in the concentration camp. In that vein, I've been thinking of these word by Samuel Trevor Francis today:

O the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast, unmeasured, boundless, free!
Rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me!
Underneath me, all around me, is the current of Thy love
Leading onward, leading homeward to Thy glorious rest above!

O the deep, deep love of Jesus, spread His praise from shore to shore!
How He loveth, ever loveth, changeth never, nevermore!
How He watches o’er His loved ones, died to call them all His own;
How for them He intercedeth, watcheth o’er them from the throne!

O the deep, deep love of Jesus, love of every love the best!
’Tis an ocean full of blessing, ’tis a haven sweet of rest!
O the deep, deep love of Jesus, ’tis a heaven of heavens to me;
And it lifts me up to glory, for it lifts me up to Thee!

I really like the ocean imagery, and the idea of a restful haven. Also, it reminds me of this passage in Ephesians. So we'll press on, knowing that God knows the plans He has for us, even if we don't. And even if this next year is as hard as the last one has been, or harder, I will still praise Him.

Counting Just a Few...

When I stop to count my blessings, I realize that there are too many to include in one blog post, so I'll just list a "few" today:

1. My salvation, and God's Word
2. My godly husband
3. My three children
4. Bobby is cancer-free
5. I was raised in a Christian home with godly parents
6. I have wonderful, godly parents-in-law
7. Except for Bobby's cancer, we have all been very healthy lately
8. We were privileged to live overseas for almost five months.
9. Wonderful family members and friends (if I started listing them it would go on and on)
10. Free minutes to my my-Faves numbers means I can call my sisters any time
11. Ditto for calling my parents
12. Electricity that is on 24-7
13. Wal*Mart (I know--it also falls under the "curse" category)
14. Quiet nights in Pooler, GA
15. Enough food every day
16. Heated house
17. Clean water straight out of the tap
18. Nice church to attend, with great people
19. Free housing for the last 10 months
20. A nice van (thanks M & D)
21. Music
22. Good books to read
23. Beauty in nature
24. A washing machine and dryer
25. All kitchen appliances
26. Blow dryer
27. Hair straightener
28. Easy communication through e-mail and Skype
29. Comfy bed to sleep in at night

I could go on and on, getting more specific. Like, in the food category: strawberries, chocolate, broccoli (yes, that's not a joke--I love broccoli, and in India we only had it twice in four and 1/2 months,) apples, ice cream, etc. etc.
Or, in the music category: playing the piano, listening to music, singing in the choir, hearing others sing...etc.

See, it's fun to count your blessings! And it makes me see that God has indeed blessed my life, even during times of extreme duress. More about that later.

One by One....

I grew up in Puerto Rico, where my parents were missionaries. Every Thursday night our home was the location of the Mission Meeting--a team meeting of all the Wesleyan missionaries--during which they studied God's Word, sang, shared prayer requests, and prayed. Oh, they prayed. When I was little, I didn't fully comprehend what they had to pray about. What could possibly take that much time to talk to God about? My siblings and I would hang out in our rooms doing homework or reading, or planning ways to sneak past all the people in the living room and out to the kitchen to eat the goodies that people had brought. Or we just sat there waiting for the meeting to be over so we could go partake of the finger foods.

But what I remember most is hearing the missionaries sing. They sang all the great hymns, and it was a beautiful sound. I grew up in a house where music was nearly always playing. (My sister Ruth calls it "life with background music.") But there was something even sweeter (as I look back now from thirty years later) in this music sung by people who were living in a culture not their own, homesick, missing family, and certainly oppressed and fought daily by Satan as they strove to share the Gospel on that island. Having now lived overseas, I have a keener understanding of how they felt. I, too, have felt it. While we lived in India, we got together with other Christians on Sunday mornings, and again with a small group one night a week. What sweet fellowship!

One song they sang frequently during my childhood was Count Your Blessings:

When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.

When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings. Wealth can never buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.

So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be disheartened, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end

Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

--Johnson Oatman, Jr.

Can you relate to these lyrics? Are you discouraged, burdened, or disheartened? Read those words again. They are becoming more dear to me every year. I can now understand why this was such a favorite for all those sweet people so many years ago. I realize that I need to number the the things God has blessed me with, and thank Him for His grace and mercy. Have you counted your blessings lately?