I am a Christian, a retired teacher, a mother and a grandmother. I love to read and I love the Lord Jesus Christ! Unless otherwise specified ,all visual illustrations are from the YOU VERSION APP of the Bible.
May this old hymn speak to your heart today and give you peace as you reflect on all that God has done and is still doing for you. I am thankful for all of the safe trips we made and the blessings of seeing grandchildren graduate, my brother and his family from Colorado and our daughter and granddaughters from Pennsylvania. Here are photos to show you the graduates, my family members and happy, blessed me!
It is very easy to get busy with our own lives and forget that there are people who need help. We say we will pray for them, but do we? When is prayer not enough? We have quickly discovered that we can send money to a good cause and our conscience about helping others is assuaged. Jesus did not say to send money. He said to “go.” I am guilty of being one of those who tends to be insular, staying at home and sending money. I want to be more active, to look around and see the needs of others and to meet them if I can. And if I cannot, I want to find someone who can. There is so much evil and greed in the world. I want to reflect Jesus with my love, a heart of compassion and real caring. How do I do that? I don’t know, but I am willing to find out. So, my heart’s cry is “Send me.”
Send Me-Jenn Johnson with Chris Quilala
Please take the time to listen to the words of this song. Our answer to God should always be “yes” before He even asks. After all, He sought us out before we even knew Him.
I am creating this post early since tomorrow my husband and I are traveling to a nearby town to celebrate our 52nd wedding anniversary. But I couldn’t let the day go by without wishing everyone in my little blogosphere a Happy Easter!
Easter is my favorite holiday. Most people say that Christmas is their favorite, and I think that used to be my answer when I was younger. But now that I am counted with the elderly, I look forward to Easter and the joy and hope it brings.
Ambassador Mike Huckabee and his wife are in Israel now, serving our nation as he has done for most of his life. As you read this scripture, say a prayer for him and Janet to be safe and well there.
Happy Resurrection Day!
govmikehuckabee.substack.com/p/hymn-of-the-day-immortal-invisible
I get Ambassador Huckabee’s Prayer Tree each day in my Messenger and it really is worth the subscription. Uplifting and powerful words, plus prayer requests that keep us in touch with other hurting siblings in Christ. Remember to keep Mr. Huckabee and his wife in your prayers. They plan to be in Israel to start their service to our nation by this Thursday. May God bless Him and keep him and his wife safe in that war-torn nation that is still God’s chosen people.
This day is also called the day of Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem. I can only imagine what our Lord was thinking or feeling as He entered the city for the last time, welcomed by crowds of cheering people. Some of those same people will be in the crowd that in about a week insist that He be crucified even though He is totally innocent of any sin or crime. Let us ponder this Palm Sunday if we have put aside all of our doubts about who He is and worship Him in spirit and in truth. This is a day of celebration but there is somber spirit, too, because we know, just as Jesus knew, what awaits Him. Yet He willingly went to the cross for each of us so that we could be reconciled to the Father. He knew, yet He went to Jerusalem. He knew what would happen to Him there, but He went anyway. As you think about Jesus’s sacrifice, spend some time today thinking about areas in which you struggle and know that Jesus set the example for us and followed God’s will, even to the point of death. Problems with repetitive sins? Jesus understands. Problems with moving past your sin and forgiving yourself? Jesus knows your heart and loves you. Problems with forgiving others? There is not one single person in all the earth then or now that Jesus was not willing to die for. Be thankful and thoughtful today. Meditate, ponder, appreciate.
What does it mean for the Lord to be our shepherd? This video explains well and I hope it blesses your heart to know all the ways God is your shepherd.
I particularly enjoyed the part about God’s being there in the valleys. We seem to have a lot of challenges in this life, but God is right there, leading us and keeping us safe. I also liked the part about God’s preparing a table for us before our enemies, teaching us to rely on His protection. The Psalm is from the beginning of the video until about the four minute mark and the other seven plus minutes are a prayer based on the psalm. It was very relaxing and uplifting for me to start my day with this today.
Then I followed this scripture and prayer with this song from Phil Wickham. I hope you have a blessed day, knowing that God is with you always and you will be with Him for eternity.
I never really understood what God’s peace means in my life until I started having one health problem after another. My natural tendency would be to rail against the unfairness of life and to give God a stern talking to about the fact that my life was not being blessed as He promised and I expected. The problem was that I was blessed, He kept His promises, but it was my expectations that were wrong.
This quotation from C.S. Lewis explains what I discovered is absolute truth. No matter how many problems I faced, I still had God on my side, in my corner, watching my back. All of those things and more! The circumstances didn’t change, but my attitude toward them did. What could be so wrong, you may ask? I was born with asthma, a single kidney that started failing about fifteen years ago and I had a massive stroke in 2015. So, in short, I have had and still have a lot of health problems, but there has not been a single problem that I have had that God has not helped me through it. He didn’t leave me floundering after the doctors pronounced their words of wisdom over me about my conditions. Rather, God comforted me and kept whispering to me that He was right there with me.
How do I find God’s peace in the middle of my tumultuous life? I spend time in God’s Word, daily, consistently and faithfully. His promises are there, including the ones about peace. I say them over and over until they go from my mind to my heart. Then, I accept that God is in control and move on to the next thing that I have to do, with my hand in His and my life submitted to Him.
Could I choose to be bitter and angry? Of course, because we all have that choice. Instead, I choose to be thankful for each day God gives me and each new thing He shows me in His Word. Some people look at the silver lining and proclaim loudly that they see a cloud. Rather, I look at the silver lining and I am thankful for it, no matter what may follow.
Yield means to let go, to slow down and be aware but you don’t just stop living. I have peace because I have chosen to yield to God. My number of days is in His hands. He is the One who gives me peace and He hasn’t let me down, even when I have disappointed Him with my initial reaction of rebellious demands.
I leave you with this old hymn that means a lot to me and I hope that you will listen and enjoy the lyrics and the meaning behind the words.
Peace Like a River-Mormon Tabernacle Choir
This is one of the first songs that I learned as a new Christian over five decades ago. To this day, the song brings back wonderful memories of all of the people I met in the first little church I attended and then the small country church in South Carolina. I hope you enjoy this stroll down memory lane and that this song brings you the hope that is so evident in its verses.
God sent His son, they called Him Jesus
He came to love, heal, and forgive.
He lived and died to buy my pardon,
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives.
Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.
Because He lives, All fear is gone.
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living just because He lives.
How sweet to hold a newborn baby,
And feel the pride and joy he gives.
But greater still the calm assurance,
This child can face uncertain days because He lives.
Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.
Because He lives, All fear is gone.
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living just because He lives.
And then one day I’ll cross the river,
I’ll fight life’s final war with pain.
And then as death gives way to victory,
I’ll see the lights of glory and I’ll know He lives.
Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.
Because He lives, All fear is gone!
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth the living just because He lives!
Words: Bill & Gloria Gaither
(https://www.hymnlyrics.org/mostpopularhymns/because_he_lives.html)
And now the song performed by the Gaithers:
The story behind this hymn may be familiar to you. I heard it once many years ago and had to look it up to remind myself of what happened to inspire such a heartfelt song. Here is where you can find the story:
I have sung this song for years, especially when times are hard for me. The last month has been a real trial with my health. Hospitalized twice, once for a bacterial infection and the second time for blood pressure so high that I was in danger of having another stroke. Those incidents were closely followed by bronchitis and a secondary lung infection. I have been taking so many medicines that I had to write them down to make sure I took them as prescribed. One evening, as I was exhausted from coughing and lack of sleep, God reminded me of this song. No matter what is happening in my body, “it is well with my soul.” And that is what truly matters.
Here are the lyrics:
When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
It is well, (it is well),
With my soul, (with my soul)
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
It is well, (it is well),
With my soul, (with my soul)
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
It is well, (it is well),
With my soul, (with my soul)
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life,
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
It is well, (it is well),
With my soul, (with my soul)
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
But Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul.
It is well, (it is well),
With my soul, (with my soul)
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
A song in the night, oh my soul!
It is well, (it is well),
With my soul, (with my soul)
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Note that the bold print was added by me to the verses that mean most to me. What verse(s) resonate with you today?
(From Lyrics, “It Is Well with my Soul”)
And now the hymn for you to enjoy, or at least part of it.
“It Is Well With My Soul” by Audrey Assad
Vickie's Book Nook and Meditation Corner 