Your name

reflecting on some lyrics today as i listen to derek webb’s mockingbird cd and this strikes me particularly. from ‘love is not against the law’, talking about loving, i think instead of some current political actions/choices, states ’cause you cannot choose your friends but you choose your enemies and what if they were one, one and the same. could you find a way to love them both the same to give them your name. and i see how Jesus gives us His name. we were His enemies and He adopted us, ran to us, wow, He LOVES us.

‘he poured out his soul to death
   and was numbered with the transgressors;
yet he bore the sin of many,
   and makes intercession for the transgressors.’

‘but while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. and the son said to him, ‘Father, i have sinned against heaven and before you. i am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ but the father said to his servants, ‘bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. and bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ and they began to celebrate.’

thank You, Father. thank You, Jesus.

carried

i continue to be very thankful for my kind, considerate husband. it has been an emotionally trying week or so but i have seen my husband be consistently caring, encouraging, exhorting, loving. he is never accusatory or angry. he is silly, encourages us to have fun. he lets me take pictures of him when he looks very handsome. most importantly, he encourages us to seek the Lord, taking seriously his responsibility for our family. it is easy to think things could be different or better. but they couldn’t. “the Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;you hold my lot. the lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.” i pray that both our trials and Your blessings on us would be to Your glory. we rejoice.

kiss me once more, please, before i go kiss me sweetheart, and i won’t go no more ‘cause i feel a little drunk like a man who just can’t get enough and there’s just one thing that can cool my heart like an addict to his fix so am i to your sweet lips the wife [husband] of my youth, my drug of choice

To seek as He seeks

Heb 13:13 “Therefore let us go to Him outside the camp and bear the reproach He endured”

 Christ does not call us to a life of luxury in a dying world.  Instead we are called to be least among men for none of us can be greater than Christ.  Instead of seeking the wise and wealthy of this world as our companions we are to seek out the poor, “Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?” Js 2:5.  Here especially we want to be conscious of the poor, not in a condescending way but as a compassionate example of Christ Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them” John 13:16-17

Since we know that this is truth let us not be found without having accomplished it and by God’s grace we shall do so.

Outside Reliance

     About a year back when my wife bought the house I urged her to install a carbon monoxide detector.  It was an old house and I was acting in a sort of self-preservation.  Our church had just experienced a string of tragedies one of which was the death of a young man overseas to carbon monoxide poisoning.  I had a desire to save my wife to be and myself, and so we bought the device.

      Well, last night as we were listening to a Piper sermon about dying while doing missions is gain, we happened to find out that our detector had been recalled for 9 months or so.  And then it hit me.  For some time we’ve relied on this device to keep us safe.  Not that it could even if it worked right.  Even here in the US where we are “safe” we must rely upon the strength and providence of God to keep us.  And it is the same God who promises us that if we obey we will be anything but safe.  One of the verses Piper preached on was Luke:16-18

 ” You will be delivered up by even parents and brothers and relatives and friends and some of you will they will put to death.  You will be hated by all men for my sake.  But not a hair on your head will perish.  By  your endurance you will gain your lives.”

If we entrust our lives to the Lord they will not be safe, but we will gain them eternally by our faith.

Though dreams are ravaged by the gale,
And hopes are dashed, and all hearts fail -
Still, I will follow Thee.

http://www.thehymnsociety.org/hymns/index.cgi?noframes;read=144

Though you slay me, yet will I trust in you.

color for next year

the flowers and tomatoes are holding on through early fall; i love the bright colors mixed with crisp leaves. our front ‘yard’ is not very pretty as we’ve had to get rid of all the previous owner’s barkdust to make way for grass. but…we haven’t quite gotten the grass in, and the weeds have taken over instead. it is still nice in any case to have all kinds of flowers that have thrived in this soil. today i am going to go collect seed from the various plants so i can have an even lovelier garden next year.

upwards

‘a little kingdom i possess,

where thoughts and feelings dwell;

and very hard the task i find of governing

it well.’

louisa may alcott

snowy night

snowy night

Originally uploaded by victoria_mia.

this is a favorite from last december. there was snow on the ground and we enjoyed a midnight walk to the park. sort of magical feeling, reminded me of how i felt when i read about lucy walking through the wardrobe into another snowy landscape.

‘let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. for the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. and no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. for we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.’

 from the letter to the Hebrews, esv translation