Always Near

Christy's post this morning praises God for bringing her through the storm, and for being able to stand on his promise to never leave or forsake us.  It was such a blessing to hear from her, because they just went through a Hurricane last night. She had to have known we were wondering how she was. Today I am so thankful for social media that let's us be in contact, but even more so for a God who gives that kind of peace.
Praise you dear God, from whom all blessings flow.  What a glorious thing to be able to see past the storm, because the Lord is near. AMEN

Praise the God of Blessings

According to Cyberhymnal's website, the old Hymn, PRAISE GOD FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW, otherwise known as the DOXOLOGY, the words written by Thomas Ken in 1674, are for the last verse to an even older piece of music. The hymn, Awake, My Soul, and with the Sun* is from the Old 100th, Ge­ne­van Psalt­er, 1551, at­trib­ut­ed to  Louis Bourgeois.

I want to find several occassions during this month leading up to Thanksgiving to Praise God.  This great old Hymn of praise is the best way to start. 



Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

AMEN

*In my last post, I spoke of how the morning son had emblazened the leaves of the trees from beneath, and how my first thought was of this song.  My heart was lifted to praise. How interesting that in 1551 a hymn writer named his piece, Awake My Soul, and with the Sun, and in 1674 another man used its tune to write the very words that came to my mind at the rising of the Sun.  I love how God connects us to the centuries, and to others who have worshipped him before, through things like music.  Even now we praise him with the same Psalms that David wrote and sang thousands of years ago.  Praise is a way we are connected - to God and to all the saints of the household of God.  Scripture says, even to the angels. It is a unifying act, as well as a singular blessing. God made it to be the gift we can give to him, and in return we are blessed for the act.  The more we Praise him, the more we are blessed.  A unique attribute of being one with him.  Today is the best day, to praise him.

 Psalm 148:2
Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye him, all his hosts.

As the sun peeped through the trees at daybreak, the only day this week that the fog or rain didn't block it's view, it was shining up at an angle from the horizon to under the leaf canopy of the newly turning fall colors.  It had the effect of makin them glow.  They were so lovely, that I could not help but think of that old harvest song, PRAISE GOD FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW. We sang it every year at school as we neared Thanksgiving every year.  I imagine that now, children don't even know from whom their blessings flow.  I regret that for my grandson's who will not have that to recall one day when they are feeling blessed.  How do we convey those kinds of things without the marvelous old songs, or the Psalms we quoted.  Our teachers were allowed to teach us that being thankful to a God our ancestors served was a part of their history.  To me it is difficult to even explain the holiday without God in it. It makes no sense at all, for even the Indians were offering Thanks to the Great Spirit, as they called the God whom they served. I was taught that the Indians also knew that the offerings of the land and gardens, had a source worthy of being praised.
This year I intend to give more diligence to praise.  I have a lot to be thankful for this season, and God is worthy of my praise.  I sometimes wonder why something so lovely as praising God ever became a stange thing in the eyes of God's people.  In some communities, it isn't true, but in many it is, and I for one, believe it should be a regular as sunrise, to find something worthy of praising God for.  Even if it is as simple as the morning sun turning the shimmering leaves into gold. 

I praise you Lord. And give thanks.  AMEN

Im Content

I look back over the last 2 years and I think of all the changes in my life, and that of those near me, and I am thankful that all the negatives have not discouraged me.  I give credit to God for allowing that to be true, but I also give a lot of credit to Blogging.  Not only has writing things down been a blessing, it has been a means of connecting to others, of guiding my walk, of finding encouragement, and of growing in Christ.  I laugh when I ask my children, to make sure the nurses, who are in charge of my care as I grow senile, ask something other than what day it is. If it were not for blogs I would forget the days.  But it helps me to focus on Christ in so many ways as well.  Each day I am reminded of his nearness in new ways.  I am able to believe as when I was a child, with greater ease, the promises of his word, and I am able to not become bogged down in things that would otherwise take my focus from so great a savoir! 
I begin early asking for my toddler grandson's salvation, and for my teenage grandson's  attention to God's will for his life as he focuses on finishing school.  For my adult step-grndsons, I pray for newness, and direction, and relationship with God for family life they are planning.  And for my step gr. grandson, I pray he will continue to seek God as he does with child-like faith.  I want to see God working in new ways in the lives of all around me.  My prayers may not be the great movers in lives around me, but I trust that Jesus will honor His promises if I will come into agreement with him.  May his Grace abound to anyone who happens to stumble into my little garden.  Let us always remember, that God actually is the ONE in control.

Jesus help me serve you with all the joy and faith that is possible for one individual.  Not that I am capable, but that your Spirit is and I wish to allow your power to be fully employed by every ounce of my being. AMEN 

A Moment in Time

This morning, my husband came to where I was to ask me to come see something he found online. I thought by the way it had obviously touched his heart that it might be something that involved his ancestry research.  He often comes to where I am to have me come help him save images and web pages he has found so they won't be lost.  I sometimes ask for a minute to finish what I am doing, but not this time. The look on his face was unique, and I knew immediately this was something extremely special to him.  I was unprepared for it to involve me.
What he had found, was a picture of a room with a row of Ham radios, and two rotary dial phones on a plywood desk. "This is the Mars station, where I called you from Vietnam." It took a second or two for me to understand what he was saying to me." That is the very phone I used to call you with." His voice broke as he recalled the preciousness of those moments.
Calls from Vietnam were only possible by way of a Ham radio operator back then.  So much depended on who was operating radios when the call bounced around the world, and if there was interferene, or weather that distorted what you said.  I both loved and dreaded the calls.  I loved them because my beloved was on the other end of the call.  I knew at that moment he was alive and well, if I could understand what he was saying. But I dreaded the hardship of not being able to talk more than a minute or two, and trying to say more than "I love you," in such a short time.  I dreaded hearing a warped sound that was supposed to be him, but sounded nothing like him, and not knowing how to answer the garble.  Was he really OK or was this a call to tell me he was wounded.  Did he ask me something and I was not giving the answer he had hoped for and spent so much energy to get a chance to ask.  I always felt like my legs were going to fall out from under me once the call was lost.  How could the contact be so short?  For an instant, he was there and was gone and sometimes I didn't even know if he was OK.  Was it as difficult for him as for me if he couldn't hear my voice?  But I remember every call,  and the helplessness of wondering if it would be the last.
I tried to reassure myself, he would call again, next chance he got. And I prayed that the next time I would be able to hear every word, his voice..."Please dear God, his voice."

There have been times in life that I longed to hear the voice of God as much as I longed to hear Jimmy's voice when he was so far away and unable to make connections without the aid of those precious Ham operators.  A friend told me tonight that he connected someone to her loved one oversees in the 80's, and I was able to thank him for doing it, even though I could never thank the ones who connected myself and Jimmy. I am so thankful that I don't have to go through someone else to talk to God, and know that he hears me. Every word clearly.  Some faiths seem to teach we aren't worthy or able to go directly to the throne of God, but the Word teaches that we have access. And I am so thankful for that, because it would be horrible to think I had to go through someone else to talk to the greatest love of my life...my savoir, best friend, most precious family member, and Lord of my life.  I want nothing to ever come between our conversation, ever.  And as for, my conversations with my husband, thank God for cell phones, but I still hate poor reception.  Always will.

Jesus, speak to me even in my old age, even if I become an invalid, and my mind fails.  Please let me hear your voice clearly for all eternity. AMEN