A Little Thing

Lord, thank You for the chance to help,

To lend a hand in need.
It seems like such a little thing,
An easy task, indeed.
 
And yet it seemed much more to her,
That I would help her out.
I almost hesitated, but
Then I gave without doubt.
 
I don’t know that it helped a lot,
But sometimes a kind act
Can be bigger than just the deed,
The blessing more than fact.
 
Help me to be more open, Lord,
To things I ought to do,
And let me keep my heart open
To such requests from You.

What He Has Done - Reposted

Today I lift a thankful heart

To offer God this praise
For He has loved me all my life
And guarded all my ways.
He’s loved me in my weakest times
And strengthened me once more
He’s picked me up when my whole world
Had crashed upon the floor.
He held me in His healing arms
While I wept bitter tears
Then helped me to look forward to
The joy filled coming years!
 
For all these blessings, and much more,
I praise His holy name
And, to the nations of the world,
His glory I proclaim.
 
1 Chronicles 16:8
Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done

Say You Didn't See - Reposted

I hope You didn’t see me, Lord,
When I did what I did.
I’m old enough to know better,
But behaved like a kid.
 
I hope You didn’t hear me, Lord,
When I said what I said.
I had a mean thought deep inside
That popped out of my head.

I hope you didn’t notice me,

Lord, I just misbehaved.
I want to act as You’d expect
From one that you have saved,
 
But I’ve so often looked around
To note I’ve gone astray.
Those are the moments when I hope
You might have looked away.

This perfect photo was a gift from ATF. What a sweet camouflaged owl and what a great blessing. Thank you!

Upon the Sand

I built my house upon the sand

And it seemed good to me,
But then the waves rose up in rage
And washed it out to sea.
 
I built my house upon the sand,
But farther up the shore.
Yet still the waves rose up until
My house stood there no more.
 
I built my house upon the sand,
Only to watch it fall
So many times before I learned
To listen to Your call.
 
The call that bade me build my house
Upon the Rock of Grace.
I’ve left the sand to live between
My Rock and a safe place.  
 
Luke 6:48
They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built.

Watching Over Me - Reposted

The road may not be smooth each day,

The path may rise steeply,
But I know that, however rough,
He has His eye on me.
 
I cannot travel from His view,
His gaze is everywhere,
And though I stumble on the path
I know that He’ll be there.

I struggle, sometimes, in this life,

But I can face rough days
Because I know I’m walking still
Beneath His loving gaze.
 
Psalm 121:8
The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.

The Rains Ceased - Repost

For, lo, the sun broke through the clouds

And all the air was bright;
The promise of forgiveness filled
Their damp, beleaguered sight.
They watched the clouds, wrung dry of rain,
Dissolving in mid flight
And praised the lord, not for rain’s cease,
But for the growing light.
 
Genesis 8:2
Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens had been closed, and the rain had stopped falling from the sky.

A Quiet Place

I love that You have filled the world

With life, in vast array,
But I find I need time alone
With You in every day.
 
I need to find a quiet place
That You and I can fill
With talk of how to live my life
And walk within Your will.
 
A place where I can hear Your voice
And know that You hear me,
Where I can be just who I am,
The me only You see.
 
I love the chaos and the noise
That fills my world each day,
But also I cherish the time
When we can slip away
And meet up in a quiet place
To talk a while and pray.
 
Luke 5:16
But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

This is a last vacation picture from ATF's trip in September. I've been saving it for the right praise. I think it's Perfect!!

Topsy Turvy Joy

It’s a such topsy turvy world,

I’ve said so once or twice,
And I would sure appreciate
A day that’s smooth and nice.
That is not something I expect
To happen very soon,
Yet there’s no reason I can’t sing
A cheerful, thankful tune.
 
For even in a crazy world
There’s still joy everywhere,
Though you might have to look harder
To find it hiding there.
But I will live life upside down
If that’s how it must be,
And that won’t stop me living life
Grateful and joyously!

The Aftermath - Reposted

However fierce the storm may seem,

With thunder clouds piled high,
There is no tempest, that, in time,
Will not soon blow on by.
 
Thus, it is not the storms we face,
Which test us day to day,
But how we face the aftermath
They leave along their way.
 
So while we pray to face the storm,
With strength to see us through,
Pray also for the faithful heart
To keep God close to you
When all the storms have blown on by
And there’s healing to do.

Searching

I keep searching for the peace

That I know must be there,
Somewhere beyond tomorrow’s dawn
And yesterday’s despair.
 
I’ve looked for it for so long now
And yet I’m seeking still.
I haven’t found yet and I’m
Wondering if I will.
 
Surely that peace is tangible,
And not some fantasy
That I can only dream about
But never truly see.
 
Perhaps I’m doing something wrong
In seeking it this way…
Maybe it’s not the kind of thing
That’s out there on display.

Maybe it’s born within a heart
Where You’ve a dwelling place,
And all the time that I sought peace,
I should have sought Your Grace.  

Colossians 3:15 

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

Surviving and Thriving - Reposted

I watch her sleep, hear her small cries.

I’m grateful she is here.
She is my comfort when I stress,
My joy filled dose of cheer.
It may not seem like much to you,
But she’s the world to me.
And when she hurts, like she does now,
It breaks my heart to see.
 
But I have faith that she and I
Will come through this just fine.
I’ll take care of her, heal her pains
And she’ll take care of mine.

Two years ago, on the 21st, we got word that my sweet Grace had cancer. It has been two years of crazy times, but she is more than surviving, she's thriving! I was scared when I got the diagnosis, but her medical team at Olympia Veterinary Cancer Clinic has been wonderful. We have it all under control and my sweet Grace is still here, loving me through all the ups and downs of this crazy life. As Thanksgiving approaches, I am grateful for the grace that brought us together and has kept us living and loving through it all!

Blessing Stars - Reposted

For every star that fills the sky

I’ve counted a blessing,
As God has touched me every day,
Through every little thing.
 
There are times I forget I’m blessed,
When life leads me astray,
But without fail another blessing
Is headed right my way. 
 
So when I start to feel my life
Has been measured in scars,
I turn my eyes to heaven and
I count my blessing stars!

A Day of Peace

A day of peace will come again

When all the storms have past
And I will lay my worries down
Resting in You at last.
 
But until that day I will strive
Within this crazy world
And find what joy there is to have
In passing clouds unfurled,
 
In water dancing on the shore,
Or mountains cloaked in white
That reflect back the morning sun
In dazzling crystal light.
 
The day will come when I’ll know peace,
But until then I’ll find
What joy I can between the storms
And my unruly mind.  

Light My Path

You are the light upon my path

In You I find the way
To rise and be a better me
Than I was yesterday.
 
I know I said that more than once,
And meant it every day.
Yet, when each day came to an end,
It seems I’d gone astray.
 
Yet every new dawn I still rise
And, in faith, pause to pray
That once again You’ll be my lamp
And light, for me, the way.
 
Psalm 119:105
Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.

A Walk by Faith - Reposted

I know these woods so very well,

I walk them every day.
Yet, when they’re wrapped in mist and cloud
I scarce can find my way.
 
And thus it is in life these days,
The things I knew as real
Are lost within a changing world,
A world, at times, surreal.

Yet, I know that the path’s still there
That I knew in the light,
And I must learn to walk by faith
What I once walked by sight.
 
3 John 1:3
It gave me great joy when some believers came and testified about your faithfulness to the truth, telling how you continue to walk in it.

When In troubles, Sing

There was that moment in the day

That made it all go wrong,
And everything that had been right
Meant nothing before long.
But that is not how it should be
With one who’s faith is strong,
So I’ll take all of that dismay
And lose it in song.
 
The devil may throw me a punch,
They may come in a throng,
But I am much loved by the Lord
It’s to Him I belong,
And He will love me through this day,
As He has all along.
So I will cast all sorrow off
And lift my heart in song!
 
Psalm 5:11
But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

Shadow and Light - Reposted

Whatever this day holds in store,

It mixes good and bad.
There never was a “perfect day”
In all the days I’ve had.
 
But that’s a blessing in itself,
There’s beauty in contrast.
It takes both shadows and sunlight
For impressions that last.
 
So don’t look for a perfect day,
One flawlessly arrayed,
Instead enjoy each, flaws and all,
For it’s the day God made!
 
Psalm 118:24 
This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

This photo is a blessing from TT. Thank you for a sunrise of perfect contrasts!

Holding On

It alone keeps lingering on

When all the rest are done.
It’s long since past that moment when
The bragging rights were won,
And yet it lingers on the branch
Where winter’s left its mark.
The only spark of color in
A world gone grey and dark.
 
It don’t know what its purpose is,
Its plan or its intent,
I only know its message is
Most surely heaven sent.
For I was close to giving up
With nothing left to show,
Until I saw what faith can do
When it will not let go.
 
1 Timothy 1:19
holding on to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck with regard to the faith.

Looking Upward

Oh yes indeed, it’s looking up.

The path is hard, I know,
But I am heading the right way,
Though there’s a ways to go.
 
Although the path is all uphill
With no place I can stand,
Still I will follow on that path
To hold my Savior’s hand.
 
I knew that once I found the way,
The going would be tough,
And I am praying that I find
I have courage enough.
 
There are those who would just give up
And those who will not try,
While others swear the path I’m on
Leads only to a lie.
 
But I know I am on Your path
And looking up at grace,
For if the way were easier
Then faith would have no place.   
 
2 Corinthians 6:4
Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses;

Sing Glory, Glory - Reposted

Sing Glory, Glory to the Lord

And let your hearts be light,
For He still rules this broken world
Through His eternal might!
 
Sing Glory, Glory to the Lord
And lift your praises high.
Though dark clouds hover near the earth,
His love will light the sky!
 
Sing Glory, Glory to the Lord
And rest upon His Grace,
For even night’s most fearsome gloom
Can never hide His face.
 
Psalm 95:1
Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.

Renewing Me in You - Reposted

Oh Lord, when I feel overwhelmed

I turn to You and find
That You restore me with Your love,
Body and soul and mind.
 
There are those days when I just know
I may not make it through
If I don’t stop and spend some time
Renewing me in You. 

The Stone

There is a stone still in my heart

That causes me great shame.
It keeps me from the perfect peace
That is born in His name.
 
There, in that place, there is no room
For love or joy or grace.
There’s only room for hurt and pain
In that cold, hardened place.
 
There is no space where joy abounds
For darkness there holds sway
And I must break up that hard rock
Or live in bleak dismay.
 
The rest of my heart is just fine,
It answers to His call,
But there is one hard, rocky spot
That undermines it all.
 
Ezekiel 36:26
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

You Lived For Me - Repost

Silently I count the stars

That fill the nighttime sky;
Each of them you know by name,
You laid the path they fly,
You guide them in their travels,
You hear them when they cry.
Yet for all that devotion
You lived so I won’t die.
 
Psalm 8:3-4
When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?

In What's Not Seen - Reposted

I rest my hope upon your word

And look for your return,
For your love is the only thing
I’ve never had to earn.
So I will wait with confidence,
What you teach I will learn,
And I will hope in faithfulness
For your promised return.
 
Romans 8: 24-25
For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

The Birth of Light

Across the world from dawn to dusk

The master spread His hand
And all the world burst into life
At His spoken command.
 
Now every dawn that greets the earth
Recalls the birth of light
That broke the power, forever,
Of the vast, empty night.

Sun Breaks - Reposted

For, lo, the sun broke through the clouds
And all the air was bright;
The promise of forgiveness filled
Their damp, beleaguered sight.
They watched the clouds, wrung dry of rain,
Dissolving in mid flight
And praised the lord, not for rain’s cease,
But for the growing light.
 
Genesis 8:
Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens had been closed, and the rain had stopped falling from the sky.

Breaking Through

When I am wearied by the world

I turn my eyes to You;

You are the pathway through the pain,

The light that will break through.

You are the arm on which I lean

When I can barely stand,

And there is no place I can rest

Except within Your hand.

When I am weary and heartsick,

Wandering in the haze,

I know that Your light will break through

And show me brighter days.

The Little Ones - Reposted

It’s not the voices of the great

That touch us to the core.
Instead it’s those voices we know
That move us to be more.
 
The famed may speak words rich and wise,
But those we listen to
Are the voices we love the best,
Those we trust to be true. 
 
Especially the little ones
Who learn to say and do
All that they should know in this life
By, each day, watching you.
 
Speak gently to the little ones,
Who walk with you each day,
And teach them what they need to know
So they don’t lose their way.
 
Teach them to be kind when they should
And help out when they can.
Teach them to love and praise the Lord
And serve their fellow man.
 
Speak of the Lord and all His Grace,
Be sure they hear your voice,
For it is you they’ll listen to
When they must make their choice.
 
Proverbs 22:6
Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.

Joy Enough

In colors that catch at my breath,

It ensnares me as I pass by,
But what should I expect from one
Whose canvas is the sky!
 
An artistry born not of man,
But placed there for mankind’s delight,
As if to provide joy enough
To get us through the night.

This gorgeous sunset was captured by my brother over his home in Wyoming. Thank you for such a beautiful moment!

No Need For Tears - Reposted

Please help me, Lord, to only weep

When I have nothing left,
For I can truly say, my Lord
I’ve not be that bereft.
 
Don’t let me weep for silly things,
Things I should give to you,
For there’s no problem that’s so great
That you can’t see me through.
 
Don’t let me weep in self pity
Or when I’m feeling down,
For you have raised me from my sins
And offer me a crown.
 
So help me, Lord, to still my tears
When they begin to spill,
For crying won’t help me at all
And I know that you will.
 
Psalm 116:8
For you, LORD, have delivered me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling,