God’s Amazing Love

Luke 24: 46-53

⁴⁶ Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, ⁴⁷ and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. ⁴⁸ And you are witnesses of these things. ⁴⁹ Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.”

⁵⁰ And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. ⁵¹ Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven. ⁵² And they worshiped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, ⁵³ and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God.  Amen

I am amazed by so many things in life.

Spring has arrived!  Last weekend I pushed tiny seeds into the rows I carved out in the dark soil of my raised garden bed. This week there are tiny green signs of life in all shapes and sizes pushing through the dirt reaching for the sun. The sharply pruned bare branches of the walnut tree in my front yard is now sprouting tender oblong shaped green leaves that I know will grow to eventually hide the branches from view.  New life abounds all around me and I am amazed! 

I am amazed that God gave his only son to be tortured and die with his hands and feet nailed to the cross while others stood by and mocked him. I am amazed that when Mary went to the tomb where Jesus was buried and heavily guarded only to find out that the tomb was empty. I am amazed that Jesus came back to life and appeared to Mary and the disciples before he ascended into heaven to sit at the right hand of our Father.  

All of these things are proof of Gods amazing love for us. There is no room or place for doubt, fear or worry in our lives. We have proof everyday that God loves us. We only need to stay faithful, grateful and trust that He knows what He is doing. 

Today we celebrate the gift of life given to us by the death and miraculous resurrection of our sweet Lord Jesus. He set us free from our sins and gives us a second chance. A chance to push through the dark soil, to sprout and grow. Reach out to God and embrace this new day of life given only by His grace.  

Be at peace and may God bless you. 

Happy Easter!

This is a sweet video I found on godtube.com    

It is called “The Easter Gift”  

http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=0FF9EFNU

How Great Thou Art

How Great Thou Art was my mother and my grandmother’s favorite hymn.  It was written as a poem originally by Carl Gustav Boberg in Sweden in 1885.  The melody is a Swedish folksong. It is a timeless beautiful hymn that is now also my favorite. Just think, three generations of Lutheran Norwegians take great pleasure from the same precious beloved hymn.  I love the words in the refrain “then sings my soul”. God gave us glorious gifts of beauty on this earth so that our souls will sing with joy and wonder at the greatness of His creation.  Music, art, poetry, nature and literature all have way of lifting the spirit and healing an aching heart.   Check out these words:

O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder

Consider all the works Thy hand hath made.

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,

Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Refrain:

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee;

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee:

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

When through the woods and forest glades I wander

And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;

When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur

And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze:

(Repeat Refrain.)

And when I think that God, His Son not sparing,

Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;

That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing,

He bled and died to take away my sin:

(Repeat Refrain.)

When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation

And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!

Then I shall bow in humble adoration,

And there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art!

(Repeat Refrain.)

Here is a YouTube video so  you can hear the song performed, by uh....well you will never guess...okay it’s Elvis Presley.  Big Smile!!!  I admit it.  I saw him perform this song live in Seattle in 1972!  Oh yes I did!

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+how+great+thou+art&view=detail&mid=C7973B82F1C4D4C2B0B1C7973B82F1C4D4C2B0B1&first=41&FORM=NVPFVR

I like this version too by Carrie Underwood and Vince Gill.  My mother loved Country music so mom - this one is for you. 

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xihhll_vince-gill-carrie-underwood-how-great-thou-art_music#.UT_biI4ytzo

Whats your favorite hymn?  

Renew In Me A Right Spirit

Psalm 51:10-12

Create in me a clean heart, O God, 
And renew a right spirit within me.

Cast me not away from thy presence, 
And take not thy Holy Spirit from me.

Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, 
And uphold me with thy joy. 

Allyson stood at the kitchen window with a steaming cup of coffee in hand gazing out into the gray early dawn sky. The pavement of the driveway was wet and shiny from the early morning drizzle and the dark clouds threatened more storms on the way. It has been dark and rainy everyday for the past three weeks and she longed to see the warm glow of the sun.
 
She couldn’t help but think that what she was viewing outside her window is exactly what she has been feeling inside. Stormy, discouraged, sad and worried. Despite all of her planning and hard work, things have not gone the way she had planned for so long. Her sister Cathy was diagnosed with cancer last week and her husband Don just lost his job. Money has been tight these past five years, but yet they have managed to put small amounts of money away for retirement. There was a plan, a future and hope and now at this moment it all seemed to be crashing down.

She was startled by the sudden vibration of her cell phone bouncing around on the kitchen table.  She saw that it was Bess and picked up.

“Hi Ally”  Bess sang cheerfully "how about if I come by to pick you up in an hour and we go for a walk on the beach and then out to breakfast?”

“Are you kidding!” Ally responded laughing “in this weather?!”

“Of course, why not?” she asked “c’mon, it will be fun!”

As Ally hung up the phone she noticed that the clouds had blown apart and for a moment she could see blue sky peak through.  I little surge of hope rippled through her like an electric shock to her heart.    

As Ally dressed for her walk with Bess, she prayed and gave thanks to God.

Dear Lord,

Please create in me a clean heart, a right spirit and restore my joy.  Help me to look only far enough into the future to make plans and only look back to learn from my experiences and not dwell or worry about things I cannot change or control.  Please lift me from this mire of anger, self-pity and discouragement as they only add to the difficulties. I ask that you lift me up so I can appreciate the gift of today, rain or shine. Either way, it is a beautiful day and another glorious day of life.  Fill me with resilience so I can navigate through the hurdles and obstacles that block my path, knowing that you walk with me on this journey. I put my confidence and trust in you Lord.

I am grateful for your grace Father, knowing that I am never alone. Thank you for the people you have put into my life, who love me unconditionally and won’t let me fall.

Today Lord, let me be a light, not a shadow.  Help me to take the focus off of me and let me be a blessing to someone else.  I pray this in thy holy name.

Amen.


"You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you.”    Walt Disney 

“If you are feeling low, don’t despair. The sun has a sinking spell every night, but it comes back every morning.  The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain." Dolly Parton

“I know that God will not give me anything that I can’t handle. I just wish that He didn’t trust me so much.” Mother Teresa