A Hymn for Him

On my list for the day was tackling a long neglected project.  For weeks (or perhaps even months) there has been a pile of song sheets on the floor of my computer room.  These song sheets are used to create folders for the musicians to use during our Sunday morning worship services.  For each song, there are four copies, one each for the piano player, keyboard player, song leader and back-up singer. My plan has been to create file folders for each song.  It seemed like a relatively easy task, but for some reason I kept putting it off. . .until today.

As I typed the song titles into the computer to be printed on labels, I found myself singing the first line or so of each song.  What wonderful messages made their way into my mind as my project continued:

         I KNOW GOD'S PROMISE IS TRUE

         I KNOW WHO HOLDS TOMORROW

         ISN'T THE LOVE OF JESUS SOMETHING WONDERFUL?

       

Then I reached  "IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL" and couldn't help thinking of my husband.  It was one of the songs sung at his grandfather's funeral, and has always been among his favorites.  With him on my mind, my thoughts wandered to the doctor appointment he faces tomorrow.  Having discovered a lesion on the back of his throat earlier this spring, our local clinic referred him to a specialist in Bismarck.  According to the dictionary, a lesion is "any abnormal or harmful change in the structure of an organ or tissue".  In this day and age, any mention of abnormality in the human body can lead to lots of speculation as to why it is there and what should be done about it.  My first response was to bring it before The Lord (who, according to Psalm 139, already knows all about it!).  I know the Bible says not to worry, but the human part of me was tempted to do so. . .until I kept on with the song list:

          JESUS WILL WALK WITH ME

          LORD, I BELIEVE

          MIGHTY IS OUR GOD

          SAVIOR, LIKE A SHEPHERD LEAD US

          STANDING ON THE PROMISES

          TRUSTING JESUS

          TURN YOUR EYES UPON JESUS

          VICTORY AHEAD

          WHERE HE LEADS I'LL FOLLOW

Suddenly I knew why it had taken so long for me to tackle this project.  Somehow, God knew I would need the reassurance hidden in these hymn titles to comfort me on the day before the doctor appointment.   Tonight I will rest easy, knowing God has every detail under His control.

         

What "To Do"?

Since retiring four months ago, I've found the best way to be productive is to give myself a "to do" list.  For the first few weeks I kept it simple.  My goal was to be awake and showered by noon.  In time, there was a need to accomplish a bit more, and occasionally I would even make up a list the night before to give myself extra incentive to get out of bed.  Mostly, however, I'm enjoying the fact I don't have to do a thing, if I don't want to.  I can be as busy or idle as I want to be, but mostly I find myself busier than when I was working full time.  But a different kind of busy.  There are so many things I'd like to do in this second calling phase of life.  Often much time is wasted as I ponder which of the possibilities I might tackle for any given day.

And so it was I started this week with an official "to do" list.  After the first day, I had succeeded in crossing off half of the items.  [There is something so gratifying about doing so. . .and one line drawn through is never enough.  I really want to reinforce the fact it is done, so several lines are required to solidify the fact the item has really been completed!]  With the second day, I was able to cross off the rest of the items.  At one point, I realized I had completed a task not on the list, and decided to add it to the list, just so I could cross it off!

Today I was thinking. . .if we let God write our "to do" list for the day, would there be a difference in what we would accomplish?  Would His priorities for the day be different than ours?  Lately, God has been reminding me repeatedly of a three part "to do" list give in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18:

"BE JOYFUL ALWAYS.  PRAY CONTINUALLY.  GIVE THANKS IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES, FOR THIS IS GOD'S WILL FOR YOU IN CHRIST JESUS?"

How did I do today?  It's a challenging list, and most days I can't truthfully cross off all three items.  We are also admonished to take all Scripture in context.  If we look at the verses immediately before and after these three, we find more to add to the "to do" list:

RESPECT THOSE WHO WORK HARD AMONG YOU
LIVE IN PEACE
WARN THOSE WHO ARE IDLE
ENCOURAGE THE TIMID
HELP THE WEAK
BE PATIENT WITH EVERYONE.
MAKE SURE NOBODY PAYS BACK WRONG FOR WRONG
BE KIND TO EACH OTHER
TEST EVERYTHING
HOLD ON TO THE GOOD
AVOID EVERY KIND OF EVIL

Ever think about what the world would be like if we ALL made a habit of using this list on a daily
basis?  I keep trying, and hope you will join me!

Psalm 139

Has it really been two years?  Almost to the day. . .and as I read over my last post, there has only been one major change.  No more job!  Since February 1, 2013 my life has been free from the bonds of working outside the home.  It was a rewarding career of 32 years, yet something told me it was time.  Time to move on to other things. . .more exciting things. . .things geared toward utilizing the special giftings God embedded in my life, even before I was born.  Psalm 139 comes to mind.  In my Bible you will find it marked in pencil as "Geudy's Lesson 6/6/04".  Geudy was a school teacher who lived in our hometown for a short space of time.  He and his wife, along with their three daughters, attended our church and shared their lives with us until God moved them to Florida to be closer to family.  Originally from Haiti, he was willing to share his life story with us one Sunday, and his passage of choice was Psalm 139.

What is so special about Psalm 139?  To me, it holds the key to who I am as a person.  It assures me God knows all about me.  Whether I sit or rise, He perceives my thoughts.  He knows all my comings and goings and even the words I will speak before they hit my tongue.  David, who authored the Psalm, recognized there was no no escaping from God's Spirit nor was there any darkness to hide in, because even darkness is as light to God.

Verses 13-15 are the ones which assure me of my beginnings.  They speak of my inmost being, knit together by God, coming together inside my mother's womb.  They assure me God's eyes were on me even then, when my body was yet unformed.  My comfort during all situations is found in verse 16, "All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be".  Nothing is a surprise to God.  Everything has its purpose in my life.  Never is there a need to worry.  God knows all, understands all, and will see me through, no matter what the situation.

The next few verses talk about God's thoughts. . .precious and vast, they are.  If they could be counted, they would outnumber the grains of sand.  Having vacationed in California and Hawaii this winter, I can vouch for the fact this number would be very large!

After a few choice words about the wicked, and David's desire to be rid of them, he ends the chapter with a request.  "Search me, O God, and know my heart;  test me and know my anxious thoughts.  See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting."  Seems like a good way for me to end tonight, too.  A song from my past comes to mind:

                   LEAD ON, O KING ETERNAL

Lead on, O King Eternal, The day of march has come;
Henceforth in fields of conquest Thy tents shall be our home.
Thro' days of preparation Thy grace has made us strong,
And now, O King Eternal, We lift our battle song.

Lead on, O King Eternal, Till sin's fierce war shall cease,
And holiness shall whisper The sweet Amen of peace;
For not with swords loud clashing Nor roll of stirring drums;
With deeds of love and mercy, The heavenly kingdom comes.

Lead on, O King Eternal, We follow, not with fears;
For gladness breaks like morning Where'er Thy face appears;
Thy cross is lifted o'er us; We journey in its light:
The crown awaits the conquest; Lead on, O God of might.

Words by Ernest W. Shurtleff, 1862-1917         Music by Henry Smart, 1813-1879