JUNE 28, 2003
My Songs of Joy!
Do Re Mi Fa Sol!
Saturday, June 29, 2013
Friday, June 28, 2013
BLESSINGS by Laura Story
We pray for blessings
We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love is way too much to give us lesser things
(Chorus)
'Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if the thousand sleepless nights are what it
takes to know You're near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in
disguise
We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
We cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt your goodness, we doubt your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
And all the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe
Chorus
When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know the pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home
Chorus
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can't
satisfy
What if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are your mercies in disguise.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
TIME...
Wow! It's been almost 2 years since my last post (!) and here we are: another child (a son!), a new job for B, 10 years of marriage (anniversary tomorrow, the 28th), and everyone is, well, 2 years older!
I look back at the most recent posts years ago, and I am so amazed at the strangeness of Time. What an unexplainable thing Time is. Sometimes it seems that it goes so fast we can hardly keep up with it, and most certainly never have enough of it to accomplish everything we set out to do; other times it seems as though eons have passed and so much has happened that we've aged (or grown?) eons more than the calendar professes. I look at my children and feel this strangeness of time regularly...
-How can I have five children already?? And yet... I cannot barely remember life without them! The thought of life without any one of them now seems so...incomplete. Their lives have each enriched the hours and moments of my own life so much that... well, I cannot imagine the 'riches' I would be missing without them... yet, they've only been with me for 9 of my 35 years of life!
-And how can I have been married for ten years already?? I vividly remember so many details of our wedding day, like it was just last week! Every piece of music, the vibrant splashes of colors from my flowers, the wise variety of guests that all came to witness our special sacred day, the whole day's agenda - from pictures to the ceremony, the reception and honeymoon...
And yet... has it only been ten years? So much has happened, so many adventures and experiences, lessons and trials, so much learned about myself in such a short time...
-How can I have an almost-nine-year-old daughter?? Wasn't it just yesterday we named her and watched her sleep peacefully on my tummy, hypnotized and enchanted by this new, fresh, beautiful living Being that we had a part in creating with the Almighty God? What would she be like? Who would she blossom into and become? Everyday a joy to awaken to and behold the beauty of this Little Treasure entrusted to us. And now here we are... already approaching her ninth birthday? How can this be?? But on the otherhand...life before her seems so long ago and far away. I think of college and high school and even before that, and ... those memories are so much more distant and unfamiliar.
I think back to the person I was 10 years ago, when I was first married. I'd like to think that I'm a little bit wiser now than I was then; that I have learned a thing or two, grown up a bit more, become a bit more 'seasoned' in my thoughts and feelings. I haven't seen many people that knew me prior to these past ten years in quite awhile, having moved away and been away for about 8 years now. Would they think me the same person they remember? Or would I seem completely different to what they remember? I know I've changed in some ways over time...yet, I'm still Me.
Time, marriage, children, responsibilities.... they have a way of bringing eternity into perspective. Though I go about everyday just living and going through the day to day responsibilities that must get done, I have little 'epiphanies' every now and then and get, what I might call 'glimpses' from an eternal perspective. The description of what I realize may not seem profound to anyone else, but the understanding that lightens my heart is what makes these moments so powerful to me. I do have moments where I really feel the eyes of my heart are open to see how futile so many things are, and how important it is to strive for holiness each day, to take the utmost care of our little souls and work endlessly to guard and protect them from sin....for eternity is eternity, and our little lives here on earth, are but a blink in the span of eternity. We are already in eternity.... and yet, this short time we have here, however long we are blessed to have, determines so much of the rest of our eternity...in fact, determines the entire fate of the rest of our eternity. So, when I have these moments of really seeming to understand things in the 'bigger picture'... it is so humbling and self-convicting. I've had these moments happen often in the midst of being impatient with my children. Thanks be to God for the Holy Spirit! I don't know how many times this sort of thing has happened, and I am able to quickly take a breath and ask my children for forgiveness, then pray together for the grace to be patient and kind and the kind of mother I ought to be. Funerals are another thing that bring eternity into perspective for me. Funerals are such a blessing and gift to participate in. They bring the reality of death and life right before my eyes, and I am reminded about what we ought to be doing here with whatever time we have on earth: loving one another, loving God, trying to become Saints in this life, that we might enjoy eternity with God forever.
Oh! How temporal this life is! When I sit back and observe my children, I am struck by how their lives are so young, so fresh and new, so unaffected by the ugliness that's out there in the world. They love, they trust, they hope, they believe. They don't worry about tomorrow. They don't even plan for tomorrow; well, not in the same ways we 'mature, grown-up, responsible' adults do. They may 'plan' what fun they will have tomorrow, but the only sleep lost comes from excitement and anticipation- not worry or stress or anxiety. Their little lives are so full of Faith and Hope and Love, that they are nearer to understanding God than most of us are. Sure, it's a simple faith. And yet... how often do we muddle things up with lofty knowledge and heady theological doctrines? Knowledge, theology, understanding....all good things, for sure. However... watch the children play; listen to them pray; hear the faith that lives within them already. They trust that we will take care of them no matter what. They never doubt this, for they know we love them and have their best interests in mind always. I learn more about God from my children than from just about anything else. God knew what he was doing when He created marriage and families... how much we can learn about Him and His love for us when we contemplate marriage and the family, and when we listen and appreciate our children. Not only does their precious Faith speak volumes to me and teach me more than any textbook could, but their expectations of me, their trust and hope in me cause me to be a better person, cause me to want to be holy, that I might love them correctly and be to them what I ought to be! Again, God so knew what He was doing, didn't He? My desire for good for my children causes me to desire to be a better person, and therefore my striving to be a holy person will affect my children, and thus the cycle goes on and on- hopefully!
Alright...that's enough late night philosophizing for now! At least now I don't feel so bad about the two year hiatus from this blog...sinec two years is like two days in the whole scheme of Time and Eternity, it's almost as if no time has passed since my last post!! Now to get some sleep while I can because...as Time goes... the one thing I will never claim to have enough of, no matter how curious Time may be, is sleep!! Whether Time seems to drag on or seems to fly by faster than a blink, precious Sleep always sneaks away and shortchanges me! At least that's what I have discovered ever since becoming a Mother!! Alas! Perhaps Heaven will include refreshing naps that are indeed long enough, and provide enough energizing rest! But just in case...I better get some right now!! zzzzzzZZZZZZZZ
I look back at the most recent posts years ago, and I am so amazed at the strangeness of Time. What an unexplainable thing Time is. Sometimes it seems that it goes so fast we can hardly keep up with it, and most certainly never have enough of it to accomplish everything we set out to do; other times it seems as though eons have passed and so much has happened that we've aged (or grown?) eons more than the calendar professes. I look at my children and feel this strangeness of time regularly...
-How can I have five children already?? And yet... I cannot barely remember life without them! The thought of life without any one of them now seems so...incomplete. Their lives have each enriched the hours and moments of my own life so much that... well, I cannot imagine the 'riches' I would be missing without them... yet, they've only been with me for 9 of my 35 years of life!
-And how can I have been married for ten years already?? I vividly remember so many details of our wedding day, like it was just last week! Every piece of music, the vibrant splashes of colors from my flowers, the wise variety of guests that all came to witness our special sacred day, the whole day's agenda - from pictures to the ceremony, the reception and honeymoon...
And yet... has it only been ten years? So much has happened, so many adventures and experiences, lessons and trials, so much learned about myself in such a short time...
-How can I have an almost-nine-year-old daughter?? Wasn't it just yesterday we named her and watched her sleep peacefully on my tummy, hypnotized and enchanted by this new, fresh, beautiful living Being that we had a part in creating with the Almighty God? What would she be like? Who would she blossom into and become? Everyday a joy to awaken to and behold the beauty of this Little Treasure entrusted to us. And now here we are... already approaching her ninth birthday? How can this be?? But on the otherhand...life before her seems so long ago and far away. I think of college and high school and even before that, and ... those memories are so much more distant and unfamiliar.
I think back to the person I was 10 years ago, when I was first married. I'd like to think that I'm a little bit wiser now than I was then; that I have learned a thing or two, grown up a bit more, become a bit more 'seasoned' in my thoughts and feelings. I haven't seen many people that knew me prior to these past ten years in quite awhile, having moved away and been away for about 8 years now. Would they think me the same person they remember? Or would I seem completely different to what they remember? I know I've changed in some ways over time...yet, I'm still Me.
Time, marriage, children, responsibilities.... they have a way of bringing eternity into perspective. Though I go about everyday just living and going through the day to day responsibilities that must get done, I have little 'epiphanies' every now and then and get, what I might call 'glimpses' from an eternal perspective. The description of what I realize may not seem profound to anyone else, but the understanding that lightens my heart is what makes these moments so powerful to me. I do have moments where I really feel the eyes of my heart are open to see how futile so many things are, and how important it is to strive for holiness each day, to take the utmost care of our little souls and work endlessly to guard and protect them from sin....for eternity is eternity, and our little lives here on earth, are but a blink in the span of eternity. We are already in eternity.... and yet, this short time we have here, however long we are blessed to have, determines so much of the rest of our eternity...in fact, determines the entire fate of the rest of our eternity. So, when I have these moments of really seeming to understand things in the 'bigger picture'... it is so humbling and self-convicting. I've had these moments happen often in the midst of being impatient with my children. Thanks be to God for the Holy Spirit! I don't know how many times this sort of thing has happened, and I am able to quickly take a breath and ask my children for forgiveness, then pray together for the grace to be patient and kind and the kind of mother I ought to be. Funerals are another thing that bring eternity into perspective for me. Funerals are such a blessing and gift to participate in. They bring the reality of death and life right before my eyes, and I am reminded about what we ought to be doing here with whatever time we have on earth: loving one another, loving God, trying to become Saints in this life, that we might enjoy eternity with God forever.
Oh! How temporal this life is! When I sit back and observe my children, I am struck by how their lives are so young, so fresh and new, so unaffected by the ugliness that's out there in the world. They love, they trust, they hope, they believe. They don't worry about tomorrow. They don't even plan for tomorrow; well, not in the same ways we 'mature, grown-up, responsible' adults do. They may 'plan' what fun they will have tomorrow, but the only sleep lost comes from excitement and anticipation- not worry or stress or anxiety. Their little lives are so full of Faith and Hope and Love, that they are nearer to understanding God than most of us are. Sure, it's a simple faith. And yet... how often do we muddle things up with lofty knowledge and heady theological doctrines? Knowledge, theology, understanding....all good things, for sure. However... watch the children play; listen to them pray; hear the faith that lives within them already. They trust that we will take care of them no matter what. They never doubt this, for they know we love them and have their best interests in mind always. I learn more about God from my children than from just about anything else. God knew what he was doing when He created marriage and families... how much we can learn about Him and His love for us when we contemplate marriage and the family, and when we listen and appreciate our children. Not only does their precious Faith speak volumes to me and teach me more than any textbook could, but their expectations of me, their trust and hope in me cause me to be a better person, cause me to want to be holy, that I might love them correctly and be to them what I ought to be! Again, God so knew what He was doing, didn't He? My desire for good for my children causes me to desire to be a better person, and therefore my striving to be a holy person will affect my children, and thus the cycle goes on and on- hopefully!
Alright...that's enough late night philosophizing for now! At least now I don't feel so bad about the two year hiatus from this blog...sinec two years is like two days in the whole scheme of Time and Eternity, it's almost as if no time has passed since my last post!! Now to get some sleep while I can because...as Time goes... the one thing I will never claim to have enough of, no matter how curious Time may be, is sleep!! Whether Time seems to drag on or seems to fly by faster than a blink, precious Sleep always sneaks away and shortchanges me! At least that's what I have discovered ever since becoming a Mother!! Alas! Perhaps Heaven will include refreshing naps that are indeed long enough, and provide enough energizing rest! But just in case...I better get some right now!! zzzzzzZZZZZZZZ
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)