- Romans 8:35-37

View of Israel from Mt. Carmel - Photo by Zyrek Castelino, March 23, 2011

Fill in the blank.  What can’t separate you from the love of Christ?  A difficult test?  An impossible course?  Lies?  Doubts?  Fears?  In everything you are better than victorious through Him who loves you with an everlasting love.  Gain your decisive victory!

“Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

- Luke 12:32

Be Thou My Vision is one of my favorite hymns. =)

Here are my brother and I playing it as a duet with the piano and violin (you can see his bow bobbing in and out of view). =) Read an exposition and history of the song here, as part of A Still Small Voice’s Hymn History Event.

“Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” ~ Psalm 16:11

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“Every single thing you do matters.”  This is the message of Andy Andrews’ book The Butterfly Effect.  Through the explanation of Edward Lorenz’s theory and the stories of Joshua Chamberlain, George Washington Carver, and others, the book shows how even one action of one person can have a far-reaching effect.

The point of The Butterfly Effect grew more and more meaningful for me as Andy Andrews dug deeper into the histories of people.  The mesage unfolded wonderfully.  Plus, I loved the presentation of this little book.  It’s like a grown-up picture book; every page is beautiful.

One thing I would have liked to have seen was more of an acknowledgement of God as the one who gives us opportunities to make a difference.  Also, we do have a responibility to make good choices, but we can’t take credit for “changing the world,” because it is God who works through us and allows us to have an effect on others.

All in all, this book gets a thumbs up.  Thought-provoking and engaging, it will leave you with the knowledge that you are created uniquely and that everything you do truly does matter.

Note: BookSneeze provided me with a complimentary copy of this book. I was not required to write a positive review.

“And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.” ~ Psalm 90:17

It was a two-hour float down the river, so I had plenty of time to think - something I often enjoy doing.    As I was thinking (and floating), I realized there were several parallels between tubing and life.  And God used this analogy to help me understand a lot of things He’s teaching me right now.

Those of you who have gone tubing before know that there are a few different “statuses” you will have as you go through the different parts of the river.  Some parts (for example, the beginning) are slow and effortless.   You’re moving, but not very fast.  It was during these times that I sat back and meditated on the beauty of God’s creation around me.

Then, as you slowly make your way down the river, you will eventually approach some rapids.  You know you’re getting close to one when you start to pick up speed and you can hear the rushing water up ahead.  You mentally and physically prepare yourself for some action.  The thing is, you don’t know how big and fast these rapids are going to be.  You won’t know, that is, until you’re on the other side of them.

As you get closer and closer to the rapids, your heart rate increases.  This is exciting!  Rocks are sticking out of the water all around you and you never know when you might hit one just the right way so that it flips you over.  Sometimes, you hit one just the wrong way so that you’re completely stuck, hopelessly watching other tubers rush by you.  Other times, you don’t hit the rocks at all, but glide over and between them, sighing as you realize you are safely through a stressful moment.

One thing you always have to be mindful of during the float is your position in the narrow width that is called the river.  You have two banks to avoid - one on your right and one on your left.  If you are wise, you will be alert to any slight drifting you make toward either bank and paddle with your arms to correct yourself.  If you are distracted, you will eventually float to one bank or the other and get caught in the rocks, mud, and low-hanging tree branches.  It’s not easy to get un-caught.  

Once, I got distracted and looked up to find myself headed straight for a huge rock with a big, old, stinky, dead fish on it.  It was too late to paddle back to the middle; I had to go over the fish.  In the process, I got tangled in some tree branches and spider webs.  Talk about haunting.  The bottom line is: you want to do whatever it takes to stay in the middle of the river because that is where the water flows the quickest.

 Tubing and life have a lot in common.  They’re both controlled not by people, but by Water.  It’s hard to stay on the straight path, but oh so worth it.  Some parts of life are slow, but then there are the rapids.  Sometimes you get stuck on the rocks of life, sometimes you flip over, and sometimes you get through smoothly, by the grace of God.  But above all, never wish away the slow times for more “exciting” times.  Use the slower times to bring glory to God, to rejoice in His works, and to listen to His voice.  The rapids will come soon enough.

“Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.” ~ John 4:10

Standing on the GA/TN state line while on vacation.

Over the last several months, I’ve been somewhat addicted to listening to the sermons of Mr. Tom Harmon.  (However, there is so much scripture in Mr. Harmon’s sermons that I’m sure it’s only the Bible I’m truly “addicted” to.  )  I’ve listened while cleaning my room, while knitting, while decluttering my closet, while addressing envelopes… Mr. Harmon and I have gotten a lot done together.

The first series of sermons I listened to was one on prayer.  I cannot tell you how much it challenged me and changed my prayer life.  As Mr. Harmon himself says, “Never underestimate the power of one sermon to change your life.”

You can imagine how thrilled I was when I found out he would be speaking at the Nashville ATI conference this year.  We were privileged to hear him speak twice in person - once in a student session and once in a general session.  He spoke first on choices and consequences from the text in James 4:13-15 and then on Matthew 24:35 and embracing the transforming power of God’s Word.

If you are going through a dry spot in your daily walk and feel like you need some renewed energy, pick one of these and listen.  Then let me know how God spoke to you.  I’d love to hear.

“The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.” ~ Prov. 28:1

 It’s astonishing how quickly the mind on summer break forgets the strain of school.

These are just a few pictures from our recent two-week vacation.  We attended the ever-encouraging regional ATI conference in Nashville and then spent a relaxing week in the mountains of North Georgia.  It was a marvelous time, but we agree with Dorothy - there is no place like home. 

“The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.” ~ Psa. 121:8