seasons like these

Do you ever have those times in your life where you are just overcome by the continual surprising blessings and goodness of God?  It might be a specific day, or it could continue over weeks or months, but it's just one of those times where your eyes are continually opened to His greatness.

That's where I've been over this past week.  As I adjust to being here at Glorieta, living away from my family, God continually surprises me with blessings.  I wrote about how He led me to read the mercy chapter in "Attributes of God" here.

On Monday I was feeling pretty nervous about going back to job training the next day, and was just really having a hard time resting and being at peace in God.  Every morning I read a daily devotional from "Edges of His Ways" by Amy Carmichael, and am always so encouraged by it; it's like it's perfect for every day, no matter what's happening.  Anyway, it was the 4th, so I opened it up to that day and began to read.  Here's the excerpt:

*John 16:33:  That in Me ye might have peace.

   These words have brought peace to me this morning.  Sometimes our circumstances are so peaceful that without knowing it we slip into finding our peace in them.  Then something happens to disturb them and our peace is disturbed.  Sometimes those bout us are so dear that our hearts rest in them, and this is good, but it is not enough, for what if one in whose love we trust should disappoint us?
   Our Lord did not say, "These things [the things of John 16] I have spoken unto you that in your circumstances ye might have peace"; but He did say, "These things"--things of wonder, joy, sorrow, preparation--"I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace."  "Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his Lord;...if they have kept My saying they will keep yours also."  Is there any surprise of grief that our dear Lord has not foreseen?  Is there any wound to love that His love has not suffered?  "These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace."

I was amazed at how perfect the devotional was for what I was feeling, especially since I had just prayed that God would bring me some encouraging word about having peace in Him.  I had a much better day because of this.

The thing I think is the coolest, though, is that yesterday when I came to read in "Edges of His Ways" I realized that it's not May anymore; it's June!  And it was then that I realized that I had actually read the excerpt for May 4 the previous day, rather than the one for June 4.  The one for June 4 was actually about patience, which was also a good devotional, but what I really needed for June 4th was the excerpt on peace from May 4th.  It was just amazing how God worked that out so that, even through a mistake like that, I was given the exact word I needed for the day.

    Now bid me run

And I will strive with things impossible,

Yea, get the better of them.

* excerpt taken from "The Edges of His Ways" by Amy Carmichael, page 89

Djamsel and Majoie

This is a post I have been dying to make for a few weeks now, but I had to wait for something to come in the mail.  And today it did!  Today I received my info packet on my new Compassion child, Majoie.  And so today I'm going to post about both of my Compassion children, Djamsel and Majoie.

I'm not sure why I haven't already done a post about Djamsel.  I never really thought about it until recently.

I started sponsoring Djamsel in April 2011.  I only had enough money for one month's sponsorship, and after about two months of looking for a job I hadn't had any luck.  However, I felt God was leading me to start a sponsorship, so I went onto the Compassion website to look for a child.

I really had no idea where to start.  At any one time, there are several thousand children waiting to be sponsored through Compassion.  Thankfully, there are ways you can narrow down the search, and I decided to specifically look at the children will mental or physical handicaps.  There were only about twenty of them, and I think I clicked on Djamsel's picture first.  The second I saw him, I knew I wanted to sponsor him.  He was the child for me.

Djamsel lives in Indonesia with his family.  The sight in his left eye is defective, as you can see from his picture.  He's nine years old.

It took about six months for me to get my first letter from Djamsel.  I'd already written to him two or three times.  I was ecstatic to finally hear from him, and since then I've gotten several more letters.  He calls me "mama Sarah". ;D

I have been sponsoring Majoie for exactly one week today.  Once again, beginning her sponsorship was a matter of trusting in God to provide, and I know He will.

This time around, though I considered sponsoring another handicapped child like Djamsel, I instead decided to look at the children who had been waiting the longest for sponsors.  The first child to come up was Majoie, and I just fell in love with her.  She had been waiting for a sponsor for 257 days.

I finally got Majoie's sponsorship packet today (yay!).  She lives in Togo with her family, and she's five years old.  I can't wait to get my first letter from her!

So that pretty much sums up my sponsorship stories for now.  I hope you enjoyed reading them, and I'll continue to update on Djamsel and Majoie when anything happens.

weekdate #002

1. Saturday was Chloe's first soccer game!  It was freezing and so windy, but she had a blast, and so did we!  I already posted a bunch of pictures, so I wanted to do some video now.  Chloe's the one in the green with the pigtail braids. :)

2. So often I forget what a huge blessing my church family is, but I was really reminded of it today as some of the women gathered together to pray for a woman having surgery this week.  What a blessing the body of Christ is!

3. My dad's sermon yesterday was amazing.  I always enjoy hearing him preach, but yesterday he was talking about joy (one of my favorite topics), and also about how envy and discontent can steal your joy away.  I was really convicted, but also really encouraged as I was reminded of God's sovereignty and how we find our joy in it.

4. On Tuesday Rachel and I went to see Titanic in 3D with some friends.  I personally don't like the movie--it's sad and also completely based on infatuation--but I had a good time hanging out with Morgan and Corey.

On this first pic I accidentally totally cut Morgan off, but we got it right on the second one. :)

5. Today I've been listening to Piano and Rain.  Goodness gracious, is there anything more relaxing?

6. Friday night my family and I went to the birthday party of a man at our church.  It was so much fun!  We laughed so much.

7. I've been taking Chloe on a bunch of walks because the weather's been so nice.  We get to talking about a wide range of subjects.

8. I have my first finals next week, and soon I'll be done with my first year of college!  It's honestly unbelievable.  It's gone by so fast.

These last two are killing me...can't think of anything!

9. Saturday night I went to a classical concert with Rachel for her school assignment.  I had to go to one with her before and it was awful because I almost fell asleep (classical music can be really exhausting).  However, this concert was a lot better because they didn't dim the lights and it was shorter.  I actually enjoyed some of the music!  Although I still think the best thing about classical concerts is when they're tuning their instruments; I think that sounds better than the actual songs.

10. This week I made the decision to sponsor another child through Compassion.  Her name is Majoie, and she's five years old.  I'll try to do a complete post about her and Djamsel once I get her information packet.  I'm just so excited to learn more about her!

"I'm starving"

I know I don't normally just write, but there's something I've been wanting to post about for awhile, and I finally got around to it tonight.

Throughout the past year, as I have gotten a job and actually had money, I've learned what a blessing it is to give it away.  I've seen that God will provide for every need even if it feels like He's led you to give more than you ought to.  I think I've especially seen this through sponsoring a little boy through Compassion International.  I began to sponsor him before I had a job, trusting that God would provide for me to provide for him, and He did.

As I have given more of my finances away to those who are less fortunate, I've realized how blessed I truly am.  I've become more and more aware of some of my extravagant habits, and even how some of the words I speak are completely inappropriate for one who is truly concerned about providing for "the least of these" in God's kingdom.

One particular phrase that I've found harder and harder to hear as I become more sensitized to the needs of the less fortunate is "I'm starving."

I say: "I haven't eaten in four hours, so I'm starving."

A child in a third world country says: "I haven't eaten in four days, so I'm starving."

As we become more and more like Christ, I think it obviously follows that we become more and more like Him in His speech.  I really don't think Jesus walked around on earth commenting on how He was "starving" while He cared for those who truly were.  He thanked His Father for what was provided, and didn't worry about it the rest of the time.

For those of us "who [have] been given much, much will be required" (Luke 12:48).  I want to encourage you to give some of your money away.  It's really hard at first, but I think we as believers have to get rid of the notion that the money we have is ours.  It isn't. It's His.

The food we have, or don't have, is His too.  Next time you're tempted to say "I'm starving" (and we all know we say it, about ten times a day!), try saying "I'm hungry" or just keep your mouth shut and wait patiently until you can eat.  In all likelihood, none of us will ever really be starving.  So why say we are?  Instead, we should focus on those who really are in need, and ask God for ways we can help them.

“Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’ Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’

Matthew 25:34-40

built in Christ forever

I was blessed to receive this quote from Beth in an email today.  I wanted to share it.

O God, may Thy Spirit speak in me that I may speak to thee. I have no merit, let the merit of Jesus stand for me. I am undeserving, but I look to Thy tender mercy. I am full of infirmities, wants, sin; Thou art full of grace.

I confess my sin, my frequent sin, my wilful sin; all my powers of body and soul are defiled: a fountain of pollution is deep within my nature. There are chambers of foul images within my being; I have gone from one odious room to another, walked in a no-man's-land of dangerous imaginations, pried into the secrets of my fallen nature.

I am utterly ashamed that I am what I am in myself; I have no green shoot in me nor fruit, but thorns and thistles; I am a fading leaf that the wind drives away; I live bare and barren as a winter tree, unprofitable, fit to be hewn down and burnt. Lord, dost Thou have mercy on me?

Thou hast struck a heavy blow at my pride, at the false god of self, and I lie in pieces before Thee. But Thou hast given me another master and lord, Thy Son, Jesus, and now my heart is turned towards holiness, my life speeds as an arrow from a bow towards complete obedience to Thee. Help me in all my doings to put down sin and to humble pride. Save me from the love of the world and the pride of life, from everything that is natural to fallen man, and let Christ's nature be seen in me day by day. Grant me grace to bear Thy will without repining, and delight to be not only chiselled, squared, or fashioned, but separated from the old rock where I have been embedded so long, and lifted from the quarry to the upper air, where I may be built in Christ forever.

-- The Valley of Vision

31 Days of Song, Day #28

This morning I was struck by some verses I was reading in Jeremiah.  I've never really enjoyed the books of Isaiah or Jeremiah, but I'm getting a lot out of them this time around!  Anyway, I was reading from chapter 33, verses 14-16: 'Behold, days are coming,' declares the LORD, 'when I will fulfill the good word which I have spoken concerning the house of Israel and the house of Judah.  In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth; and He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth.  In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell in safety; and this is the name by which she will be called: the LORD is our righteousness.'

The LORD is our righteousness.  Isn't that great?  The only righteousness I could ever have is actually His anyway.  What a blessing!

"Thou Who Wast Rich" is a beautiful song that I found yesterday.  It's not specifically a Christmas song, but it comes very close.  The only information I could find on it was discovered here.

This hymn was written at a particularly difficult time in the history of the missions to China. Missionaries had been captured by the communist Red Army and released in poor health after over a year of suffering. Others had been captured never to be heard from again. In 1934 the young missionaries John and Betty Stam (my great aunt and uncle) were captured in Anhwei and beheaded. The news of these sorrows had reached the mission's headquarters in Shanghai. Though this was a very dangerous time for both the Chinese Christians and the foreign missionaries, Frank Houghton decided he needed to begin a tour through the country to visit various missionary outposts. While traveling over the mountains of Szechwan, the powerful and comforting words of 2 Corinthians 8:9, "though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor," were transformed into this beautiful Christmas hymn.

I hope you enjoy it!

Thou who wast rich beyond all splendour,

All for love's sake becamest poor;

Thrones for a manger didst surrender,

Sapphire-paved courts for stable floor.

Thou who wast rich beyond all splendour,

All for love's sake becomes poor.

Thou who art God beyond all praising,

All for love's sake becamest man;

Stooping so low, but sinners raising

Heavenwards by thine eternal plan.

Thou who art God beyond all praising,

All for love's sake becamest man.

Thou who art love beyond all telling,

Saviour and King, we worship thee.

Emmanuel, within us dwelling,

Make us what thou wouldst have us be.

Thou who art love beyond all telling,

Saviour and King, we worship thee.

-- Frank Houghton

31 Days of Song, Day #17

Tonight was my church's monthly Bible memorization meeting.  I love just getting together with all those fellow followers of Christ and listening as we go over Scripture together.  There are some passages of the Bible that are made so much more beautiful when we have the knowledge that others have committed them to memory and they are being lived out.  What a blessed time it was!

"Angels We Have Heard On High" is another great Christmas song that I really enjoy.  The only thing I don't really like about it is that by the time you finish singing "Glooooooooooria" you're about to suffocate and keel over.  It's a great song overall, though.

* And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!" Luke 2:13-14

"Les Anges dans nos Campagnes" was a French carol dating from the 1700s, which appeared in several different versions.  It was published in English in 1862, the words saying:

Angels we have heard on high / Sweetly singing o'er the plains,

And the mountains in reply / Echoing their joyous strains.

Glori, in excelsis Deo!

An older version had the title "Harken All! What Holy Singing!"  The words, translated into English, said:

Hearken, all!  What holy singing / Now is sounding from the sky!

'Tis a hymn with grandeur ringing, / Sung by voices clear and high.

Gloria, in excelsis Deo!

Still another primitive version speaks from the shepherds' vantage point, saying:

Shepherds in the fields abiding, / Tell us when the seraph bright

Greeted you with wondrous tiding, / What you saw and heard that night.

Gloria, in excelsis Deo!

Hymns are usually authored by human beings like us, but in this case obscure verses by unknown French poets were coupled with a refrain that was literally composed by angels in heaven: Gloria, in excelsis Deo.  that's the Latin wording for the angelic anthem "Glory to God in the highest!"  It comes from Luke 2:14 in the Vulgate, the Latin version of the Bible.  The Latin word Gloria means "glory," and in excelsis is the phrase for "in the highest".  Our English words excel and excellent come from the same root, meaning "to rise" or "to ascend" or "to be high".  The Latin word Deo means "God".

   This was the song proclaimed by the angels over Shepherds' Field the night Christ was born.  The musical score stretches out and emphasizes the words in a way that is uniquely fun to sing and deeply stirring, as we lift our voices to proclaim: Jesus has come!  Hope has arrived on earth!  A Savior is born!  Glory to God on High!  Gloria, in excelsis Deo!

* excerpt taken from Then Sings My Soul Special Edition by Robert Morgan, pages 42-43

changing leaves

Today my family and I went to the mountains!  There are a ton of pictures that I want to post, so I'm not going to put them in the largest size like I usually do.  However, if you click on them you come to a sort of slideshow thing that makes them bigger.  Enjoy!

She was pretending to be afraid...

so Daddy got behind a tree and played along

eating lunch

My beauteous bouquet

We were pretending to fight over the bouquet...

Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing

Praising the One Who has given me every blessing, and not given what I deserved...



Come, Thou fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace.
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount!  I'm fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.

Here I raise my Ebenezer,
Hither by Thy help I come.
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger
Wand'ring from the fold of God.
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood.

O that day when, freed from sinning,
I shall see Thy lovely face.
Clothed then in blood-washed linen
How I'll sing Thy sovereign grace!
Come, my Lord, no longer tarry,
Take my ransomed soul away
Send Thine angels now to carry
Me to realms of endless days.

Oh, to grace how great a debtor
Daily I'm contrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wand'ring heart to Thee
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love.
Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

-- Robert Robinson