HOPE

~ Grace Gift ~
HOPE

Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you"--this is the LORD's declaration--"plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

The day-to-day struggles of fear, anxiety and panic attacks can really take a toll on your soul. Things can feel so dark and discouraging.

Hope is the one thing that gave me strength in the darkest of times.  

Let me share some promises with you that will encourage you and give you hope.

“I pray that God, who gives you hope, will keep you happy and full of peace as you believe in him. May you overflow with hope through the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13).

 “I am sure that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on that day when Christ Jesus comes back again” (Philippians 1:6).

Father, fill me with a new hope, and new confidence that you are with me at all times, and that I can have freedom from fear, panic attacks and anxiety.

There is a special song in my life, Hope Now. It came on the radio as we were being rescued from a flood in 2010.
It brought me both goose-bumps ( because t it played when it did ) and Hope... oh, we needed Hope that day ~ and every day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwdXqDYfBYQ

 

The Desires Of Our Heart.

~ Grace Gift ~
The desires of our heart.

“May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.” Psalm 20:4

 He has our best interest at heart…He is always with us…He never fails us…Delight yourself in the Lord…He will lead you…He will guide you…He will direct you…He will enlightened you…"In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths."(Prov.3:6)…

If you are looking for direction in your life…acknowledge Him…He gives good counsel…God is our delight…He loves us…He protects us…If you are going through a rough place…call on Him…don't aimlessly seek direction…call on Him…don't dwell on hurts…dwell on the all encompassing power of God…choose to be happy…make it a definite choice…dwell on His provision…dwell on His help…dwell on His promises…delight yourself in Him…Let these thoughts sink into your being…remember He is on our side…rejoice…we can not lose..He sees us through…When you feel a wave of despair approaching…call on Him…He will lift you up…whenever you are afraid…put your trust in Him…Jesus is able to turn things around…He tells us over and over again in His word to fear not…He tells us He is with us…He tells us the enemy can't triumph over us…God is our defense…Trust God with your life…watch what He is doing in your life…

 You will cry as the psalmist did in Psalm 66:5 "Come and see the works of God,He is awesome in His doing towards the sons of men."…Nothing is to hard for the Lord…His power is truly awesome…Amen

Paris

Grace Gift
Living your dreams.

If I had a bucket list, I would put visiting Paris again close to the top of that list.
There's just something wonderful about that city.
I have been there before, years ago but would love to go again~ this time with my husband, Stan and my grown daughters. I do believe they would love it there as much as I.
So, until that day, if/when it comes, I will post a bit right here.
Enjoy the trip.

My limited French  consisted of  useful phrases like I Love You and Please, Thank You and Good day. 

"I love you" isn't something you just want to walk up to anyone and say but it's a phrase I knew. But 'please and thank you' are appropriate in any language.

Its funny how humbling an experience it is to be in a country where your level of communication is about the same as a caveman.

 

C'est magnifique (say mahg nee feek) -It's magnificant, it's wonderful

My mom would have loved to go here- the Opera House.

Walking along a cobbled pedestrian street in Paris, among many other cobbled pedestrian streets in a neighborhood of small restaurants, fast food places, cafes, bars and tourist shops is a neighborhood with a great many Greek restaurants, some with delicious looking displays of food in the window. One had a whole, leg of lamb turning on a spit while the fats and juices dripped down into a big pan of roasting potatoes. It was the most effective advertising I had ever seen.

Now I know what a 'mighty fortress' is.

A lovely way to spend some quiet time.

Lovely cobblestone roads...

It took a while, but I climbed this stairway.

The High Places Of The Earth

~ Grace Gift ~ 
The High Places Of The Earth

Amos 4:13 For behold, He who forms mountains and creates the wind And declares to man what are His thoughts, He who makes dawn into darkness And treads on the high places of the earth, The LORD God of hosts is His name.

  
Thank You, Lord, that even when the future seems dim and bleak, You are still at work.  Help us to trust that You have a plan.

Help

~ Grace Gift ~
 Help



I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
Psalm 121:1-2

Maybe this is why I love the mountains so. My eyes are naturally turned heavenward, where God is seated on His throne, high and lifted up, in all His majesty and splendor, His eyes forever on me…His beloved child. My Helper.

Peace

~ Peace ~

John 14:27
“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
 

A dear friend and I were talking about the snowy weather in Iowa. She was concerned for her grown daughter driving in the snow and ice. I must admit, I too, worry when the roads get bad and my kids are out there driving . Of course, I depend and trust the Lord to keep them safe yet... my heart does get troubled, I do become afraid for what could happen.
That is when I need to just focus on Him and His peace; His still waters; His place of refuge.
Thank You, Lord for the safety of You, even in a blizzard.
* May His Peace be with you tonight, folks.

Tears

 ~ Grace Gift ~
Tears

You Yourself have recorded my wanderings. Put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in Your records?
Psalm 56:8

picture courtesy of http://www.bottleoftears.com/blog/

 Did you ever wonder why God would keep bottles of our tears?

As a mom of five, I would keep my kids' first-lost baby teeth, wrapped lovingly in a Kleenex and kept in an envelope and placed ever so lovingly in my jewelery box. I'm not sure why I did that other than I just wanted a little piece of their babyhood to keep with me forever. Sadly, I no longer have those precious little teeth but what about God? And what about our tears?

Does He REALLY keep our tears? And why?

http://www.bottleoftears.com/blog/

There was a Roman custom of bottling the tears of mourners as a memorial.
"Lachrymatories", or tear bottles, are where surviving relatives dropped their tears for their deceased family and friends. They were buried with their ashes, or in their urns.

Hundreds of small bottles dating back to 300 B.C. were found by Middle Eastern tomb raiders around 100 A.D. Theory was developed that they were part of the mourning ritual where mourners would cry into the bottles as a sign of respect. It was also believed that mourners would be paid to attend the funerals of the wealthy: filling tear bottles & wailing loudly to create dramatic impact. These items were rare in most burials, but common among the wealthy. 

 Tear Bottle - 1st c Roman -
"There is a sacredness in tears. They are not a mark of weakness but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, of unspeakable love." - Washington Irving

 Wow, according to Washington Irving, as he so eloquently puts it, tears are messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition and of unspeakable love. Interesting- and I will come back to this thought in a minute.

 O.k, so Roman tradition may have collected tears as a mourning process but still, what about God? Does He actually keep shelves of bottles of our tears and a big ole book filled with events that ever took place that made us cry?

 What is the significance of tears?

 And just what are tears, anyway?

Here is a link to some interesting discoveries about tears.
* I hope it's ok to use their link on my blog.
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-microscopic-structures-of-dried-human-tears-180947766/?no-ist

She bathed His feet with her warm tears as they dropped one by one unto His feet. Luke 7:37

 Jesus wept. John 11:35

 I am weary with my groaning; all night I make my bed swim; I drench my couch with my tears.
My eye wastes away because of grief, it grows old because of all my enemies.
Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity; for the LORD has heard the voice of my weeping.
The LORD has heard my supplication; The LORD will receive my prayer.
(Psalm 6:6-9)

 For You have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet
from falling.
(Psalm 116:8)

 He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces.
(Isaiah 25:8)

 Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; for your work shall be rewarded, says the LORD, and they shall come back from the land of
the enemy.
Jeremiah 31:16

 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. (Revelation 21:4)

 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
(Isaiah 35:10)

 The Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
(Revelation 7:17)

 He has seen you cry until you can’t cry any more.  He has witnessed your heartache. He has seen your tears when you have cried all alone in the dark, not sure of where to turn or where to go.  He has recorded each one in His book and collected your tears in the bottle He has just for you.  How precious you are to Him!
Let the tears flow and know that your God cares for you intimately and with great passion!

 Father, Thank you for seeing my tears and for the promise that I am never alone in my sorrow.  Amen.