If you spend much time with me you will soon learn my love of Amazing Grace. I’ve always liked this song due to Scottish roots and a love for bagpipes. However, nineteen years ago on Christmas eve (1991) I received Christ as my Savior, and my love for the song grew much deeper. I am in awe of God’s grace to me. (scroll down to the bottom of the page and pause the player before watching the video)
A long while ago… it seems like that, even though it was only last year… my husband and I took a trip to Skyline Drive. A retreat of sorts to gather our wits back around us, having moved internationally and having said goodbye to so many dear sisters and brothers in Christ. At the time, not knowing where God was moving us to. We took a few days for a photo adventure.
We tend to unwind, de-tox, and de-stress, by getting out in God’s creation and photographing the beauty He surrounds us with.
When I saw this the Lord whispered, “Who will stand in the gap?”
This broken down wall brought to mind Ezekiel 22:30…
“And I sought for a man among them,
that should make up the hedge,
and stand in the gap before me for the land,
that I should not destroy it: but I found none.”
The enemy works so hard to create gaps for us to fall through. He spends his time trying to knock gaps in the boundaries that God sets for us so that we might fall.
1 Peter 5:8 warns us to…
“Be sober, be vigilant;
because your adversary the devil,
as a roaring lion,
walketh about,
seeking whom he may devour:”
Think about this: verse 9 says…
“Whom resist stedfast in the faith,
knowing that the same afflictions
are accomplished
in your brethren
that are in the world.”
Who will encourage them to resist running down that broad road that leads to destruction? Who help them to not fall through that gap in the wall, falling into sin, or distractions that take their focus off following the Lord?
Will you stand in that gap today?
Encourage one another to continue standing strong for the Lord. Stand in the gap when you see one and help others not to fall into it. Sometimes you see a gap that others may not because you are familiar with it. You may have fallen through that gap and know of its devastating hurts.
Will you encourage and protect with your words today? Will you use your words to ‘stand in the gap’?
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Click over to (in)courage and read what Holley has to say about our words and how we use them.
Linking up today over at Katie Lloyd Photography. Click on over there and see more stunning photos with Scripture applied.
Last night as my son climbed onto my lap and I breathed deeply of his freshly washed silky cotton-top, I reminded myself that this was a gift to remember, to write down and not forget, to give thanks for it. To thank my Savior of his love for me and this blessing of grace sitting snuggled up in my lap.
Continuing my count…
…of gifts of grace…
…to be grateful and thankful for.
261. a note from my oldest son, that the Jesse tree devotional stirred his heart
262. my sister-in-law left a sweet comment on my blog, thankful for her and her love
263. Lego scattered all over the floor
264. Sun rays pouring through darkened skies
265. Grocery stores and grocery stores
266. the “Ugly-Beautiful” of a sick child at 3 A.M.
267. washing machine to launder soiled linens
268. cleanser to clean up the rest
269. a husband who cleans headboard, bed frame, side-drawers, carpet, and mattress
while I attend to the child and the laundering of linens
270. indoor bathing facilities and indoor plumbing… so many that are dear to me have neither
271. email from a sister in Christ that encouraged, uplifted and edified
272. being thought of and remembered
273. Laura Parker’s comment that “legalism just sucks,” brought a smile to my face
274. washable slip-covered furniture
275. The smell of freshly washed child snuggled up in my lap
276. the silky soft blond brushing gently against my face
277. getting through my first Blessings Unlimited Gathering
278. a husband who piles kids in truck and brings me what I left behind…
… he is always rescuing his damsel… she somehow always finds herself in distress.
279. kids having a ‘camp-out’ in front of the fire place
280. hearing about God working in hearts, listening to the glad report
of friends growing in His Grace,
of friends growing in His Grace,
breaking free of the bondage of man’s opinions preached as doctrine
Photographs found on Artist-son’s camera:
281.
282.
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| “lego grows on trees” |
283.
 |
| praying in lego form |
284.
285.
Must have been some good chocolate chip cookies!
Mmmmm…. where did that tin of cookies go?
Linked up over at A Holy Experience today where AnnVoskamp hosts the Gratitude Community.
Won’t you join us over there and consider beginning your own list?
Last week, Ann Voskamp published a great post about noticing that Peter counted the fish in the net. He counted his blessings.
I count… like Peter, I name… like Adam, I list… like Ann.
Thanking God for all that He graces with me with each day…
241. The warm weight of the child asleep in my lap.
242. Little girl toes with tiny traces of nail polish applied long ago.
243. The moments spent watching Pride and Prejudice with my bookworm-girl and her dad
244. the laugh spilling from my Artist-son while he reads Charles Schultz drawings
245. a girl confronting her problems and turning to God for help with them
246. my Bookworm-girl baking DELICIOUS chocolate chip cookies, ALL. BY. HERSELF.
247. getting a lot of laundry done
248. the scent of turkey filing the house as we entered the door
249. the grinding sound of a puppy intensely gnawing on her bone,
Praising God she is not doing that to the furniture.
250. a room filled with friends playing Apples to Apples
251. “My chains are gone, I’ve been set free,
My God, My Savior, has ransomed me,
And like a flood, His mercy rains,
Unending love, Amazing grace…” ~Chris Tomlin
252. the gift of having the chains of double standards broken off of me
253. the deeper knowledge of grace
255. a husband giving me time to fix my blog
256. seeing friends join the counting of grace-gifts
257. a washing machine chugging along… I don’t have to do my laundry on a rock in a piranha filled
muddy river
258. there is enough milk for coffee this morning
259. the Bright and Morning Star (aka: Jesus, reference Chris Tomlin’s “Glory in the Highest”)
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| (Yes, I know that is Venus… a planet… not a star… but still a great shot. No?) |
260. the Jesse Tree Advent devotional, printed and ready to use
This morning I was happy to see that my friend Louise had joined in the counting of the multitudes of gifts we count on Mondays over at the Gratitude Community hosted by Ann. I am one of those people that enjoys spreading the word about things I truly enjoy. It is encouraging to me to see someone join into something that has been life-changing for me.
I am truly thankful right now for a husband who knew that the template mess was going to be on my mind all day. My knight, who wasn’t wearing medieval armor, stepped in and saved his damsel in distress. “Go ahead and take care of it now. I will get the kids started on their breakfast and school work.” Such a good man I married. Dwelling with me according to the knowledge that he knew I would be stressed all day until I figured it out. Giving me a chance to fix the issues, without interruption. Though I never did get the old template to reload, I was able to configure one of Blogger’s standard templates enough so that it looks close enough to my old one. It is doable and I am happy.
Ann writes it… a Fight for Joy, a gratitude journal, a listing of gifts…
Johnson Oatman, Jr. wrote it this way…
When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
Refrain:
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.
Refrain
When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings. Wealth can never buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.
Refrain
So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be disheartened, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.
Refrain
Something tells me Johnson Oatman, Jr. understood it.
191. The thin streak of brightest orange low on the horizon…
192. in the amount of time it takes to scoop four rounded mounds of dark brown deliciousness into is paper bed…
193. the horizon gives birth to its deep red-orange orb of warmth.
194. brick that stands indifferent…
195. to the blasts of howling wind.
196. long soft blond tangled by a good night’s rest
197. the clattering of silverware on counter top…
198. as the artist-son prepares his meal alone…
199. so he can wage a successful ambush on his day of colonizing, averaging, and punctuation.
200. hearing him, now joined by his smallest sister, unselfishly prepare Little Miss Independent’s breakfast too.
201. the quiet gentle loving banter between he and she
202. he speaks to her in gentle tones, teaching her as he goes along
203. Remembering her shocked-out-loud reaction of “Aye-yi-yi!” As the woman with the bobbed florescent lime green wig passes us in the store.
204. That she reminds me of it a month later, as we walk the same aisle, with a laugh and a grin.
205. crackle and snap from the fireplace
206. “Wanna sit with me? There is room enough for both of us.” ~quiet son to smallest daughter
207. noticing my twelve year old has quietly begun her own “gift list” …quietly counting like her mama
208. seeing a son’s tender heart exposed
209. the sounds of three kids playing “Thomas”
210. ideas being exchanged and cooperation taking place with no arguing or bossing
211. adult dinner with friends
212. a website approved faster than expected
213. a space heater doing it’s job
214. some one willing to host my first Gathering
215. an abundance of new reading material…
216. a rearranged room providing space for a small desk
217. “Are you washed in the blood, in the soul cleansing blood of the lamb?” sung by the quiet six year old as he races train around track
218. yesterday’s sermon, God speaking so clearly through my husband.
219. Our time of planting on foreign soil
220. being reminded by the Lord that she is twelve and alive and not in a grave at age two
221. Gloria Inting
222. That the friends we met while leaving the field have continued on a friendship with a special couple we introduced them to
223. Witnessing my parents join our church, choosing a son-in-law to be their Pastor, with eyes brimming -theirs and mine.
224. falling asleep listening to the quiet cries of an owl in the distance. (a drastic change from noisy chickens, whiney goats, and the unsettling bellows of a cow only ten feet from your pillow, as he lounges against your compound wall.)
225. snapping and popping of the oil filled space heater warming up
226. He gives “oil of joy for mourning”
227. and “the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness,” heaviness that was brought on by double-standards set against me.
228. and “beauty for ashes” ~Isaiah 61:3
229. a dry puppy cage at 8AM!
230. the honking of Canadian geese heard overhead…
231. their shadowy outlines barely seen in the thick morning fog.
232. silky soft puppy ears
233. a plate of cinnamon-applesauce ornaments made for me when I was unable to stay for the craft fellowship.
234. that they remembered me and thought of me… their pastor’s wife
235. Seeing the front of the church filled with children practicing for a Christmas play.
236. the indwelling and filling of the Holy Spirit…
237. that He wants me to seek Him so much that my ‘life-glass’ overflows with His ‘living water-Spirit’…
238. that He speaks through his Word
239. tight buds on a plant that has never bloomed
240. a husband’s plans for decorating for Christmas
I am thankful the Lord brought me across Ann Voskamp’s blog. Meeting her in person and witnessing first hand the grace flowing through her. This listing of gifts. The reading of her book. God is teaching so much through it all and is intertwining His own confirmation and added blessing through his Word during private personal reading done parallel. Thankful to know God is teaching and leading and I am hearing it and paying attention…
Hiking Toward Home