April 14, 2012: I Lift Up My Eyes

3 gifts found looking up:

• a robin sweetly singing her Maker's praise way up in the top of a tree this evening.
• much needed rain.
• comfort and peace from knowing the Lord is watching those I love. 

 Psalm 121. A song of ascents.  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.
 He will not let your foot slip—
   he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
   will neither slumber nor sleep.
 The LORD watches over you—
   the LORD is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
   nor the moon by night.
 The LORD will keep you from all harm—
   he will watch over your life;
the LORD will watch over your coming and going
   both now and forevermore.

March 22, 2012: Words from the Word

3 gifts found in His Word:

• Psalm 9:9-10 The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.
• Psalm 37:23-24  The LORD makes firm the steps of those who delight in him; though they stumble, they will not fall, for the LORD upholds them with his hand. 
•  1 John 4:4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

March 12, 2012: The Gift of Water

a gift in wind, in water, in white:

• a gift in wind: or more accurately, a gift after wind.  We had a tornado watch tonight with driving rain and winds, but after it passed through, the most beautiful pink sunset. It brought to mind the story in 1 Kings 19 where God reveals himself to Elijah.  The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.”    Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake.  After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. (v. 11-12)  God is all the power of an earthquake or a tornado, but he more often chooses to show his glory in a gentle whisper or a pink sunset.
• a gift in water: the ice cold glass I drank and refilled with my dinner.  The water I can get straight out of the faucet any time I feel like it, without a second thought.  Did you know that 17 percent of the world's population has no access to clean drinking water?  That's a billion people!  For more information on the world water crisis, check out http://20liters.org
• a gift in white: a little ceramic bird sitting on the table in my living room.  He is so sweet and cheerful, very springlike.

February 3, 2012: A Gift in an Injury

3 gifts found in writing:
2 quotes that resonated with me found while web surfing on favorite sites today with little else to do, and 1 quote from God's Word that has echoed in my heart all week, taking on new meaning after slipping and falling down the steps in my house yesterday .

• " In a world that is so ready to believe what is false, people so ready to behave falsely it is more than hard to be real. We become used to pasting on the false smile and saying we are "Fine!"  when fine is generally the last thing we feel." (transitional-woman.blogspot.com)
•  "our hearts leak and will always end up empty when we find our worth in anything but who we are in Christ. Our value is not measured by what others think of us..." (reneeswope.com)
• 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. He will not let your foot slip—   he who watches over you will not slumber. (Psalm 121:1-3)  I ponder this Scripture as I sit on the couch, typing one handed, injured and a little lonely.  I believe that my Lord is the Maker of heaven and earth, the maker of me, the maker of steps.  I believe that he has the power to keep me from falling. Therefore I can only conclude that he has some greater good in mind, some purpose for keeping me on the couch, sore groggy and tired.  Perhaps he has a quiet word to whisper to my soul and needed me to slow down to hear it. I don't pretend to know the answer but will attempt to wait patiently as he teaches. (P.S. the photo was borrowed from my son, who took it while hiking, injured, in the Sierra Nevada this summer, isn't it beautiful?)