A Tender Father

"As tenderly as a Father  treats His children,
so Yahweh treats those who fear Him. "
Psalms 103:13

As I read this verse,
A picture of my son-in- law came to mind.
He just had his first child
Baby calms down for Daddy, my son-in- law, easily.
Daddy takes him in his arms
And gently soothes him saying,
Ah, what is the matter, everything is alright."
And he comforts him, sings to him, walks him, pats him,
And that baby is fast to sleep in minutes.

Before he goes to work,
He says,
"Let me change his diaper, I love caring for my son in this way. "
And the first thing he says when he comes home,
"Where is my baby? Daddy missed you!"

Yes, as tenderly as a father treats his children,
So God loves His own, His sons and daughters.

Thank you Byron for giving me this picture of a tender Heavenly Father!

Sitting at His Feet

Mary...seated herself at the feet of Jesus...
She sat there at His feet, content
Whispering, "Yes, Lord, I want You,
I want to breathe You in...
I love Your words...they comfort me, encourage me, lift my spirit.
They give me a new way to think, a new way to look at life.
Your words speak hope into me
They bring peace to my spirit.
Your words are different than any other,
They are words of life
Words of love
Words of acceptance....."

Mary stayed at Jesus feet.
She wasn't interested in a quick fix, a mend job,
Or a pat on the back of a duty done for the day...
No, she wanted more
More of His presence, His light, His truth.

And so she stayed and listened
Becoming acquainted with His voice
Allowing His words to change her, transform her, beautify herr
She stayed there...falling in love again and again.

Jesus replied, "One thing is necessary, what Mary has chosen is best,
And it cannot be taken from her."

I Need You

I throw myself
Headlong...into Your embrace, God.
Your embrace, Your outstretched arms...
I so need to lay my head upon Your chest
And feel Your arms tightly holding me.
I need to hear Your heartbeat at this moment.
I need to hear Your endearments whispered into my ear...

I need to stay her a bit
Until I am reassured again
That I am safe with You,
Until I know
That You'll never let go
You'll never forsake, never disappoint...

The pounding of Your heart's desire of love
Reassures that is is true...
Your love is real, it's deep, it's wide...
It's unfathomably magnificent,
And it's forever!

The Lies

The enemy comes to me
And tells me that my God is far away...
That He is hidden,
That He doesn't care...

Yes, that enemy whispers lies about my God into my ear
Trying to convince me
That my God is not good
That He is withholding His love
Because of this and that...

And then that liar changes his tune
And says, if I do this and that...
God will come through for me.
And if I don't eat or drink this...
God will come through for me.
Or if I go here or there
He will be accessible...

But it's all a lie...

Because my God is already here...
He is wrapped around me
Even though I cannot see...
Even though I can't feel Him.
He is already holding me tight and true
Because I am His...

He knows it all...
He knows my mess, my past, my present
He knows my thoughts at this very moment...
And His love doesn't change.
Always and forever
His love remains abundantly, magnificently more
Than I can imagine or comprehend...

The truth puts a new song in my heart...
It allows me to see the new day arising...
And praise begins to bubble up!

His Faithfulness

Is there a limit to Your faithfulness, God?
Does Your faithfulness have a boundary, a time limit, a contingence?

Is there a shadow of change to Your faithfulness,
A span of remiss, a season of hiddenness?

Does Your faithfulness have a top, a bottom, a measurement...

No, Your great faithfulness is infinite
Stretching over the whole world
To all generations, all ages,
In all circumstances, in all cultures...

Your faithfulness continues on...forever
In unexplainable, magnificence!!!

Thank you God for Your faithfulness.

The Shining Path

That shining path
That You gently lead me on
As You comfort me with Your revelation truth
Takes me to the place of Your burning Presence.
That place of awe and wonder
Of the goodness, greatness, and faithfulness of our God
In the big and little things of life....

Yes, that shining path of Your revelation truth
Dispels the lies, the fears, the anxieties of the day...

That shining path that brings me to peace
And allows my spirit to remind my soul,
Not to be afraid...not to be disappointed or discouraged...
Reminding me of the truth
That I am not alone, I have a help
And there are plenty of reasons I can praise my God today!!!

Yes, that shining path that you take me to
Causes the harp inside me to explode
With joy,
With singing,
With praise to a God who I can always expect
To breakthrough for me!!!

April

As the 1st day of April dawns, memories of past Aprils and past springs flood my memory.
April, the month of looking for the new, expecting the rain and often hosting Easter.

A year ago on April 1st, my youngest son was released from the hospital after a week of long bout of pneumonia.
Another vivid childhood memory that is painted vividly for me which occurred in April is the night 35% of my body was burned.
The Father's healing hand restored each of these tragedies.

April is the month I think of daffodils, violets, tulips and forsythias.

April sparks happy memories of my Dad, because his birthday was in April. My mother would make his favorite cake (a hickory nut cake in a tub pan,) and then she would put a bouquet of daffodils in the middle.

April was the month I met my husband and love began to blossom. It was also the month we celebrated one of my daughters wedding.
And now, April will be the  month that my 3rd grandchild will be born!!

Yes, His blessings continue on forever and forever...

But the greatest gift of April is the gift that Jesus gave us as He hung on the cross and suffered, and gave His all so we could be free, whole, and blessed with abundant life.

So I take in the treasure of this month, the treasure of memories, the stories of God's faithfulness along with the treasures that I can expect this month, as He reveals more of His goodness and grace!!!

Cheers to the green, the beginning of life, the appearing of the flowers, and the hope and confidence, of the goodness of the Lord, which we will experience this April!