Good Morning, Dear friends and Prayer Partners! This is the day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! Another beautiful day lies before us with blue skies and little wind, and temps in the low sixties. I am determined not to turn on the furnace until it gets much cooler...well, maybe not much cooler, but a little.
I was sweeping acorns off the sidewalk and porch yesterday, again, and watched the squirrels scampering up the oak trees and zipping along the branches. They have about three new nests and all the evidence is on the ground in the twigs and stuff . They must have a lot more than that on the ground at the park, but there is so much other stuff there, that a few more leaves are not unusual. More and more birds are coming from the north. I saw a huge flock of blackbirds, circling in the air at a busy intersection yesterday.
When I drove into the park, I saw a very unusual sight; a flock of ibis were standing in a row on the bank of the weir and all had their heads down and were drinking. Alongside them were a lot of black turtles. I should have taken a picture of them. The park was crowded, because it was such a nice day, and a class was waiting for the teacher to take them on a tour. Nice field trip! God is good!
From Quiet Moments with God:
He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.
Philippians 1:6 NKJV
A sign in a hotel lobby that was being remodeled stated, " Please be patient. Renovation in progress to produce something new and wonderful." Perhaps we all need to wear a sign like that! We are all unfinished projects under construction, being made into something wonderful. Being mindful of this, we might have greater grace and patience for others, as well as for ourselves, while the work is underway.
Hope is the anticipation of good. Like the hotel lobby in the disarray of renovation, our hope is often in spite of our present circumstances. What is the basis for our hope?
For the Christian, hope is not simple optimism or a denial of reality. The reason for our hope is Jesus Christ, the solid Rock of our faith. As the hymn writer wrote, "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness.". We are never without hope for our lives if we know the Lord Jesus.
The focus of our hope is to be like Jesus. This goal may seem too great and way beyond our ability to achieve, and it is. So how do we reach it?
The Scriptures tell us it is "Christ in you" that is our hope. (See Colossians 1:27.) The transformation of our lives into Christlikeness is a goal that is larger than life. As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, to have hope only for this life is to be miserable. (See 1 Corinthians 15:19). The Christian hope if for this life and for eternity.
A little chapel in the hills of the Scottish Highlands has a sign chiseled in Gaelic on the front door. Translated into English it reads; "Come as you are, but don't leave as you came." When we come to Jesus, we can come as we are. But He will not leave us the same. That is our sure hope.
Our hope lies not in the man we put on the moon, But in the Man we put on the cross.
Don Basham
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
