The Hand of God

I love singing. I sing in the choir at my church. I sing in one of our worship bands. I sing with my dad. I love hearing people sing.  I love hearing the way harmonies work together to form this incredible sound. Great harmonies make my heart sing. Interesting, as I pen this post I hear the birds singing beautiful harmonies outside my window! I love that sound! But rarely do I sing solo. So I was hesitant when I was asked to be the special music for a Ladies Retreat at my parent's church at the weekend! After mulling and praying it over, I agreed then set out to find some songs to sing. I love how God prompts us, for in the end it turned out that the songs I chose fit with the speaker's theme, "The Hand of God." I truly experienced what I call a "God moment" when I sang and I give all the praise to Him. As I said, I am not a soloist and was nervous, but God used me and for that I am grateful. I felt the prayers of my friends every step of the way. In addition, the speaker's message was a wonderful reminder to me of how I have seen the hand of God on my life every step of the way!

"So do not fear for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." (Isaiah 41:10)

(PS  I chose this picture of the hand of a child I took in our church nursery to represent this verse because to me this shows God's attributes as well. I know we usually think of a strong, adult hand upholding us however, I love the innocence of this hand... the calmness, the purity, the love, the trust, the softness of it. A baby's hand grasps tightly to our fingers and it is difficult to let go. God grasps tightly to us and never lets us go!)

How to win the Battle

  "The Lord will fight for you. All you need to do is stand still. Be still and know that I am God."

(Exodus 14:14)

My friend over at Feathers of Inspiration posted this verse one day on her blog. I couldn't believe how timely it was for me to read it that particular day. I needed the encouragement.  Standing still in the middle of a battle is difficult to do but wise advice. As I have mentioned, I  moved back home with my folks and then we all moved house. It has been the most stressful time in my life and the longest move ever! Packing up seniors is a slow process and change has been difficult for them at this stage in their life. Thus making it difficult on me!  I have had to cling to this verse daily! It is hard for me to be still. I am a natural peacemaker so want to try to resolve things on my own, which results in more stress (and me being miserable to live with)! God has reminded me that He will fight for me. I just need to be and let Him do the rest. After this difficult transition I know without a doubt He is God. I know without a doubt He is my stronghold. I know without a doubt God is greater. I know without a doubt He fights me me. I know without a doubt God, who is Peace, bestows peace daily on my restless, hurting soul. Remember...God will fight for you too. All you need to do is stand still! 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

(My Grandma's old, dilapidated farmhouse in Northern Ireland
still has this lucky horseshoe over the entrance way! , July 2008)


May you always have walls for the winds,

a roof for the rain, tea beside the fire,

laughter to cheer you, those you love near you,

and all your heart might desire.

(Irish Blessing)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

New Beginnings

"New feet within my garden go, 

New fingers stir the sod;

A troubadour upon the elm

Betrays the solitude.

New children play upon the green,

New weary sleep below;

And still the pensive spring returns, 

And still the punctual snow!"

(Emily Dickinson)

Spring is in the air which to me symbolizes new beginnings, an opportunity to start afresh. It is high time I began blogging again. I have missed it. I didn't purposely set out to stop blogging, I just allowed life to get in the way! In addition, I moved 2 weeks ago but it actually was a two month ordeal! As many of you know, I decided to move back with my folks to help them out with their health issues, etc. So we have all moved to a bigger space. It has been the most stressful time of my life. Have any of you moved Seniors? It presented many challenges I didn't expect. But, with the help of many of my AMAZING friends, we are here and settling in to our new digs. I am loving the new place but know it will take another month to get everything sorted! Here's to new beginnings and putting my creative energy to good use once again. See you soon!