From Strength to Strength
I’m pulling taffy with the days, stretching these longest ones of the year into something just a little bit more.
And I’m missing this place more than a little, but just not quite able to reach it even with my lanky arms.
Strength is hard to come by these weeks. But I’m alive, in case you wondered.
So here’s what I’m thinking about as another unearthly long road day draws out in front of me after I reach for the sheets and a few hours in the quiet:
How lovely is your dwelling place,
O LORD Almighty!My soul yearns, even faints,
for the courts of the LORD;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.Even the sparrow has found a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may have her young—
a place near your altar,
O LORD Almighty, my King and my God.Blessed are those who dwell in your house;
they are ever praising you.
SelahBlessed are those whose strength is in you,
who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
they make it a place of springs;
the autumn rains also cover it with pools.They go from strength to strength,
till each appears before God in Zion.Hear my prayer, O LORD God Almighty;
listen to me, O God of Jacob.
SelahLook upon our shield, O God;
look with favor on your anointed one.Better is one day in your courts
than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of the wicked.For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
the LORD bestows favor and honor;
no good thing does he withhold
from those whose walk is blameless.O LORD Almighty,
blessed is the man who trusts in you.Psalm 84
::
This one — this one I’ll let speak for itself. The Word needs no help from me.
thank you
2010/06/22 at 7:14 AM
Dear Lyla,
May You find your yearnings satisfied in a quiet prayer corner; may you be blessed as you trust in Him; may your strength be renewed as you walk in His prescence today.
¡Bendiciones!
************************
My new blog address (just to let you know)
http://www.on-my-way-to-heaven.com/
2010/06/22 at 8:03 AM
“pulling taffy with the days…”
yes.
miss you. and i am thinking of you.
2010/06/22 at 9:27 AM
Thank you for those soul-soothing verses.
Now I have that beautiful old Nedra Ross song running through my head: “You are my sun and my shield. You are my Lover from the start, and the highway to Your city runs through my heart…” Does anybody else remember Nedra?
Lyla, may you rest in the sunshine of the Lord’s love.
2010/06/22 at 9:28 AM
I did wonder, yes.
Glad you’re alive. (Stay off the roof, if you can.)
And thanks for the phone call.
2010/06/22 at 2:24 PM
Taffy is like a lot of other things in our lives and especially in our walk with Christ. It is just a big blog of sugar, cornstarch, corn syrup, butter, salt and vanilla (or some other flavoring). It is the pulling that makes it a great candy. I googled taffy recipe and I liked this intro:
Saltwater taffy is a candy and an upper-body workout all in one. To give it its light but chewy texture, you’ll be pulling it, and pulling it, and pulling it for up to 15 minutes.
Using the title of a county music song from back when, and paraphrasing God, “I Never Promised you a Rose Garden”. Pulling taffy makes it better and testing by God makes us stronger servants.
Dad
PS: Friday the real taffy pulling starts. Deadwood will never be the same.
2010/06/22 at 4:52 PM
“Pulling taffy with the days…”
That pretty much summed me up.
Thanks for this!
2010/06/23 at 12:01 PM
I hope these verses will be true for me. But sometimes I wonder. Today, I’m wondering.
Of course, that’s only because it’s been so long for us in our situation and I just left the dentist after the 2nd visit in five (3 more to go) and I wonder how long I’m gonna hold up under the stress of not knowing…
There are no easy answers. But God doesn’t leave me alone. Not for one single moment. What a comfort that is.
2010/06/23 at 5:34 PM
Hey, you. I can use a little of this mojo too. Thanks for sharing it. Love to you, Lyla.
2010/06/23 at 7:32 PM
I have missed your thoughts–figured you were as crazy busy as I am. May God infuse you with the strength you need for this day, and for the next, and the next…until you spill over in rejoicing and understanding again.
2010/06/24 at 9:06 PM
this rocks
2010/06/27 at 1:37 PM