Make-Up Monday - Ephesians 4:30

"And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption."

Just this evening, the power at our house went out for an hour or so, and as I began to write, a thought came to

Me: How often do we Christians ignore the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit that would have shown us the

right way to go, and instead pull back into the darkness of our old self, trying to get around by our own power,
and by our own plans? If my own life is any indication, too much.
  A very great gift has been given to us in God's Holy Spirit, a gift of new sight, of guidance, and of strength.
By Him we are sealed, we are pardoned and set apart. We are made His. Yet we can so often refuse to hear His
warnings, which are given so graciously, and we can so often refuse the light that He gives so freely. We
cannot expect to grieve His Holy Spirit again and again without consequences, and if we do not continually
repent of our sins and surrender to God, our hearts will surely end up cold and dark, estranged from God and
hardened towards Him.
  If nothing else, let us constantly call to remembrance what mercy God has shown to us, that we sinners
could be called His children. Let us remember the darkness that He delivered us from, and may He grant us
soft hearts to receive His word, and faith to walk by His Spirit!

Here is a new song from Blane Jr: (Lyrics are on the YouTube page)

"Try-Again" Tuesday - Hebrews 10:23

(I failed to write Sunday and Monday, so I have "tried again", and succeeded, today)

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering,

 for He who promised is faithful."

There are a lot of pressures and cares in this world, the bulk of which I have not personally experienced yet,
being as young as I am. But now, especially after going through drivers-ed, I am starting to get real glimpses of
the responsibilities I will soon bear. Of owning and driving a vehicle. Of having a job. And yes, of having and
providing for a family. I have learned much in the past few years about these things, so I have come to this
point understanding that these are goals that I am to work toward. However, it is one thing to learn about and
accept these ideas, and another thing entirely for them to become realities that must be navigated with faith,
prayer, and perseverance.
  All this to say that sometimes, the idea of "growing up" just about scares me silly, but I am reminded that
God is in control, and that if I concentrate on pleasing Him, He will bless my feeble efforts and guide me in
the way I should go.
  My prayer for all of us is that we would indeed hold fast to Him who is the assurance of our hope, even when
we don't feel hopeful. That we would always remember that even though all else should seem a bleak, heavy
burden, He who promised to "never leave nor forsake" us is faithful and will never go back on His promises.

Now, on a not so different note, here is a new song we recorded Sunday:

We had done another, an excellent new song from Blane Jr, but after further review decided to do it over next Sunday. Until next time, Grace & Peace!

Make-Up Monday - 1 Samuel 15:22

"And Samuel said,

'Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,

as in obeying the voice of the Lord?

Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,

and to listen than the fat of rams."

To obey is better than sacrifice. How many of us, when God tells us to do something that we don't like, seek to

do some work that is more "palatable" to us, under the false idea that God will overlook what we didn't do,

because we did something else that was "just as good" in our own eyes? Nothing can replace plain obedience to

God's word.

  In this chapter, King Saul is told by God to destroy the Amalekites completely, not even sparing the animals.

Yet Saul feared the people, and allowed them to spare some of the animals to use for sacrifices. God set up the

sacrificial system to point to Christ, and it was the appointed way of worshiping Him before Christ came, but

Saul used it, and the will of the people, as an excuse to disobey God's command.

  God rejected Saul as king because of this, because Saul rejected His word. Let us make no mistake, the Lord

is a jealous God, and He expects His people to give Him alone the praise He deserves, and to obey His voice.

All the more reason to fall on our faces and worship Him, because we do not do what we ought, and yet He

bears with us. Praise the Lord, for He is good!

(I have returned alive and well from a week of driver's-ed, thanks be to God, and am now an official person-

-who-knows-how-to-drive-but-can't-yet!)

Scripture-Less Sunday, and a Song

Well, I have no clever exegesis this afternoon, but I have a new song:



I am going to the first day of a weeklong drivers-ed class tomorrow, at Asheville Christian Academy-- So all
of you in the Asheville area may want to stay off the road for a while... ;D  Anyway, I would greatly appreciate
prayer as I'm going through this transition in my life.
  On a different note, go read Psalm 103, and really meditate on it. Pray over it. It does a body (and spirit) good.

New Music

Here's a new song of mine that we recorded Sunday:



And a hymn by Ann Steele, with arrangement by Indelible Grace:



Soli Deo Gloria!

Scripture Sunday - Psalm 68:19

"Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up: God is our salvation. Selah"

This verse contains a "Selah", which indicates a pause in the psalm, to meditate on what was said. I intend to

do just that. The KJV renders this verse with the wonderful phrase, "who daily loadeth us with benefits", which

could be a sermon in itself, but I will stick with the ESV for now...

  "Blessed be the Lord," Let us give Him honor and praise, fame and glory. Let His name be held in reverence,

and magnified by all people!

  "Who daily bears us up;" Because He daily, without fail, gives us mercy upon mercy, forgiving our sins and

failings, and keeps us from calamity, guiding our very steps by His Word and Spirit.

  "God is our salvation." In Him only have we our life and breath, and He is our strong foundation that can

never be shaken!

I will end with a familiar hymn...

"Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below;

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host; Praise Father, Son & Holy Ghost!

Amen!

Scripture-Less Sunday

I would love to have some clever, pre-written, edifying post up here, but alas, my brain is pure mush. So don't,
I ask, judge me too harshly when I turn out nothing but a new website on my sidebar! (If you must know, I
completely wore myself out bike riding after supper, collapsed on my bed, and so have been in a foggy daze ever since.) As for the site, it happens to be The Daily Spurgeon. I have seen it before, but never thought
to put it on my list. It's a collection of excerpts from Spurgeon's sermons, in a daily devotional format. Well,
until next time, here's praying for Grace, Peace, and the Faith to serve our King!