the everyday miracle that is a flower

imagine, from this:

(which I blogged about here)

to this:

to these:

in three months.

flowers are, i think, one of the best examples of God's everyday miracles.

Miracles He is more willing to shower on you.

 Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:  And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, [shall he] not much more [clothe] you, O ye of little faith? Matthew 6:28-30

May your faith bloom like a hundred pretty flowers.

***all photos taken at Royal Valley Free SDA Church. :)

A Song I Wish I'd Written Myself

BLESSINGS

Laura Story

We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights 
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
And we cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we have faith to believe

'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights 
Are what it takes to know You’re near
And what if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know that pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home
It's not our home

'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy
And what if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are Your mercies in disguise

Magnified

A story is told of a boy long ago
No silver, no gold, only faith in the Lord
He gave His all, though only fish and bread
Blessed by Jesus' hand, five thousand men were fed

A story is told of a woman so blest
In the time of drought a prophet was her guest
What little she had she shared without doubt
Because she had faith, the little never ran out

Because the Lord magnified
When by faith He was glorified

And the small became grand

When placed in His hand

So let us give what little we have

To be magnified by His great love

The Lord is asking, "What is in your hand?"
It need not be gold nor silver nor lands
Give up your all; it need not be great
Then be amazed at the things accomplished by faith

Because the Lord magnifies
When by faith He is glorified
And the small becomes grand
When placed in His hand
So let us give what little we have
To be magnified by His great love

Without apology, doubt, or hesitancy

We have the greatest truth and hope that were ever given to our world, and the greatest faith; and we want to represent this in its exalted character to the world. We do not want to assume the attitude as though we were passing through the world begging pardon of the world because we venture to believe this precious, sacred truth; but we want to walk humbly with God, and conduct ourselves as though we were children of the most high God, and, although feeble instruments, as though we were handling most important and interesting subjects, higher and more exalted than any temporal, worldly themes.--Review and Herald, July 26, 1887.

When God Is All I Have

WHEN GOD IS ALL I HAVE

Desolate and desperate
I have nothing to call my own.
Empty-handed, empty-hearted
Waiting for the break of dawn.
For just as surely
as day shall end the night,
If God is only with me,
Then I shall never want.

He is my Maker, and Redeemer,
My Brother, Friend, and King.
He is the Bread of Life,
Of Living Waters He's the spring.
He's my Comforter and Perfecter,
My Shelter, Strength, and Shield.
Then when God is all I have,
I find God is all I need.

-o-

need I say more?

This Battle Is Not Mine

 THIS BATTLE IS NOT MINE

Everyday I struggle to be free
Everyday I face the enemy
Alone I fight all sorrow and all pain
Knowing no victory nor gain.

I had strength and wisdom all my own
I wondered why no battle I won
I thought I can make it all alone
But now I know I have been wrong.

Sometimes I think He asks too much of me
If I must overcome constantly.
But now I'm sure each battle can be won
For I am never once alone.

God sends His angels to rally by my side.
He is my Captain, my Comrade, and my Guide.
I may be weak, but He is strong.
I dare not trust my own.
He's made it known,
This battle is not mine to fight alone.

-o-

This was written at a time when I was feeling utterly depressed and helpless. I was pressured to do what was right and I tried. But it was really hard to overcome myself. Then I realized that the reason everything was so hard to do was that I was doing it alone. God is my strength, and I could not rely on myself even for a single moment. He is telling me, "You are never alone, I am with you. The sooner you get that through your head, the better."

I Know The Way You Take

This was inspired by Job 23:10, which says "But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold."

I find a lot of comfort in the verse. It reminds me that even when I can't actually see where I'm heading, God does. He sees the past, the present, and the future. He knows where I am, where I'm coming from, and where I'm going.

There is no need for me to worry, even when the road I'm travelling seems tough - because I have a God who's even tougher, and ultimately wise at that.

-o-

I KNOW THE WAY YOU TAKE

Moment by moment I walk life's dreary way.

Weary I may be I carry on day after day.

Sometimes trials are too heavy for me to bear,

Then I come to my Guide in prayer.

Morning after morning to sorrows I awake.

Pain goes before me with every turn I make.

My path is all rugged, my heart seems to break;

So with my Comforter sweet communion I make.

No gem is polished without trial,

No gold refined without fire.

Weak as I am, I stumble, get hurt

Still my Refiner sees my worth.

He says, "I know the way you take,

Every bend, every thorn, every stone,

You are never alone.

With every step you take,

You'll be cleansed, purified, purged, and refined.

When it's through, you will come forth as gold."

-o-

May God grant us enough strength to make it through the test so that we'll all end up as refined gold fit for His kingdom... God bless us all...

unfinished

in my spare time, i write. or at least try to. i know i'm not good at writing. yet. but i trust that if i commit this craft to God, He'll prosper it. Here are two of my attempts...

-o-

THIS BATTLE IS NOT MINE

God sends His angels to rally by my side.
He is my Captain, my Comrade, and my Guide.
I may be weak, but He is strong
I dare not trust my own
I should have known
This battle is not mine to fight alone.

-o-

I KNOW THE WAY YOU TAKE

He says, I know the way you take
Every bend, every turn, every thorn
You are never alone.
With every step you take,
You'll be cleansed, purified, purged and refined
When it's through
You will come forth as gold.

-o-

they're not done yet, but I hope to finish them soon, with God's help of course. i have a faith that whatever (or whoever, for that matter) lacks, God will fill up and make whole.

i'll post the finished version up here, so come back and see it...