The Week in Words

Posted on May 9, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Welcome to The Week In Words, where we share quotes from the last week’s reading. If something you read this past week inspired you, caused you to laugh, cry, think, dream, or just resonated with you in some way, please share it with us, attributing it to its source, which can be a book, newspaper, blog, Facebook — anything that you read. More information is here.

Here are some that ministered to me this past week:

From a devotional titled The Invitation by Derick Bingham. commenting on about the Pharisees casting out the blind man healed in John 9:

The truth was that the man’s spiritual sight was now dawning. He refuted the Pharisees on their own ground but they threw him out of the synagogue. They literally excommunicated him. But Jesus found him. What a moment! Being excommunicated from a dead religion and being found by the living Saviour is no mean swap.

Sometimes the thing we lose is something dead that needs to go to make way for true spiritual sight and truth and life to dawn.

Seen at Callapidder Days:

The great thing, if one can, is to stop regarding all the unpleasant things as interruptions of one’s “own,” or “real” life. The truth is of course that what one calls the interruptions are precisely one’s real life—the life God is sending one day by day; what one calls one’s “real life” is a phantom of one’s own imagination. This at least is what I see at moments of insight: but it’s hard to remember it all the time. ~ C. S. Lewis

As many times as I have been convicted of this truth, I still need to hear it. I can get so caught up in my agenda, schedule, goals, etc., that I get resentful of interruptions or other bids for my time and attention. It’s interesting to read through the New Testament looking for interruptions. Mary was interrupted from whatever she was doing to hear the news that she was to bear the Messiah. Jesus and Jairus were interrupted on their way to Jairus’s ill daughter by a woman with an issue of blood. Jairus’s daughter died in the mean time, but was raised to life — an even greater miracle. Jesus was interrupted during times of solitary prayer, travel. God works through interruptions! That doesn’t mean we don’t plan and schedule, asking for His guidance as we do, but we remain open for events He had on the agenda that we didn’t know about.

From For the mother of teenagers who aches but a bit.

“It takes all the years of making a boy into a man — to teach a woman how to be a mother.” ~ Ann Voskamp.

So true — it’s a continual learning process, and we don’t feel we’re anywhere near getting a handle on being a mother until our children are almost grown. I am thankful for God’s sufficiency in my inadequacy!

And finally, from an Elisabeth Elliot e-mail devotional:

“Pray when you feel like praying. Pray when you don’t feel like praying. Pray until you do feel like praying.”

If you’ve read anything that particularly spoke to you that you’d like to share, please either list it in the comments below or write a post on your blog and then put the link to that post (not your general blog link) in Mr. Linky below. I do ask that only family-friendly quotes be included. I hope you’ll visit some of the other participants as well and glean some great thoughts to ponder.

Don’t forget to leave a comment, even if you don’t have any quotes to share! 🙂

Day of Prayer

Posted on May 5, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Today is the National Day of Prayer.

Power of Prayer

The day was long, the burden I had borne
Seemed heavier than I could longer bear,
And then it lifted – but I did not know
Some one had knelt in prayer;

Had taken me to God that very hour,
And asked the easing of the load, and He,
In infinite compassion, had stooped down
And taken it from me.

We cannot tell how often as we pray
For some bewildered one, hurt and distressed,
The answer comes, but many times those hearts
Find peace and rest.

Some one had prayed, and Faith, a reaching hand,
Took hold of God, and brought blessings down that day!
So many, many hearts have need of prayers:
Oh, let us pray!

— Author Unknown

II Chronicles 7:14: If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

The Week In Words

Posted on May 2, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Here are some that ministered to me this past week:

From a devotional titled The Invitation by Derick Bingham. commenting on John 9:1-4:

[The blind man’s] suffering was not due to sin but was in fact a conduit for showing what God can do. He was about to become a legend for the glory of God…..Your circumstance may be dire; your health may be failing, your business may be collapsing, your plans may be wrecked, your finances stretched and your cupboard bare. You may be ready to quit. Don’t. Why? Because this circumstance you are in is not because you have done wrong but because God is about to reveal His works in you.

From Women’s Ministry in the Local Church by J. Ligon Duncan and Susan Hunt:

No matter how many bowls of soup we dish up at the soup kitchen, if we do it with rebellious hearts against those God has put in authority over us, it is not pleasing to Him (p. 90).

From a friend’s Facebook:

“Every job is a self portrait of the person who did it. Autograph you work with excellence.” ~ Unknown

This is something I wish every person could imprint on their brains! And their work!

From another friend’s Facebook:

“Keep out of your life all that will keep Christ out of your mind.”

From “Meeting God Alone” in On Asking God Why by Elisabeth Elliot:

The Bible is God’s message to everybody. We deceive ourselves if we claim to want to hear his voice but neglect the primary channel through which it comes.

Don’t forget to leave a comment, even if you don’t have any quotes to share! 🙂

Doubting Easter

Posted on May 1, 2011 by Barbara Harper

A week after that first Easter, Thomas earned his nickname “Doubting Thomas” when he did not believe that Jesus had actually risen from the dead. The above video is a wonderfully written perspective of Thomas’s doubts and Jesus’s answers.

John 20: ¹⁹Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.

²⁰And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the LORD.

²¹Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

²²And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:

²³Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.

²⁴But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.

²⁵The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the LORD. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.

²⁶And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.

²⁷Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.

²⁸And Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.

²⁹Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

³⁰And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book:

³¹But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

The Week In Words

Posted on April 25, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Here are some that ministered to me this past week:

From Counterintuitive Words of Comfort for the Hurting at Wendy Alsup’s Practical Theology for Women:

I am beginning to see that the primary point of long periods of silence by God during our earthly sorrows and suffering is that we show His worthiness of our belief and trust based fully on who He is and not on what things He gives us. Satan can’t believe we would trust God just based on His character and not on the blessings on earth He gives us. That’s Satan’s taunt–“They only worship you because you are good to them. They’d never worship you if you didn’t answer their prayers and take care of them like they expect.”

From a booklet titled Selfishness: From Loving Yourself to Loving Your Neighbor by Lou Priolo:

Thine own will is a corrupt and sinful will, and therefore unfit to be thy governor: What! Wilt thou choose an unjust, a wicked, an unmerciful governor that is inclined to do evil?…To prefer self will before the will of God, is, as the Jews, to prefer a murderer, Barabbas, before the Lord of life…When God is content to be your governor, prefer not such foolish sinners as yourself before Him ~ Richard Baxter, The Practical Works of Richard Baxter, Vol. 3, pp 400-401.

Very convicting and eye-opening.

And from p. 16 of the same booklet:

We are so selfish — that is, our love of self is so strong — that a love much stronger than our own is required to overpower it.

And please do comment even if you don’t have quotes to share!

Happy Resurrection Day!

Posted on April 24, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. John 11:25.

The strife is o’er, the battle done;
The victory of life is won;
The song of triumph has begun:
Alleluia!

The powers of death have done their worst;
But Christ their legions hath dispersed;
Let shouts of holy joy outburst:
Alleluia!

The three sad days are quickly sped;
He rises glorious from the dead;
All glory to our risen Head!
Alleluia!

He closed the yawning gates of hell;
The bars from heaven’s high portals fell;
Let hymns of praise His triumphs tell!
Alleluia!

Lord, by the stripes which wounded Thee,
From death’s dread sting Thy servants free,
That we may live, and sing to Thee:
Alleluia!

Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

~ Author Unknown

May you have a wonderful joyous, blessed Easter remembering the resurrection of our Lord and Savior!

That Day at Calvary

Posted on April 22, 2011 by Barbara Harper

I stood one day at Calvary,
Where Jesus bled and died.
I never knew He loved me so;
For me He was crucified.
And as I stood there in my sin,
His love reached down to me;
And, oh, the shame that filled my soul,
That day at Calvary.

I knelt one day at Calvary,
My eyes were filled with tears,
To think such love I had refused
Throughout these wasted years;
And as I knelt I heard Him say,
“I did it all for thee”;
And, oh, the love that filled my soul,
That day at Calvary.

I prayed one day at Calvary,
“I’m Thine forevermore;
Forgive me, Lord, for all my sin,
My lost estate restore,”
And as I prayed, to me He gave
Salvation full and free;
And, oh, the peace that filled my soul
That day at Calvary.

~ Walt Huntley

(You can hear a snippet of this by going to this site and clicking on “That Day at Calvary.” I tried to find it on Youtube but only found a different song by the same name that was jazzier and didn’t seem to fit the words.)

Face the Cross

Posted on April 21, 2011 by Barbara Harper

I posted this about a year and a half ago, but it seems fitting contemplation for this Easter week. I first heard this beautiful hymn on the Wilds CD Creator, Redeemer, and King, and it literally stopped me in my tracks. You can hear the full version here.

Upon the cross of Jesus my eye at times can see
The very dying form of One who suffered there for me.

Face the cross, He hangs there in your place.
See the Lamb upon the killing tree.
Stand and look into the Savior’s face
As on the cross, He dies for you and me.

Face the cross and see the dying Son.
See the Lamb upon the killing tree.
See His anguish and His tears of love.
Face the cross, He dies to set us free.

Turn not away, turn not away.
His nail-pierced hands are reaching out to you, to you.

Look upon the One without a sin,.
Spotless Lamb upon the killing tree.
Feel His pain and love from deep within,
So great a price, yet paid so willingly.

Turn not away, turn not away,
Face the cross, face the cross.

Face the One who suffers in your place,
See the Lamb, upon the killing tree.
Light of the world, now clothed in darkness grim
As on the cross, He hangs in agony.

Face the cross and turn not away, turn not away.
His nail-pierced hands are reaching out to you.

Turn not away, behold His wounded side.
Turn not away, behold the crucified.
Face the cross, He hangs there in your place.
Face the cross, and see the King of Grace.
Face the cross, face the cross.

– Words by Herb Fromach, music by David Lantz

The Week In Words

Posted on April 18, 2011 by Barbara Harper

I thought I’d share a few quotes related to Easter this week. Many of them have appeared on my blog in past years.

God expects from men something more…at such times, and that it were much to be wished for the credit of their religion as well as the satisfaction of their conscience that their Easter devotions would in some measure come up to their Easter dress. — Robert South

People say the cross is a sign of how much man is worth. That’s not true. The cross is a sign of how depraved we really are, that it took the death of God’s own Son. The only thing that could save a people like us was the death of God’s own Son under the wrath of His own Father paying the price, rising again from the dead. Powerful to say, this is the Gospel of Jesus. — Paul Washer

We greatly need the cheer of this precious Easter truth. We make too little of the place our Lord has gone to prepare for us. We rob ourselves greatly when we try to reduce heaven to a mere state of ecstatic feeling. We need the cheer which comes of having the eye of faith fixed on the better country and the city that hath the foundations. Such a certainty of an inheritance that is real and that cannot fade away goes far to mitigate the pangs which come of the fires and floods and disasters and frauds which so often despoil God’s people of their earthly possessions; for we know that the things seen are temporal, but the things not seen are eternal, and they are only a few heart-beats away. – E.P. Goodwin

IF you come to seek His face, not in the empty sepulchre, but in the living power of His presence, as indeed realizing that He has finished His glorious work, and is alive for evermore, then your hearts will be full of true Easter joy, and that joy will shed itself abroad in your homes. And let your joy not end with the hymns and the prayers and the communions in His house. Take with you the joy of Easter to the home, and make that home bright with more unselfish love, more hearty service; take it into your work, and do all in the name of the Lord Jesus; take it to your heart, and let that heart rise anew on Easter wings to a higher, a gladder, a fuller life; take it to the dear grave-side and say there the two words “Jesus lives!” and find in them the secret of calm expectation, the hope of eternal reunion. – John Ellerton

There are many tombs where we may be held if we succumb to the powers of sin and death. Hatred, self-pity, bitterness, resentment–these are tombs. By the power that raised Jesus Christ from that sealed and guarded tomb we may be delivered from whatever seals us off from life. Jesus came to give us life, nothing less than life, “abundant” life….Do you know someone you are praying for who is living in the darkness of such a tomb? Has it seemed that there is no more possibility of getting through to him than to someone buried? Resentment has sealed him off from any approach. Pray for the power of the resurrection to release him. Refuse, by the grace of God, to be held back by his bitterness. Then ask the Lord to help you to meet him next time in the consciousness of Christ risen. Instead of dreading the meeting because of the thought of former disastrous meetings, face it with joy. Christ is risen! Christ is risen! — Elisabeth Elliot, “Death Shall Not Hold Us,” from A Lamp For My Feet

And please do comment even if you don’t have quotes to share!

Waiting For Spring

Posted on April 17, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Though cloudy skies, and northern blasts,
Retard the gentle spring awhile;
The sun will conqu’ror prove at last,
And nature wear a vernal smile.

The promise, which from age to age,
Has brought the changing seasons round;
Again shall calm the winter’s rage,
Perfume the air, and paint the ground.

The virtue of that first command,
I know still does, and will prevail;
That while the earth itself shall stand,
The spring and summer shall not fail.

Such changes are for us decreed;
Believers have their winters too;
But spring shall certainly succeed,
And all their former life renew.

Winter and spring have each their use,
And each, in turn, his people know;
One kills the weeds their hearts produce,
The other makes their graces grow.

Though like dead trees awhile they seem,
Yet having life within their root,
The welcome spring’s reviving beam
Draws forth their blossoms, leaves, and fruit.

But if the tree indeed be dead,
It feels no change, though spring return,
Its leafless naked, barren head,
Proclaims it only fit to burn.

Dear LORD, afford our souls a spring,
Thou know’st our winter has been long;
Shine forth, and warm our hearts to sing,
And thy rich grace shall be our song.

-John Newton, 1779, from Olney Hymns, vol. 2, hymn 31