THE INFINITE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE
“For with Thee is the fountain of life.”
{ Psalm 36:9a }
All intelligences, from the highest angel in heaven to the lowliest creature on earth,
drawing every breath of their existence from Him.
“In Him we live, and move, and have our being.”
But He is more than this to the Church.
He is the fountain of love, as well as of life.
The spirits of “just men made perfect,” and the redeemed on earth,
satiate their thirsty souls at the overflowing fullness of the Father’s love.
How much do we need this truth!
What stinted views, unjust conceptions, and wrong interpretations have we cherished of Him,
simply because we overlook His character as the Fountain of living waters!
We “limit the Holy One of Israel.”
We judge of Him by our poor, narrow conception of things.
We think that He is such a one as we ourselves are.
We forget, in our approaches, that we are coming to an Infinite Fountain.
That the heavier the demand we make upon God, the more we shall receive,
and that the oftener we come, the more are we welcome.
That we cannot ask too much.
That our sin and His dishonor are, that we ask so little.
We forget that He is glorified in giving;
and that the more grace He metes out to His people,
the richer the revenue of praise which He receives in return.
How worthy of such an infinite Fountain of love and grace is His “unspeakable gift.”
It came from a large heart;
and the heart that gave Jesus will withhold no good thing from those who walk uprightly.
~ Octavius Winslow ~
Lord, I thank you for your infinite overflowing fountain of living waters.
There we can satisfy our thirsty souls
in the overflowing fullness of the Father’s Love!
Month: October 2007
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What Does Jesus See?When Jesus looks upon my life,
What picture does He see.
Does He see His own reflection,
Or does He just see me.
Does He see His likeness,
The product of His hand.
Or just another Christian,
Who never took a stand.
Does He see a child of God,
A child that He set free.
Living life to honor Him,
Or does He just see me.
What about the other folks,
I meet along the way.
Do I show them Jesus,
To brighten up their day.
When someone looks into my eyes,
Can they truly see.
That calm and gentle peace of God,
That dwells inside of me.
When I reach out and shake a hand,
Is He right there in my grip.
Can they feel that strength from God,
That steadies when I slip.
When folks are in my presence,
Do they know His Spirit’s there.
Can they see that He’s the One,
Who guides me everywhere.
When other people think of me,
What is on their mind.
Do they think of Jesus Christ,
So gentle and so kind.
I try to be like Jesus,
Every single day.
Spreading love and kindness,
All along my way.
I’m afraid that I have failed,
I could not pass the test.
Deep inside my heart I know,
I haven’t done my best.
I have had to fight my flesh,
Since the day that I was born.
It’s always causing trouble,
And being such a thorn.
That’s why His Spirit dwells in me,
He’s helping me to learn.
In every situation,
Where I need to turn.
He knew I’d never pass the test,
That’s why He took my place.
He gave His life to save my soul,
He suffered my disgrace.
Now I try to be like Him,
I must present Him well.
So other folks will want His gift,
And turn their backs on hell.
Other folks should see the joy,
That Christ has given me.
They should want to have it too,
Especially since it’s free.
They should begin to ask me,
What is it they must do.
Just how it is they go about,
Getting Jesus, too.
Then I get to tell them,
This wondrous gift is free.
It only takes a humble heart,
A prayer on bended knee.
Someday when I’m face to face,
With the Lord who set me free.
Will He see His own reflection,
Or will He just see me.
Written By:
BJ Morbitzer
“He must increase, but I must decrease.”
{ John 3:30 } -
Brokenness
I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend, and Monday! Our show was the slowest ever this weekend, which made for 3 very long days. When it’s busy the time seems to fly, but not this weekend! Not sure why, except maybe the nice, very out of the ordinary, weather played a major factor! We had near 90 degrees both Saturday and Sunday, (in October?!) and today doesn’t seem too far from that either! What happened to fall? I’m hoping for the cooler temps they’re predicting later this week. I’m going to be doing some purging around the house here, getting ready for Ian’s visit, which may not happen now until the end of November, but that’s okay … all the family will be together then, and if he would come home at the end of this month he wouldn’t be able to come Thanksgiving. So he will miss our anniversary, and Lewis’ birthday, but we’ll be fine … there’s always the webcam! The plane tickets will also be cheaper for a later date, too. We don’t like waiting, but he will be home again for Christmas and New Years. Frankly, I’d like to just keep him for the month of December!
Have you ever read something and you felt you could have been the one to have lived it, and written it? It happens to me often, and today in my devotions I came across something that when I read it, it was as if she was writing my story … so, I wanted to share it with you. It’s a little long, but well worth the time to read it, and maybe you’ll find yourself in this story as well. First though, here’s a definition of ‘brokenness’ from Nancy Lee DeMoss ….
I’ll be around to visit and catch up with you later today!
Have a blessed Tuesday!
Hugs,
~ Deborah <><“At first hearing, “brokenness” does not sound like something to be sought after. After all, it seems so negative! We may even be afraid of the concept. Perhaps that is because we have a misconception about the meaning of brokenness.
Our idea of brokenness may be quite different from God’s idea. Brokenness does not mean, as some think, having a sad, gloomy, downcast countenance–never smiling or laughing. It does not mean always being morbidly introspective. Nor can it be equated with deeply emotional experiences. It is possible to shed buckets full of tears, without ever experiencing a moment of brokenness. Further, brokenness is not the same as being deeply hurt by tragic circumstances. A person may have experienced many deep hurts and tragedies, but never have been broken.
Brokenness is not a feeling; rather, it is a choice, an act of the will. It is not primarily a one-time experience or crisis (though there may be crisis points in the process of brokenness); rather, it is an ongoing, continual lifestyle. Brokenness is a lifestyle of agreeing with God about the true condition of my heart and life, as He sees it. It is a lifestyle of unconditional, absolute surrender of my will to the will of God–a heart attitude that says, “Yes, Lord!” to whatever God says.
Brokenness means the shattering of my self-will, so that the life and Spirit of the Lord Jesus may be released through me. Brokenness is my response of humility and obedience to the conviction of the Word and the Spirit of God. And as the conviction is continuous, so must the brokenness be continuous.” — Nancy Lee DeMoss
~ THE REALITY OF BROKENNESS ~
~ Kim Johnson ~While walking into the service that Sunday, my only certainty was the deep ache within my soul. The internal screams of loneliness seemed to deafen me to the reality of the love of those that surrounded me. The oppressive words of hopelessness that rang through my mind left it nearly impossible for me to lift my head, let alone my hands. As I pleaded with God to bring some type of peace to the war in my mind, my thoughts began to somewhat focus and I repeatedly prayed all I knew to at that moment, “Help me!”
The Lord started to answer my cry, and a desperate game of “Hide and Seek” began. Jesus was desperately seeking in love, and I was desperately hiding in fear. As the game I had engaged the Lord in escalated, the pastor informed us that there was someone in the building that needed to let their guard down and allow the Lord to minister in the way that He desired. Though my mind and heart concurred with his words, rather than yielding I began erecting an impenetrable fortress.
The preaching of the Word began, and the construction of my self-protecting stronghold continued. As is customary, at the close of the preaching, the altar call went forth. I, of course, did not. The Spirit of the Lord continued to prod me from every direction, and I quietly kneeled where I was seated. A sister came and placed her hand on my shoulder, the praise singers began to utter “only you can fill this emptiness, I come to you in my brokenness,” and the volcano of emotions within me erupted as tears, flowed down my face like lava and my body convulsed with sobs. The pastor took the microphone and stated slowly, “There…. is ….. therefore….. now….. no….. condemnation….” Each word was like a dagger in my heart, and I wept even more uncontrollably. God began a work of healing and purging in me that day. As John wrote, “…thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:” (Revelation 3:17).
The above story was not the encounter of when I received the Holy Ghost, nor when I was in sin, or going through some emotional trauma. It took place when I had been walking with Him for more than 10 years. God has been leading me to the point that I acknowledged that I don’t have all of “the truth” because He is the truth. He has been beckoning me to realize that I stand before Him in brokenness because I have not allowed my completeness to come from Him.
Jesus Christ is trying to bring His body to a place of brokenness before Him. It’s a painful place to be—standing exposed before the Almighty, knowing He is calling us to look at the piercing reality that before Him we stand wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. Jesus said, “He hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted” (Luke 4:18).
Before God we cannot be “together”. Before God we cannot be proud, or arrogant, or puffed up. Before God we cannot be selfish. Before God we cannot be rude. Before God, all of who we are is exposed. Before God, we will be humbled. Before God, we will fall down. However, when we fall down before God He will most surely pick us up. God has a reason for wanting us to be humble and contrite. For when we are humble and contrite we are then able to listen to God’s wisdom and truth. When we are able to listen to God in our humility we are then able to become more like the person of love, caring, understanding, and compassion He wants us to be. On the surface, a broken spirit appears to be a bad thing. However, with God there is power in His humility. The power of His humility is the power of God in our hearts molding us and shaping us into His likeness.
Before He sends us into the world to heal their brokenness, He is waiting for His church to come to Him and acknowledge theirs. May we allow our tremendous pride to be conquered by the realization of our need. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart,
O God, you will not despise. Psalm 51:17 (NIV) -
God’s means of delivering us from sin is not by making us stronger and stronger, but by making us weaker and weaker. That is surely rather a peculiar way of victory, you say; but it is the divine way. God sets us free from the dominion of sin, not by strengthening our old man but by crucifying him; not by helping him to do anything, but by removing him from the scene of action.
Watchman Nee
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Well, another busy weekend is upon us! We start an antique/craft show tomorrow through Sunday, and I’m still not rested from last weekend … it’s been a busy week and I haven’t had too much of a chance to rest … we all know how that is, right?! So, I’m praying for energy to get me through this weekend, then we’ll be off until the first weekend of November.I was hoping for cooler weather here, but they are now telling us that we will be near 90 thru the weekend, and muggy! What happened to Autumn?! There is hope though … I’m also hearing now (you all know how changeable those weathermen can be!) that by the middle of next week, we should have much cooler temperatures … the leaves here are still green, for the most part, and I’m waiting for them to turn … then it’s fall photo time!!
I’ve talked with Ian and his shoulder is doing better. He is also making reservations, either today or tomorrow, for his flight home the week of the 22nd. We’re making lots of plans! We only get him for about 8 days and we want to fill it with lots of memories!Well, I’m cutting my evening short in order to get some extra sleep before tomorrow. I’ll leave you with this story I read today … I hope it touches your heart as it did mine. I’ll be around some tomorrow evening, in the meantime, have a fantastic Friday!
Blessings,
~ Deborah <><
~ HE WASHED MY FEET ~
Supper was special that night.
There was both a heaviness and a holiness
hanging in the air.
We couldn’t explain the mood.
It was sacred, yet sorrowful.
Gathered around that table
eating that solemn, holy meal
seemed to us the most important meal
we had ever sat down to eat.We were dwelling in the heart of MYSTERY.
Though dark the night,
Hope felt right—
as if something evil
was about to be conquered.And then suddenly
the One-Who-Loved startled us all.
He got up from the table
and put on an apron.
Can you imagine how we felt?GOD IN AN APRON!
Tenderness encircled us
as He bowed before us.
He knelt and said,
“I choose to wash your feet
because I love you.”God in an apron, kneeling.
I couldn’t believe my eyes.
I was embarrassed
until His eyes met mine.
I sensed my value then.
He touched my feet.
He held them in His strong, brown hands.
He washed them.
I can still feel the water.
I can still feel the touch of His hands.
I can still see the look in His eyes.Then He handed me the towel
and said,
“As I have done,
so you must do.”
Learn to bow.
Learn to kneel.Let your tenderness encircle
everyone you meet.
Wash their feet–
not because you have to–
but because you want to.It seems I’ve stood two thousand years
holding that towel in my hands.
“As I have done, so must you do,”
keeps echoing in my heart.“There are so many feet to wash,”
I keep saying.
“No.”
I hear God’s voice
resounding through the years.
“There are only My feet.
What you do for them,
you do for Me.”
–Anonymous– -
Thank ‘full’ Thursday
Don’t lose sight of the source!
–A Daily Devotional on Thankfulness–“And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God
And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan.” {Luke 17:15,16}
In ancient times, lepers were social outcasts because of their highly contagious disease. In this passage, ten lepers came to Jesus begging for mercy and He graciously healed them.
Can you imagine? These lepers had an awful disease. Their bodies were slowly deteriorating — and worse, they were shunned from their friends and family and forced to live in a community of only those who were, too, withering away. Suddenly merciful Jesus comes along and “poof!” the sickness leaves them! How life changing! These people must have been overjoyed! Now they could go back to their families, their homes, their communities and live normal lives!
But as I reread this story today something struck me. Only one of them returned to thank the Lord! But how often do we do the same? We get so focused on our blessing and forget about the One who gave it!
Just as the Samaritan returned to Jesus to thank and worship Him who had redeemed his life, we too must thank God — for every good and perfect gift comes from Him and He deserves all the honor and the glory! And as a matter of fact, one of the cornerstones of effective prayer is entering His gates with thanksgiving and praise. Let’s start thanking God for all His goodness toward us!
It’s easy to get caught up in the blessing — God has given us so much! But let’s be sure that we make daily habit of thanking God first!
We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.
–Thornton Wilder
Thou who hast given so much to me, give me one more thing – a grateful heart! –George Herbert
~ So, what are you especially thankful for today?
“Be Thankful”
~By Author UnknownBe thankful that you don’t already have everything you desire.
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?
Be thankful when you don’t know something,
for it gives you the opportunity to learn.Be thankful for the difficult times,
it’s during those times you grow.
Be thankful for your limitations,
because they give you opportunities for improvement.
Be thankful for each new challenge,
because it will build your strength and character.Be thankful for your mistakes.
They will teach you valuable lessons.
Be thankful when you’re tired and weary,
because it means you’ve made a difference.It’s easy to be thankful for the good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who
are also thankful for the setbacks.
Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.
Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,
and they can become your blessings.
Thanking God for all of you, and praying you have a thoroughly Thankful Thursday! Hugs,
~ Deborah <>< -
PICTURE TIME …
Hi y’all … I’m finally back after a very long weekend! First, thank you all for your sweet comments, and also prayers for Ian, and me! I just spoke to him tonight, and I asked him how he was doing…he said, “okay, I guess.” ”I guess”, meant that he is still in pain. The doctor has given him exercises to do to aid in the healing process, so I’m praying that he’ll be better soon, but I sure still would appreciate your prayers for him! Remember when he broke that tail bone awhile back? He said that’s just fine now, no problems with it at all … now let’s hope the same for his shoulder! Other than that, our weekend was great! We had a wonderful show … the Lord blessed, and we couldn’t have asked for better weather! The highlight was that I got to meet Deanna, a Xanga friend, from southern Indiana. She is a very sweet lady, and I just wish we had more time to sit down with a cup of tea, or coffee, to get to know each other better. Being at the show makes that a little more difficult to do, but I’m sure we’ll see each other again! She was such a sweetie, and she brought me a couple of special friendship gifts … a beautiful cookbook from her church quilt show, and a ‘Ta-Da Doll’! I can’t wait to devour the pages of the cookbook, and the doll is so sweet … it came in a really neat little jean bag … all handmade! Thank you so much, Deanna!! What a blessing it was to meet you! There are pictures below … wish we would have taken more … next time, okay!
There was so much going on at the Scottish-Highlander Festival … the music was awesome, they had two different groups, one called ‘Highland Reign’, and the other, ’Hog Eye Navvy’. They had a history teacher there, named Lee, who taught about the history of Scotland … he is a walking encyclopedia! He’s been there every year that we’ve been there. My husband has gotten to know him quite well, and they sit and talk whenever he’s on a break. When he teaches, I just wish I had a tape recorder! He told us last night that he could start Friday morning, and talk non stop through Sunday, and still not cover all the research he has done! Lewis is learning alot about his heritage! He’s Scotch, Irish, & Welsh! There were also the Highland Dancers in costume, and a reenactment camp as well. They camp there at night during the weekend, and next year we are invited by our ‘neighbors’ to stay and have supper with them! {The only thing … Lew has to wear a kilt!!
) There were t-shirts that said “Real Men Wear Kilts”! Very funny!} They did all of their cooking over open fires, and brought us some samples of the breads they baked! How different food tastes when cooked that way! We had a wonderful spot close to the stage area so we got ‘front row seats’ … we had the water right behind us … we were under the trees … the weather was cool … breezes blowing … and the smell of the campfires burning! We were so blessed! {We’ve had to leave in the past because of rain, but not this year!} I’ve got some pictures to share below of the weekend … they didn’t turn out as good as I would have liked … but I’m sure you’ll get an idea of how fun and interesting the weekend was!
I hope you all had a blessed weekend! I’ll be around in the next couple of days to answer your comments and catch up with you! I’m also getting ready for a 3 day show this coming weekend … this one is indoors, and I really enjoy doing it … but I have lots and lots to do to get re-organized for it this week, so I may not be posting as much … it just depends on how fast I’m moving!! In the meantime, you all have a wonderful night, and a terrific Tuesday! See ya soon!! Hugs and blessings to you all!!
~ Deborah <>< WORD FOR THE DAY: “In the shadow of His hand He hid me.” What a beautiful picture of the loving, nurturing care with which God surrounds His children. It is as though the hand of God were cupped over each of us, forming its protective shield against all danger, affording us shelter from the blazing heat of adversity. Because we are hidden in the shadow of His hand, no foe can alarm us, no harm can befall us. Under His protecting hand we are safe from every evil that would assail us. The shadow of His hand affords peace and rest. For Jesus’ sake, the hand that casts the shadow removes from us our every burden of guilt and shame. In the shadow of His hand we find spiritual refreshment, for there we feed on His Word, and there we are blessed by His Spirit, who restores our souls and renews our hearts.
{Isaiah 49:2} –Anonymous
… Me & Deanna …
I thought of you when I saw these guys
But I’m sure sorry they are not in ‘Highlander’ green!!
The special friendship gifts from Deanna!
Ta – Da !!
Thank you again for these sweet gifts!
‘Lee’ ~ The History Teacher …
and never to be seen without his ‘kilt’ on!
He kept telling Lewis he needed one!
Pat ~ our “neighbor” … She’s the ‘camp cook’, and boy can she cook!
I love the flowers on the table … such a sweet touch! She also read to everyone
from a woman’s diary … very interesting … not sure of the exact year, but it was long ago!
This man was so photogenic …
he kept daring me, with those eyes, to take his picture … and I did!
His expression was priceless, it never changed the whole weekend!
He helped with the firing of the canon.
~ Preparing for the firing of the canon ~
This was extremely loud … wonder why they don’t use earplugs?!
This man was teaching about the uniforms and weapons.
This was also loud!
Look at the fire from those barrels!
I wish I could remember all of the history that was taught this weekend!
There was so much, and all so very interesting!
This is the group called Highland Rrrrreign!
We met and talked with JohnAndrew …
he’s the one on the right, in the green shirt and plaid ‘kilt’ …
he was filling in with this group playing the mandolin.
He’s a member of the new group there this year called
Hogeye Navvy below. They were our favorite. The lady, ‘Mac’, is his
mother, and his father is in the group also, but wasn’t there this weekend.
JohnAndrew was very sweet, not much older than Ian. There was a bet going
around that he could eat a whole apple pie each day of the weekend … and he did!
I wish I had gotten a picture of that pie plate in his hand both days!
And the big grin on his face!!
They have excellent apple pies, of course!!
… Hogeye Navvy …
I so enjoyed both the bagpipes that Dimitri played,
and also the ‘bodhran’ which is the drum that Garry has over
to the right … Garry talked with us quite a bit, too.
He was the lead storyteller, and vocalist.
This is a little better picture of a ‘bodhran’ …
this one had a microphone attached,
making it sound deeper and richer.
This little guy was adorable! He did a great job
playing the bagpipes … which, I might add, is not an easy instrument to play!
Below are some of the many dancers that were there …
some with very colorful costumes.
This girl was the daughter of the dance teacher there.
She was very good … they all were … she’s a very good teacher …
and very encouraging to her students.
They wear these cute curly wigs … they bounce when they dance!
The dance is not an easy one to learn … lots of fancy foot work!
Have you ever seen ’Riverdance’?
Here’s Lee again, with a friend, teaching us how to dance!
He was so sweet, and absolutely loved to teach!
… More ‘faces’ of those who were at the festival …
This guy loved the camera!
Such light green eyes …
notice that someone took time to part his hair
for all the photos being taken of him!
And finally … how could I even resist!
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