More from Ruth Bell Graham ("Letters from Ruth's Attic")

See post below ("Rich Thoughts To Ponder") for intro regarding this source. The following "devotion" is from "Day 5", titled "God's Greatest Pleasure". It begins with the passage from John 15:10 (NIV): "If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in His love."

Then she writes:
"Tonight, as I sit on the porch, our old German shepherd is lying at my feet. As a low mutter of thunder rumbles in the distance, he lifts his great head and gives a deep warning bark. Then, as the storm nears, he rises with a lurch and tears into the front yard to meet it.

"The storm is on us, the great dog furiously doing battle with it. As it passes, he returns to the porch, settling contentedly at my feet convinced he has driven it away.

"Protecting and pleasing us is his very life."

"He is a German guard dog, given to us years ago by concerned friends. He had been carefully trained in search and rescue, attack, and obedience.

"I cannot imagine an occasion when we would give the order to attack. It's the obedience training that gives us real joy. To stop, to sit, to lie down, to go away, to search, to stay, to heel. A disobedient dog is only a headache; he can be a liability. Obedience makes a dog a joy.

"Is it less so with God and His children?"

"I think obedience, more than anything else, must give the Lord pleasure. Simple obedience. Joyful, eager, unquestioning obedience; to be able to say with the psalmist, "I delight to do Thy will, O my God" (Psalm 40:8, KJV), would be the height of training for the Christian.

"For it is this that gives God the greatest pleasure.

~*~

"Prayer for the Day: Father, thank You for loving me enough to send Jesus to die for my sins. May I respond to Your great gift by obeying Your Word and abiding in Your love."

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Rich Thoughts to Ponder

I'm reading more than one book from the writings of Ruth Bell Graham. One of these books is "Letters from Ruth's Attic" (subtitled 31 Daily Insights for Knowing God's Love), and I have found several of the devotional-type pages to be very helpful. This is published by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 2007, and is a compilation of of some of her writings for Decision magazine. I highly recommend this book to anyone who takes living the Christian life seriously, and appreciates the encouragement found in the writings of committed Christians.

One of my favorite "devotions" is the one for Day 20. It starts off with the passage from Romans 8:1-2 (NIV here) which reads, "There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus because through Christ Jesus the law of the spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death." The "writing" is entitled "Remember Your Position".

Excerpted: "The local sheriff had tightened the requirements for his deputies. They had to qualify on the firing range, where the distance had been extended by 10 yards. Each deputy had 18 seconds to get off 12 shots.

The deputy with the best shot was a personal friend of ours named George. But the day before the trials, he had been fitted with trifocals. When his turn came, he drew a bead on the target.
"Suddenly," he told me later, "I began to perspire. And when I perspire, my glasses fog up. There I was with a bead drawn on the target, and all I could see was fog."
But then he remembered what he'd been taught in the Navy: "If you ever lose sight of the target, just remember your position."
So with time running out, George just held his position and pulled the trigger as fast as he could. When he took off his glasses and wiped them, he saw that every shot had hit the bull's-eye.
There are times as Christians when we, for some reason, lose sight of our target, which is to glorify the Lord. Tears blur our vision. Unexplained tragedy raises questions that cannot be answered and shakes our faith to its foundations.
Then we must remember that our position is "in Christ." As if we are tired or hurt children, He will gather both us and our loads.
Though we may not see the target, if we just "remember our position," we won't miss.

Ruth Graham, in this writing, also includes a "Prayer for the Day: "I know that I am your child, Father, and You will allow nothing to separate me from your love, which is in Christ. Remind me of my position when life threatens my trust in You."

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A couple of quotations I've come across recently . . .

"Faith can read love in God's heart
when His face frowns." James Renwick, Scottish Covenanter


"A happy marriage is the union of two good forgivers." Dr. Robert Quillen

Collectibles

I've been reading about Ruth Bell Graham a lot lately -- her writings, her poetry, her biography, etc. and have been uplifted and inspired by this gracious lady's life. When I read her notes and comments about "Collectibles" it hit a nerve. As I'm now in my sixth decade of life, I've recently had to weed out some of the things I've collected in years past because there just isn't space for it all. I've tried to give away some of it, pass some things on to ones that would inherit it when I die, or make other purposeful decisions to dispose of some of it. I inherited my father's coin collection, and I started many years ago collecting tea pots and tea accessories, but had to put a stop to that due to my very generous friends and family. You can only use one tea pot at a time!

I heartily confirm Ruth's suggestion below. Some things are greatly worth collecting!

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From the writings of Ruth Bell Graham:

People are writing and talking about "collectibles." They can be a hedge against inflation, sort of a cusion in case of depression. They are small items that initially may have cost little or nothing but that increase startlingly in value in a relatively short period of time. Included are old stamps, rare coins, old photographs, paintings, even certain cans and bottles.

I got to thinking. What would be the best collectible for me? Something that would increase in value; something that would make me really wealthy; something I could share that would be a cushion in case of depression, and could provide comfort in case of the death of a loved one or of old age.

I had it! Bible verses. I had started long ago.

In China [where RBG was born and raised] Miss Lucy Fletcher offered us, her students, $5.00 (a lot of money for a missionary's kid) if we would memorize the Sermon on the Mount. Hours and hours of going over and over Matthew 5, 6, 7. When the time came to recite it, I made one mistake so got only $4.50. But I wouldn't take one thousand times that amount in place of having memorized it. RBG.

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A Scripture passage that's been on my mind

Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Gal 5:23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

Many reasons for Praise

Travis is back home from his seventeenth trip to the Philippines!! I'm glad to have him back on American soil, but am glad he could be of help to the Filipino people.

On this trip one of his projects involved setting up a "rabbit production project" so that 42 malnourished children aged six and under could receive a hearty protein/rice meal once a day that, though set up by the government with chickens as the protein, was going to be difficult to continue indefinitely. Hence, the rabbits . . . It looks as if this may get those kids fed well at least once a day. Much appreciation to all who pray for Travis on these trips . . . we especially appreciate your prayers when we can see something this positive as a result of your prayers and his efforts.

He saw the hand of the Lord more than once on this trip (as on the other trips), especially this time when a meeting was cancelled, and the area experienced gunfire at the time the meeting would have been held. Thanks also for your prayers for his protection.

Praise, praise Jehovah, God of our salvation;
Praise, praise to Thee, on whom we cast our care.
We offer Thee our loving adoration;
Praise, praise to Thee, the God who answers prayer.

We came to Thee for clear and heavenly vision,
That with Thy will our will be in accord.
We came in need of Thy divine provision,
And Thou didst hear and answer, blessed Lord.

(A. Carmichael)

O What A Love! (Psalm 97:11)

Fire cannot burn, nor can the waters drown us;
They can but call Thy gracious help again.
And lovingkindness, tender mercies crown us,
Though we be least of all the sons of men.

O what a Love that patiently empowereth;
O what a Love that blesseth common days,
In earthly garden soweth seed that flowereth
In light and gladness; Lord, Thy love we praise!

~ A. Carmichael
(from p. 57 of her book of poetry, Mountain Breezes
(Christian Literature Crusade, 1999)

A Prayer/Poem, corrected

Test me, Lord, and give me strength
to meet each test
unflinching, unafraid;
not striving nervously to do my best
not self-assured, or careless as in jest
but with Your aid.
Purge me, Lord, and give me grace
to bear the heat
of cleansing flame;
not bitter at my lowly lot, but meet
to bear my share of suffering and keep sweet
in Jesus' Name.

by Ruth Bell Graham

A Prayer/Poem

When Ruth Bell Graham left China to go to college in America (Wheaton in Illinois), she penned the following prayer/poem -- good for all trials:

Test me, Lord, and give me strength
to meet each test
unflinching, unafraid;
not striving nervously to do my best
not self-assured, or careless as in just
but with Your aid.
Purge me, Lord, and give me grace
to bear the heat
of cleansing flame;
not bitter at my lowly lot, but meet
to bear my share of suffering and keep sweet
in Jesus' Name.

by Ruth Bell Graham

"Our eyes upon Thy face"

We Peters
walking on life's sea,
implore ignoring grace
of heaving waves;
oh, let us be,
however weak,
intent on Thee;
our eyes upon Thy face.

Ruth Bell Graham
(from "Sitting by my laughing fire . . . "
Word Books, 1977)

Recipe

Back in the first week or so of August, fellow blogger and dear sister-in-Christ Catherine Case Blevins, posted a recipe for "Easy Shepherd's Pie" to her blog (http://oldspillhouse.blogspot.com). I tried it yesterday (adding only a couple of pinches of Herbs du Provence on top of the Dinty's Beef Stew before I put on the mashed potatoes, and this one's a winner! I decided to include it here because, as Catherine said, it's hot and super-easy and it's good!

Recipe (and post) below:

Friday, August 8, 2008
Easy Shephard's Pie Recipe

It's always nice to have some quick, easy recipes up your sleeve that will produce a hot meal on short notice. This is a new one for us and almost everyone around here will eat it :) Imagine!

If you have some similarly simple and fast recipes, please share! We'll be getting busier around here pretty soon with school starting and a few extracurricular activities this year and the easier dinner can be, the better!

Enjoy!


Easy Shephard's Pie

1 (40 oz.) can DINTY MOORE Beef Stew
1 (24 oz.) package refrigerated mashed potatoes (any flavor) or you can make instant mashed potatoes for 6 people
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place beef stew in an 11x7-inch baking dish. [I added the herb blend of Herbes du Provence at this point. EGH] Spoon mashed potatoes over stew. Place baking dish on a cookie sheet. Bake, uncovered, for 30-35 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Top pie with cheese during the last 5 minutes of baking. Serves 8.

Posted by CAB at 11:05 AM 0 witty remarks
Thursday, August 7, 2008

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" . . . that I might go free."

There are no depths
to which I have gone
or to which I could go,
but Thou, in Thy fathomless
mercy and love
didst still sink below,
plumbing the depths
for a sin-ruined heart
indifferent to Thee;
draining the dregs
of God's holy wrath
that I might go free.

~~ Ruth Bell Graham
(from her book of poetry, "Sitting by my laughing fire . . . ")
(Word Books, 1977)

Broken Bread and Poured-out Wine (a poem)

"We took . . .
and blessed
and broke . . . "
the Scriptures say,
the bread
with which those hungry folk
were fed
that day.

* * *

And by this simple act
--so oddly His --
two, bewildered
by their loss
(whose Life had died
upon a cross,
pierced by nail and sword);
those two, eyes opened,
saw in this
their Risen Lord.

* * *

Lord,
when I dread
to be broken bread
and poured out wine
for You,
to satisfy man's hunger,
quench man's thirst,
remind me
how You blessed it
first.


~~ Ruth Bell Graham
(from her book of poetry, "Sitting by my laughing fire . . . ")
(Word Books, 1977)

(Scriptures referred to:
Matthew 14:19
Luke 24:30)

Lord, when my soul is weary
and my heart is tired and sore,
and I have that failing feeling
that I can't take any more;
then let me know the freshening
found in simple, childlike prayer,
when the kneeling soul knows surely
that a listening Lord is there.

~~ Ruth Bell Graham
(from her book of poetry, "Sitting by my laughing fire . . . ")
(Word Books, 1977)

Thoughts

Abiding in Christ

It is not in doing but in being
It is not in trying but in trusting
It is not in rushing but in resting
That we find the strength of the Lord
-- Unknown

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Psalm 34:3

"Oh! Magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together!"

My first 2008 post -- by way of explanation

Finally! I'm thrilled to have finally figured out again how to post to my blog -- and if anyone is still checking this "lost in space" blog, I plan to post more often now. I went through an interrupted period (illness, circumstances, etc.) when I wasn't able to post, and then when I COULD post, I had forgotten how to access the blog. (And, frankly, I don't think it was ALL my fault). Then another period of circumstances, etc. halted my involvement again, but finally I've got it figured out (I think). For all you computer techs out there, you're probably saying, "It isn't that hard . . . ", and I'm sure that's true, but if you don't know how, it's very hard. I am in my sixties, and although I heard recently that the sixties are the "youth of old age", still there's a lot of facts and thoughts stored in this new/old brain, and some of them take longer to retrieve than others. Added to this, I'm really into Scripture memorization. My long-held belief of "First Things First" often takes over. So please -- bear with me!

I hope to post from my reading soon, but I just wanted to "get things rolling" with this post. Now we'll see if I can get back in the post mode, technically, after I send this explanatory note.

If you're still reading, thanks . . . I hope to post some worthwhile reading material soon.

Grace and Peace,
Elaine