Recently a friend and I exchanged books. I loaned him my biography of Amy Carmichael and he loaned me a bound collection of Amy Carmichael's poetry. I loved it so much I ordered my own copy.
Amy Carmichael (1867-1951) lived a life of dedicated service. She opened an orphanage in India where she served without a furlough for more then fifty years. Her poetry flows from a keen mind and an unwavering devotion to God.
The title of the collection is “Mountain Breezes: The Collected Poems of Amy Carmichael”. Amazon.com carries it.
If you enjoy poetry, I encouraged you to get a copy and read for yourself. The collection contains hundreds of poems divided into seven different subject areas: worship, petition, surrender, ministry, wartime, encouragement, and youthful thoughts. It is hard to share only one favorite so I’ll share the one that encouraged me this weekend.
Love Traveling (by Amy Carmichael)
Love, traveling in the greatness of His strength,
Found me alone,
Wearied a little by the journey’s length,
Though I had known,
All the long way, many a kindly air,
And flowers had blossomed for me everywhere.
And yet Love found me fearful, and He stayed;
Love stayed by me.
“Let not thy heart be troubled or dismayed,
My child,” said He.
Slipped from me then all troubles, all alarms;
For Love had gathered me into His arms.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Memorial Day
Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day. It was first established to honor Union soldiers who had died during the American Civil War (1861-1865).
As a small girl, I remember going to Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, on Memorial Day. Decoration Day was personal to our family, because Mama’s oldest brother died in Okinawa (April 1945). He was one of more then 72,000 Americans who lost their lives taking the Island of Okinawa near the close of WWII.
We would watch as Grandma McClintock put flowers one Uncle Wayne’s grave then gather around the flag pole as an honor guard fired the 21 gun salute in honor of all the soldiers buried at Fort Leavenworth and a brass band played Taps.
This year Memorial Day has a different face. For the first time a couple of weeks ago I heard an 87 year old veteran opening up for the first time about the death he witnessed all around him serving in the South Pacific during that same war.
Many of our WWII veterans are just starting to talk. How long have they suffered under the shadows of their memories in silence? The served out of honor and duty giving the best years of their young adult lives to defend this Nation. Now as these veterans are coming to the end of their lives the memories are beginning to trickle out.
It is our duty as the next generation to listen.
As a small girl, I remember going to Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, on Memorial Day. Decoration Day was personal to our family, because Mama’s oldest brother died in Okinawa (April 1945). He was one of more then 72,000 Americans who lost their lives taking the Island of Okinawa near the close of WWII.
We would watch as Grandma McClintock put flowers one Uncle Wayne’s grave then gather around the flag pole as an honor guard fired the 21 gun salute in honor of all the soldiers buried at Fort Leavenworth and a brass band played Taps.
This year Memorial Day has a different face. For the first time a couple of weeks ago I heard an 87 year old veteran opening up for the first time about the death he witnessed all around him serving in the South Pacific during that same war.
Many of our WWII veterans are just starting to talk. How long have they suffered under the shadows of their memories in silence? The served out of honor and duty giving the best years of their young adult lives to defend this Nation. Now as these veterans are coming to the end of their lives the memories are beginning to trickle out.
It is our duty as the next generation to listen.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
A Heart for Our Audience
“For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers” (Romans 1:9, NKJV).
Paul doesn’t bar any punches in Romans; but, he doesn’t put himself on a plane above his readers either. Instead, Paul comes along side them in a real and personal way. He prays continually for the individuals to whom he is writing. He seeks to address their individual needs.
Is there a lesson here for us as writers?
I think there is. We cannot claim divine inspiration, but God knew what He was doing when He directed Paul’s pen. The Book of Romans is full of hard words and steadfast promises seasoned with the heart of an author who cared deeply about the people he was writing to.
Do we think about our audience when we are writing? Do we pray for people we may never meet who read what we write? I have to admit there are times I get more involved with getting my thoughts posted then with the people who may read them.
Paul doesn’t bar any punches in Romans; but, he doesn’t put himself on a plane above his readers either. Instead, Paul comes along side them in a real and personal way. He prays continually for the individuals to whom he is writing. He seeks to address their individual needs.
Is there a lesson here for us as writers?
I think there is. We cannot claim divine inspiration, but God knew what He was doing when He directed Paul’s pen. The Book of Romans is full of hard words and steadfast promises seasoned with the heart of an author who cared deeply about the people he was writing to.
Do we think about our audience when we are writing? Do we pray for people we may never meet who read what we write? I have to admit there are times I get more involved with getting my thoughts posted then with the people who may read them.
Gentle Showers and Torrential Downpours
Trials and testing come in all sizes. I’m surprised though how it is easier to turn to God for strength in a torrential downpour then a gentle shower.
Something about gentle showers deceive us into thinking we can handle the situation on our own. Satan misleads us into thinking God is too busy to be bothered with such trifles.
But, let a torrential downpour over take us. The magnitude of the situation is more likely to bring us to the throne of grace for God’s help.
For that reason, gentle showers are often more dangerous then downpours.
When Mama was diagnosed with terminal cancer I knew the situation was too big for an eighteen year old to handle alone. I fled to my Heavenly Father for comfort. The same was true when our younger daughter was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis when she was only six days old. My arms were too weak to carry such a load, and I knew it.
But, what about the gentle showers of daily life? Those are the times when I try to pull myself up by the boot straps and bear the load in my own strength. The hot water tank needs replaced the week after a daughter needs new glasses. I have medical tests and minor surgery scheduled the following week. This is a gentle shower, but I’m getting wet!
Finally, I admit I need my Heavenly Father to come along side me and take the mounting load. Spring flowers grow best under the steady soaking of a gentle shower. The same is often true of our faith.
“Lord, Help us turn to You when the rain drops first start to fall.”
Something about gentle showers deceive us into thinking we can handle the situation on our own. Satan misleads us into thinking God is too busy to be bothered with such trifles.
But, let a torrential downpour over take us. The magnitude of the situation is more likely to bring us to the throne of grace for God’s help.
For that reason, gentle showers are often more dangerous then downpours.
When Mama was diagnosed with terminal cancer I knew the situation was too big for an eighteen year old to handle alone. I fled to my Heavenly Father for comfort. The same was true when our younger daughter was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis when she was only six days old. My arms were too weak to carry such a load, and I knew it.
But, what about the gentle showers of daily life? Those are the times when I try to pull myself up by the boot straps and bear the load in my own strength. The hot water tank needs replaced the week after a daughter needs new glasses. I have medical tests and minor surgery scheduled the following week. This is a gentle shower, but I’m getting wet!
Finally, I admit I need my Heavenly Father to come along side me and take the mounting load. Spring flowers grow best under the steady soaking of a gentle shower. The same is often true of our faith.
“Lord, Help us turn to You when the rain drops first start to fall.”
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Faithful Women: Recommended Reading List
Queen of the Reformation (Charles Ludwig)
Gladys Aylward: A Missionary to China (Sam Wellman)
Mrs. C. H. Spurgeon (Charles Ray)
A Chance to Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael (Elisabeth Elliot)
Evidence Not Seen (Darlene Deibler Rose)
Marriage to a Difficult Man: The Uncommon Union of Jonathan and Sarah Edwards (Elisabeth D. Dodds)
These Strange Ashes (Elisabeth Elliot)
The Savage My Kinsman (Elisabeth Elliot)
The Hiding Place (Corrie ten Boom)
Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God (Noel Piper)
Gladys Aylward: A Missionary to China (Sam Wellman)
Mrs. C. H. Spurgeon (Charles Ray)
A Chance to Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael (Elisabeth Elliot)
Evidence Not Seen (Darlene Deibler Rose)
Marriage to a Difficult Man: The Uncommon Union of Jonathan and Sarah Edwards (Elisabeth D. Dodds)
These Strange Ashes (Elisabeth Elliot)
The Savage My Kinsman (Elisabeth Elliot)
The Hiding Place (Corrie ten Boom)
Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God (Noel Piper)
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Faithful Women of God
Saturday we had our traditional Mother/Daughter banquet with a twist. To encourage ladies without mothers or daughter to attend we called it our Ladies’ Spring Luncheon. This year’s theme brought “special guests” from three time periods: the Reformation, Victorian England, and the Second World War in full costume including hoop skirts, laced bodices, and straw hats.
Susannah Spurgeon (Victorian England) and Katie Luther (Reformation) greeted the ladies as they entered the multipurpose room. Friendly conversation filled the air as everyone moved into the adjacent room and found a seat. After the announcements and a couple of songs Darlene Diebler (Second World War) came to the podium.
Darlene shared her experience in a Japanese prison camp during WWII where she and her husband along with other missionaries were detained after the Japanese captured New Guinea. It broke our hearts when Darlene shared how her husband died in the prison and her desire to return to the mission field even though her own health was weakened from the mistreatment she endured.
Susannah came to the podium next, sharing how she had misjudged Charles Spurgeon the first time she heard him preach. Two years later the preacher she had judged a country bumpkin became her husband. Susannah also shared how after she became an invalid God still used her in the ministry.
Next we met the dramatic, energetic Gladys Aylward (Second World War) who led more than a hundred orphan children across China during WWII ahead of the Japanese invasion. Gladys shared how she learned to be content with the way God made her. As a young girl she longed to be a 5-foot 7-inch blond and act in pictures. God made her a 4-foot 11-inch burnett and sent her to China as a missionary. Her size and hair color made her fit in perfectly with the Chinese culture. God makes no mistakes.
Katie Luther finished up the program sharing how God helped her work through difficulties. Her mother died when she was very young and her father put her in a convent. Years later Martin Luther helped her and several other nuns escape. They made their way across Germany to Wittenberg in the back of a wagon hidden in wooden barrels that carried food to the convent. After becoming the wife of the great reformer, God taught Katie how to be industrious and creative in the ways she dealt with her husband’s overly generous hospitality and bouts of depression.
The program was followed by a buffet luncheon.
Books about the lives of our “special guests” were used as door prices. A book table was also provided were ladies could check out books from our church library about these and other faithful women of God.
These ladies have all gone on to glory, but for a short time Saturday morning they seemed to walk out of the pages of their books encouraging us to be faithful servants of God after the example they left for us.
Susannah Spurgeon (Victorian England) and Katie Luther (Reformation) greeted the ladies as they entered the multipurpose room. Friendly conversation filled the air as everyone moved into the adjacent room and found a seat. After the announcements and a couple of songs Darlene Diebler (Second World War) came to the podium.
Darlene shared her experience in a Japanese prison camp during WWII where she and her husband along with other missionaries were detained after the Japanese captured New Guinea. It broke our hearts when Darlene shared how her husband died in the prison and her desire to return to the mission field even though her own health was weakened from the mistreatment she endured.
Susannah came to the podium next, sharing how she had misjudged Charles Spurgeon the first time she heard him preach. Two years later the preacher she had judged a country bumpkin became her husband. Susannah also shared how after she became an invalid God still used her in the ministry.
Next we met the dramatic, energetic Gladys Aylward (Second World War) who led more than a hundred orphan children across China during WWII ahead of the Japanese invasion. Gladys shared how she learned to be content with the way God made her. As a young girl she longed to be a 5-foot 7-inch blond and act in pictures. God made her a 4-foot 11-inch burnett and sent her to China as a missionary. Her size and hair color made her fit in perfectly with the Chinese culture. God makes no mistakes.
Katie Luther finished up the program sharing how God helped her work through difficulties. Her mother died when she was very young and her father put her in a convent. Years later Martin Luther helped her and several other nuns escape. They made their way across Germany to Wittenberg in the back of a wagon hidden in wooden barrels that carried food to the convent. After becoming the wife of the great reformer, God taught Katie how to be industrious and creative in the ways she dealt with her husband’s overly generous hospitality and bouts of depression.
The program was followed by a buffet luncheon.
Books about the lives of our “special guests” were used as door prices. A book table was also provided were ladies could check out books from our church library about these and other faithful women of God.
These ladies have all gone on to glory, but for a short time Saturday morning they seemed to walk out of the pages of their books encouraging us to be faithful servants of God after the example they left for us.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)