Thy Mercy

"But he gives us more grace." James 4:6a

I was meditating on God's very great grace toward me, grace that extends to every believer, and read these words from a favorite Bible teacher, "He is enough.  When you need more, you will have more.  When your woes are great, His grace is greater.  When our sins are vast, His mercy is deep.  We cannot exceed Him.  We cannot outrun Him."

I began to think of how "sin would reduce me to utter despair" if it were not for His mercy, which causes my spirits to revive, over and over again.

It reminded me of this hymn, which has been modernized by Sandra McCracken and recorded by Caedmon's Call and others.  Every single lyric I know, I can sing wholeheartedly.  I looked up the lyrics to double-check my memory and found that there were more lyrics than are included in the modern versions; not surprising since modern songs need to be cut to around 3 minutes or so and all six verses of a hymn sometimes cannot make the cut.  I like the editorial choices that were made, and yet the extra lyrics I could sing just as wholeheartedly.

His free grace alone, from the first to the last, has won my affection and bound my soul fast!


Thy mercy my God is the theme of my song,
The joy of my heart, and the boast of my tongue.
Thy free grace alone, from the first to the last,
Hath won my affection and bound my soul fast.


Without Thy sweet mercy, I could not live here.
Sin would reduce me to utter despair,
But through Thy free goodness, my spirit's revived
And He that first made me still keeps me alive.


Thy mercy is more than a match for my heart,
Which wonders to feel its own hardness depart.
Dissolved by Thy goodness, I fall to the ground
And weep for the praise of the mercy I've found.


Great Father of mercies, Thy goodness I own
In the covenant love of Thy crucified Son.
All praise to the Spirit, Whose whisper divine 
Seals mercy and pardon and righteousness mine.


Amazing grace.  How sweet the sound!

This Day Takes the Cake

Some days take faith.

Scratch that.  Every day takes faith.  Some days I just don't have it.

You see, I started off well.  Got a Word from the Lord this morning.  Had coffee.  Got everything ready for the kids.

Then it all caught up with me.  I'm not entirely sure what happened.  I think it had something to do with the lack of sleep and the excess of caffeine I'd ingested.  The word from the Lord was real; the spirit was willing, the flesh was weak.

Sometimes my faith is also weak.  It was one of those days.  A freak-out day.  One where I'm not entirely sure to what degree the thing on which I'm fixated is of my own invention.  One thing is for sure: I stressed my daughter out by getting so stressed out myself.  Another thing: I felt a lot better after a nap.

After said nap, I knew I needed to make a cake.  Just knew.  Also, knew I needed to watch a movie.  So I got one from RedBox - my anniversary freebie! - had my cake, and am now going to just chizill.  

Someday, it will all be funny... I hope?

Chocolate is no substitute for (temporary interruption here as I confiscated something from my son who is supposed to be sleeping) spiritual victory, but it is a real consolation for sore nerves.  Notice I am not really referring to the cake, which is just a shelf for the real goodness to shine from (basic Hershey's frosting recipe - check it out here).

Two thoughts help me put a lid on this day.  One, a little bread cast on the waters this morning: 2 Samuel 22:20b, "He resuced me because he delighted in me" (NIV).  That is the unmerited favor of God.  I told my husband this morning I was encouraged that it didn't say, "He rescued me because I am awesome." 

Second thought is a song (at last!): "Shifting Sand" by Caedmon's Call.  Been running through my head as I made my cake.

My faith is like shifting sand

Changed by every wave

My faith is like shifting sand

So I stand on grace

I'm intrigued and confused by the sepia-toned, Chinese boarding-school images.  Or maybe the Philippines - that seems more likely.  You know, I've seen so much, I explain it away.  The song stands on its own.

With a sigh of relief I shall now sink into the couch to watch my movie.  Every day takes faith.  This one took  the cake.  

Running the course

I woke up thinking this would be a long day, and hearing Caedmon's Call's "Walk With Me." Here is a goofy video of it: I always admire how well Danielle performs when pregnant. Long night w/sick toddler, appointments to make, IT issues to resolve on behalf of others... My thoughts were punctuated like my plodding steps in the pre-dawn house: One. Day. At. A. Time. I felt like I really just needed to get to my quiet time - it felt vital. It really does restore my soul. I found a little treasure in Psalm 19. It's about the sun, which is "like a champion rejoicing to run his course. It rises at one end of the heavens and makes it circuit to the other; nothing is hidden from its heat" (5b-6). I'm not sure what part gets to me the most. I think part of it is that even the sun just does his thing one day at a time, but he does it really well. I think it's also knowing that a day can only be so long - we'll get through it. Walk with me empty; walk with me strong. This is going to be one of those more empty days, I think, but I am praying for the Lord to supply what I need.