It's Enough

In the darkest and stormiest of nights and the hardest of days,

the promises of God

give sure light, a steady anchor, and unwearying wings.

Well, the season is past, but I’m still pondering.  Incidentally, I seriously doubt that Mary was ever finished pondering as long as she lived (see Luke 2:19).

Can you get your mind around this?  It finally happened!  The most anticipated event in the entire history of the world finally happened!  The long-promised Messiah arrived in the flesh.

Just knowing He’d come was enough for Simeon (See Luke 2:212-35).  Seeing the Messiah was what He was living for, waiting for.  You see, the Holy Spirit had actually revealed to him that he wouldn’t die ‘til he’d seen the Lord’s Messiah.

I’ve often wondered what it must have been like when Simeon saw Joseph and Mary walk into the temple with Jesus.  Did the Holy Spirit whisper, “See that baby being carried in just now?  He’s the One you’ve been waiting for—there’s your Messiah, Simeon!”

However He did it, the Holy Spirit made it obvious to Simeon who Jesus was, and Jesus’ parents were absolutely amazed at what Simeon said as he held Jesus in his arms and blessed God.  

For Simeon, this was enough; there was nothing greater to live for.  He’d seen the Messiah, and even if he didn’t live to see how his Messiah would accomplish everything, he trusted what God had told him.  Everything would work out the way it should.  Everything was going to be okay.

Now I’m asking myself, “Do I have that kind of faith?”  I want to have that kind of faith.  I want to be like those spoken of in Hebrews 11 who—even though they didn’t see all the final fulfillment of God’s promises in their lifetimes—died in faith, seeing and welcoming His promises from a distance.

All His precious and magnificent promises (see II Peter 1:1-4) are true.  He is faithful.  Not one of His promises has failed.  All came to pass. (I’m thinking just now of Joshua 21:45 and 23:14.)

We can’t rest in those promises, though,

if we don’t know what they are.

It’s long past time for all who claim to be God’s to know what His Word says, to really know it— not just as second-hand knowledge, but because we’ve seen it with our own eyes, and we can’t get it out of our heads.

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for,

the conviction of things not seen.”

Hebrews 11:1

It’s enough for me to have met the Messiah.  (Have you?)

And I believe He will do what He has promised.  (Do you?)

~~~~~~~

(If you've never heard the song Captain's Anthem,
now might be a good time to pause to listen.)

Tell Me Again

There are days when I desperately need to be reassured of the Lord's love and care for me.  I think David must have had the same need, because I found a verse (Psalm 35:3) where he pleads with God, "Say to my soul, 'I am your salvation.'"  I am relieved to know it's okay to ask Him to tell me again. . . and again.

It was that verse, along with some others that reassure me of His love, that inspired the song lyrics below.

Though the music is recorded on my piano; I just haven't had time to record the words with it yet so I can share it.  But maybe you'd like to ponder already the words and the verses that inspired them.

May your soul, too, be made steadfast in His love.

Verse 1

Say it again to my soul,

“I am your salvation!”                Psalm 35:3

My only hope is in You, alone;   Psalm 62:1,2,5-8; Psalm 71:5

O LORD, be my helper.              Psalm 30:10

Chorus

Who is God, but the LORD?

Who is a Rock, except our God?           Psalm 18:31

You are God; there’s no one like you.   Jeremiah 10:6; Ps. 86:8

There is no rock like our God!               Isaiah 44:6-8

He rides the heavens to my rescue,

Through the skies in His majesty.         Deut. 33:26

Eternal Father, You’re my refuge,

And underneath are Your everlasting arms!  Deut. 33:27

              

Verse 2

Say it again to my soul,

“Cast your every care on Me.”        Psalm 55:22; I Peter 5:7

You’re never weak, never weary;    Isaiah 40:28

And I know you care for me.          I Peter 5:7

Chorus

Who is God, but the LORD?

Who is a Rock, except our God?           Psalm 18:31

You are God; there’s no one like you.   Jeremiah 10:6; Ps. 86:8

There is no rock like our God!               Isaiah 44:6-8

He rides the heavens to my rescue,

Through the skies in His majesty.         Deut. 33:26

Eternal Father, You’re my refuge,

And underneath are Your everlasting arms!  Deut. 33:27

              

Bridge
He bowed the heavens and came down;

Sped upon the wings of the wind…

He rescued me because He delighted in me!  Psalm 18:9,10,19

Copyright Carol Carpenter

              

A Very Short Song

I was reading in Jeremiah.  God is explaining that His promises to His people can't be broken.  He calls creation to witness to His dependability and faithfulness, and points out the daily rise and set of the sun.  The things we count on being constant every moment, the things we depend upon every day, the things we never even question, are actually fully sustained by His power.  All the things we depend upon for our very existence are totally out of our control, but they are totally in His control.

"Thus says the LORD, who gives the sun for light by day, and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar; the Lord of hosts is His name:
'If this fixed order departs from before me,' declares the LORD, 'then the offspring of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before Me forever.'"  Jeremiah 31:35-36

And from Jeremiah 33:20-21, "Thus says the LORD, 'If you can break My covenant for the day, and my covenant for the night, so that day and night will not be at their appointed time, then My covenant may also be broken with David my servant that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne. . .'"

We could no more stop His promises than we could keep the sun from rising!

And that's when the very short song came to me.

I wondered at what could be the use of such a very short song.  That is until I remembered how, when I was a girl, we used to have one of those very short songs at the start of our worship service each Sunday.  Do you know what we called it?  A 'Call to Worship'.

And here my heart smiled, and I had to say aloud, "Of course--how very appropriate a name!"

Here are the words.

Did the sun set last night?
Did it rise this morning from its place?
Okay, then, His promises stand.
I rest my case.

Dear friends, the next time you are tempted to be discouraged, call this to mind.  Ask yourself those very questions, and join me on my knees in worship.  He is so faithful!

"The LORD is my strength and my shield;
My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped;
Therefore my heart exults, and with my song I shall thank Him." Psalm 28:7

"Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed."  Romans 10:11

News Flash: Read Carol At The IAHE Blog, Too

The Indiana Association of Home Educators (IAHE) has their new blog up and running, designed to equip and to serve.  I have been invited to be a contributor, and I hope you will be inspired when you read what I'm writing there, too.  I'll still be writing here at Unsmotherable Delight, but I thought you might like to know where else I'm writing.

As always, my aim is to uplift and encourage you to trust in our mighty God in whatever endeavor He has called you to, whether homeschooling or another passion of His heart.  So even if you're not homeschooling, I believe you'll be blessed by what you read at the IAHE's new blog, too.

I called today's post Jehovah's Morning Manna.

Here's a sampling. . .

O taste and see that the Lord is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! Psalm 34:8

“Daddy, what is it?”  That’s what the Israelites’ children must have been asking when they first saw manna—the tiny flake-like bread that appeared with the dew. They named it manna, meaning literally, “What is it?”  (See Exodus 16)

Can you just imagine the other questions they must have been asking?  How does God know where we are?  How does He know how much we need?  Why is it always just the right amount?  Why must we gather it every morning?

God’s people were in the wilderness, and they were hungry.  The Lord saw their need, and sent this mystery bread from heaven to feed each one of them.  They discovered it tasted like wafers with honey, and they found it there for them every single morning until the day after they first ate the produce of the Promised Land.  (See Joshua 5:12)  The only exception was Sabbaths, when they had tasty leftovers—which, too, was a miracle in itself.

Think of such a provision!  Wouldn’t it be great—to know the Lord would provide each day exactly what you need?!

Actually, He can, He will, and He does.  Okay, it’s not necessarily outside on your front lawn, and you can’t usually cook it in a pot, but He does.

To read the rest, you can follow this link.

A Musical Tool for Scripture Memory

You know how a song will get stuck in your head?  If it's a good song, that's a good thing.  If scripture comprises the lyrics, it's a great thing!  Lately, our church family has been selecting a scripture passage to memorize together each month.  For October, the passage was Psalm 63:1-8.  Our family had been blessed by someone else's tunes (The NIV Kid's Club) for learning a passage from Colossians 3 the previous month, and we found ourselves yearning for a song for Psalm 63.  Well. . .

Our God, who can do infinitely beyond what we ask, gave me a song.  After reading through Psalm 63 several times, I set my open Bible on the piano music stand, sat down at the keyboard, and He gave the song.

And so I share it with you, in case you're like us and you find it easier to memorize Scripture when it's attached to music.  The words, in English, aren't perfect poetry as our usual hymns are, but they fit quite well anyway.  I did repeat a couple lines to make the music come out right.  The words in brackets are the lines I repeated.  Otherwise, the words are all in order.  The verses are from the NASB.

I pray that it will be a blessing to you, as you seek to hide God's Word in your hearts.

Psalm 63:1-8

(NASB)

Music Unpublished © 2011 Carol Carpenter

O GOD, You are my God;

I shall seek You earnestly;

My soul thirsts for You,

My flesh yearns for You,

In a dry and weary land where there's no water.

Thus I have beheld You

In the sanctuary,

To see Your power and Your glory.

Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,

my lips will praise You.

So I will bless You

As long as I live;

I will lift up my hands in Your name.

My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness,

And my mouth offers

praises with joyful lips.

[As long as I live,

I will lift up my hands in Your name.]

When I remember You on my bed,

 I meditate on You in the night watches,

for You have been my help,

 And in the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy.

My soul clings to You;

Your right hand upholds me.

[In the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy.]

All I Want for Christmas

Five and a half years ago, our world changed forever when God tapped us to travel halfway around the world to adopt a teenage girl we had never met.  But as much as our world changed, her world changed even more as she received the fulfillment of her greatest wish--a family!  We can wholeheartedly say that the joy has been every bit as much ours as hers!

The hardest thing to do was to leave the others behind in the orphanage, the children who begged for someone to please find them a family.  Last Christmas, our biological daughter wrote a song that expressed the longing in their hearts and it became the spark which led to the creation of a short film, with the help of dear family and friends.  The six minute film is finally finished and we would like to share it with you.   Just follow the link below. . .But be warned:  your world may never be the same!

All I Want for Christmas on Vimeo

For the sake of the souls of the children left behind in orphanages, or passed from foster home to foster home, all over the world, would you help us spread this little adoption movie as far and wide as possible by as many means as possible?  Maybe you know someone who knows someone who knows someone who needs to see it!  And maybe someone who you'll never know this side of heaven will be adopted, not only by an earthly family, but into God's family, too, because you did!

"Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,

for the rights of all who are destitute.

Speak up and judge fairly;

defend the rights of the poor and needy"

Proverbs 31:8-9 (NIV)

P.S.  If you'd like to know more about our adoption experience and how God orchestrated it, you can follow the link on the right to our adoption blog.  The news isn't so new anymore, but the experiences and lessons the Lord taught us transcend time.

Unexpected Storms III-- The Song He Knew We Needed

My dear readers,

I know only a little something of the storms just a few of you are going through right now, but our precious Heavenly Father indeed knows the details of every one of the storms in each of our lives.  He anticipates our needs and is perfectly able to meet them.  In a way, He did that for us when He gave us this song.

It wouldn't be right to keep this song to ourselves, when He intends that we pass on the comfort He gives.  So I share this song (just a living room recording), not to focus on me, but I earnestly pray that you can hear beyond my voice to the words and character of Jesus as He reveals Himself in the gospels.  If you haven't already had a chance to, I humbly encourage you to take a moment to read about the backdrop against which this song is set.  Truly, I think understanding the song's backstory will make it's meaning richer.  Unexpected Storms--Part One especially sets the stage with the Biblical context from Mark 4, and Unexpected Storms--Part Two (Ben's Storm) will give you a glimpse of how God, in His perfect timing, used this song to encourage our family.

May it be a blessing. . . and yes, of course, you may share it if you think it will encourage someone else.

Trust in Him at all times, O people;  Pour our your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us.
Psalm 62:8

The words are on the video, but in case they are too small to read, I included them here as well.  You can also hear the song on Vimeo here.

Captain's Anthem
© 2011 Carol Carpenter
Inspired by Mark 4:35-5:1

V1
There will be days
When you think the waves
Will surely break over your boat.
Your knees are knocking,
And your boat is rocking,
And you're not sure you're staying afloat.

Chorus
But this storm was never meant to scare you;
Instead, my friend, it will prepare you.
This whirling storm was never meant to be a threat;
You belong to me, so please don't fret!
Storms will rise,
Dark clouds blind your eyes,
But your strength is not in what you see--
Your strength is found in depending on Me.
Your strength is found in Me!

V2
When courage may waver,
Know that I am your Savior--
Don't let fears run away with you!
When faith starts to slip,
Remember:  I planned this trip.
You're here to see what I can do!

Chorus

And this storm was never meant to scare you;

Instead, my friend, it will prepare you.

This whirling storm was never meant to be a threat;

You belong to me, so please don't fret!

Storms will rise,

Dark clouds blind your eyes,

But your strength is not in what you see--

Your strength is found in depending on Me.

Your strength is found in Me!

Bridge

Can't you see that fretting is a waste?

Surely by now you've had a taste

Of My power and majesty--

No storm ever gets the best of Me!

Chorus

And this storm was never meant to scare you;

Instead, my friend, it will prepare you.

This whirling storm was never meant to be a threat;

You belong to me, so please don't fret!

Storms will rise,

Dark clouds blind your eyes,

But your strength is not in what you see--

Your strength is found in depending on Me.

Your strength is found in Me!

V3

I'm here in your boat;

I will keep you afloat.

You've got to understand Who I am!

Gloria. . .The Gift of Song

Today's offering to the world is a song, inspired by Philippians 2:5-11.  I wrote it, but I can't really take credit, for the Lord is the one who gives us gifts to use for His honor.  I want Him to have all the glory for any of the songs He's enabled me to write.  He set a very interesting and compelling precedent with the first one, twenty-nine years ago.

That first song was for my high school graduation.  My friends were encouraging me to try out to be the soloist for graduation.  I told them I didn't know what I would sing.  I didn't want to sing the same song everybody else sang year after year.  If I was going to sing, I wanted the song to have some pertinent meaning, and I wanted it to communicate my faith in Christ to my classmates.  They persisted in urging me to try-out.  So as I drove home after school, I said, "Lord, if you want me to sing something, you're going to have to give me a song, because I don't know what to sing."

Our piano was only steps inside the door, and I sat down.  And the song just came right then and there.  That was enough of a miracle, but it gets better.  If I were going to write a song in my own strength, it would be in the key of C--no sharps, no flats.  The song He gave me was in the key of D flat, and if you know something about music, you know that key has five flats.  I think He did it that way so I would never take credit for the songs He enables me to write.

Well, I did try out.  My song was chosen for my public high school graduation, and the judges even asked me to turn it into a duet so that a classmate and I could sing it together.  So that's how the song writing began.  Each and every song is just as much a gift from God in that He deserves all the glory.

By the way, this song is not the one I wrote for graduation.  Maybe someday I'll get that one online.  But today, ponder with me God's amazing plan to rescue us.

(Sorry, the recording is temporarily unavailable, as it is being updated.)

Prelude

The whole world was lost in the darkness of sin.

The light of the world is Jesus.

Like sunshine at noonday His glory shone in.

The light of the world is Jesus.

Come to the Light, 'tis shining for thee.

Sweetly the Light has dawned upon me. . .

Chorus 1

Gloria. . .behold the great descending!

The Sovereign's hands are emptied

As He sleeps on the hay,

With a young maid there, attending. . .

The light of the world is Jesus.

Verse 1

Amazing plan--takes my breath away. . .

the Lord set rank aside--

Him, a slave--

There was no other way.

Chorus 2

Gloria. . .behold the great descending!

The Sovereign's hands are emptied

As He sleeps on the hay,

Humble shepherds there, attending. . .

The light of the world is Jesus.

Verse 2

Humble beginning became humbler still. . .

He took on all our shame--

Him, the Lamb--

For there's no other Name.

Chorus 3

Gloria. . .behold the great descending!

The Sovereign's hands are emptied

As He dies in our place,

Roman soldiers there, attending. . .

The light of the world is Jesus.

Verse 3

More amazing still came the third day. . .

The Lord set death aside--

He's alive--

There is no more to pay!

Chorus 4

Gloria. . .Let the praises keep ascending!

The Sovereign's grave is empty!

Crucified, yet alive,

With the angels all attending. . .

The light of the world is Jesus!

Bridge

Come to the Light, 'tis shining for thee.

Sweetly the Light has dawned upon me. . .

Repeat Chorus 4

Copyright 2011 Carol Carpenter

Hymn excerpt public domain