Dost thou think, O Christian, that thou canst
measure the love of Christ?

Think of what His love has brought thee—
justification,
adoption,
sanctification,
eternal life!

The riches of His goodness are unsearchable;
thou shalt never be able to tell them out or even conceive them.

O the breadth of the love of Christ!
Shall such a love have half our hearts?
Shall it have a cold love in return?

Shall Jesus’ marvellous lovingkindness and tender care
meet with but faint response and tardy acknowledgment?

O my soul, tune thy harp to a glad song of thanksgiving!

Go about thy day rejoicing, for thou art no desolate wanderer,
but a beloved child, watched over, cared for, supplied, and defended by God.

~Charles H. Spurgeon

“Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”  Jude 21

“The relationship between the shepherd and his sheep, between Christ and those whom He calls, is one of personal, profound knowing; for He knows me intimately, He knows me by name.”

“Most of us are totally unaware of just how well God really does know us.  We are oblivious to the staggering truth that every aspect of our lives is fully known to Him.  If we examine the Word of God on this subject we will discover that even from our conception in our mother’s womb all the hereditary factors that combined to make us each the unique individuals that we are have been known to God.”

“God by His gracious Spirit calls us from and leads us out of our cramped experiences.  He invites us to move out into the rich, nourishing pastures of His Word.  He wants us to roam abroad in the wide ranges of new relationships with others of His flock.  He longs to lead us beside still waters; in paths of righteousness; up into the exhilarating high country of the summer ranges where we are in close communion with Him.”

“The intentions that He has for us are all good.  His desires and aspirations for us are enormous, full of potential for unimagined benefit to us and others.  Because the thoughts He thinks toward us are thoughts of peace and blessing, let us not hold back!  It is the truly wise one who will allow himself to be led out into the broad fields of God’s gracious blessings and benefits.”  ~Phillip Keller

~After a bluesy, tiresome sort of day yesterday I found comfort in my Bible reading and book reading last night and this morning.  It’s amazing how a fresh and steady look at Jesus makes all my own little discomforts and anxieties seem easier to deal with.  (An understanding husband helps, too.  The Lord used him last night to give me some much needed encouragement and something to look forward to—he’s taking the kids out all day on Saturday!)

“I will not forget you!
See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.”
Isaiah 49:15,16

“What can be more astounding than the unfounded doubts and fears of God’s favored people?  The Lord’s loving word of rebuke should make us blush; He cries, ‘How can I forget you, when I have graven you upon the palms of my hands?’

We do not know which most to wonder at, the faithfulness of God or the unbelief of His people.  He keeps His promise a thousand times, and yet the next trial makes us doubt Him. 

He never faileth;
He is never a dry well;
He is never as the setting sun, a passing meteor, or a melting vapor;
and yet we are continually vexed with anxieties and disturbed with fears as if our God were the mirage of the desert.

‘I have engraven YOU’  It does not say, ‘your name’.  The name is there, but that is not all:  ‘I have engraven YOU.’   See the fullness of this!  ‘I have engraven your person, your image, your case, your circumstances, your sins, your temptations, your weaknesses, your wants, your works; I have graven YOU, everything about you, all that concerns you, I have put you altogther there.'”

~Charles H. Spurgeon

I am so very tired today, but it seems on these days in which my body knows oh so truly it’s weakness, my soul is all the more confident in the tender care of my loving God.  Today, when I spend time resting on the couch, and doing my motherly duties from there (it’s a good thing I love to snuggle and read books out loud) God will be never far from my mind.  As I reach my arms out to my little ones, I will sense His great love toward me.  I can’t see His arms but I can feel the warmth of them.  I can’t see His face, but I can sense His smile.  He understands me.  The mystery of His wondrous love toward me overwhelms my heart.  I’m grateful beyond words for that today.

“He tends His flock like a shepherd:  He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those that have young.”  Isaiah 40:11

(I just thought I would share a few thoughts that are running through my head and heart this morning. . . . .)

Abundance— an ample quantity, profusion, lavish expenditure, extravagance, exceeding the limits of reason or necessity, extremely or excessively elaborate. . . . .

I remember once, hearing a man try to explain God’s generosity as sort of like a “baker’s dozen”, when you ask for 12 but get 13. . . .I wonder how often we all get caught up in this human sort of thinking.  We just cannot seem to fathom the abundance of God’s spiritual gifts to us, but the Bible is full of verses that prove God’s lavishishness.

The Holy Spirit has been giving me the desire to learn more about God’s abundance, and so this morning I sat on my porch and looked up verses that contained the word abundant.  This is what I have found so far (there are a lot more verses that I didn’t have time to look up). . . .

“For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.  For which cause we faint not.”  2 Cor. 4;15,16

“And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.”  1 Tim. 1:14

God doesn’t just give us grace, He gives us ABUNDANT GRACE.

“How excellent is thy lovingkindness O God:  therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.  They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures.  For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.  O continue thy lovingkindness unto them that know thee; and thy righteousness to the upright in heart.”  Ps. 36:7-10

He doesn’t just satisfy our souls, He ABUNDANTLY SATISIFIES

“Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts:  let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.”  Is. 55:7

He doesn’t just forgive our sins, HE ABUNDANTLY PARDONS THEM. 

“I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.  I am the good Shepherd: the good Shepherd giveth his life for his sheep.”  John 10:10, 11

He doesn’t just give us a new life in Him, HE GIVES US AN ABUNDANT LIFE.

The more I study these beautiful verses, and meditate on them, the more my heart is warmed and thrilled toward my Savior.  He gives us everything we need, in abundance, because He loves us.  Sometimes we try to earn His good gifts, but when we do that it takes away the overwhelming humility that we feel, when we realize that “I don’t deserve a single beautiful blessing from God’s hand, but look!  He has given me so much, too much!”  An attitude like that is lovely and deep. . . . .the kind of spirit which is broken and thankful and causes us to want to give our life to Jesus, and to love Him, and worship Him.

“. . .eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.”  Song of Solomon 5:1

“Lord, I crawled across the barreness to You with my empty cup uncertain in asking any small drop of refreshment.  If only I had known You better. . . .I’d have come running with a bucket.”  Amy Carmicheal

 (I don’t think God’s generosity is like a baker’s dozen….I think it’s dozens upon dozens of baker’s dozens!)

I’ve been thinking about Jeremiah 31:3 a lot lately.  “Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love.”

Everlasting love. . . .

I thought this morning I would look in Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening devotional book to see if he had anything to write about this verse, and he did, so I thought I would share.  I’m hoping it will encourage you, as it has me.

“Ask those of the Lord’s people who have lived the nearest to the gates of heaven, and they will tell you that they have had seasons when the love of Christ towards them has been a fact so clear and sure, that they could no more doubt it than they could question their own existence.

Yes, beloved believer, you and I have had times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, and then our faith has mounted to the topmost heights of assurance. 

We have had confidence to lean our heads upon the bosom of our Lord, and we have no more questioned our Master’s affection to us than John did when in that blessed posture; nay, nor so much:  for the dark question, ‘Lord, is it I that shall betray thee?’ has been put far from us. 

He has kissed us with the kisses of His mouth, and killed our doubts by the closesness of His embrace.

His love has been sweeter than wine to our souls.”  ~C.H. Spurgeon

 If I know one thing for sure, it’s that God loves me, I am His and He is mine. 

On Sunday, when I was home with Grace, I had the most wonderful time reading Romans.  I intended to read the whole book straight through but I was FULL by chapter 8, (stuffed, really). . . . .satisfied in the truths and beauty of God’s word.

Here are some of the verses that stood out to me~

Purpose of the law~ “that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. . .by the law is the knowledge of sin.”   3:part of 19, part of 20

“We conclude that a man is justified by FAITH without the deeds of the law” 3:28

“Seeing it is ONE GOD, which shall justify the circumcision BY FAITH, AND uncircumsicion THROUGH FAITH.  Do we then make void the law through faith?  GOD FORBID, yea, we ESTABLISH the law.” 3:30,31

“Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.” 4:3

“to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” 4:5 

“He staggered NOT at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God”  4:20  I was so convicted of my own weak faith, I had to stop and beg forgiveness. . .what a beautiful verse!

“Jesus. . .who was delivered for our offenses, and was RAISED AGAIN for our justification.”  4:35  Thank you doesn’t seem expressive enough.

“For scarcely for a righteous man will one die:  yet peradventure for a GOOD MAN some would even dare to die.  BUT God commendeth his love toward us, in that WHILE WE WERE YET SINNERS (!!!) CHRIST DIED FOR US.”  5:7,8  Amazing!  Jesus gave his life for sinners.  Only GOD could do that.

“For if through the offense of one (Adam) many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.”  5:15 (end of verse)  God goes above and beyond what we hope and ask.  “much more”  “abounded unto many”

“by the righteousness of ONE THE FREE GIFT CAME”  portion of 5:18  Don’t you love that phrase, “free gift”??? 

“Moreover the law entered, that the offense might abound.  But where sin abounded, GRACE DID MUCH MORE ABOUND.”  5:20  God is generous, not just a “bakers dozen” kind of generosity. . .but more and more and more until we are overwhelmed and lost in His goodness.

I copied quite a bit more in my journal, especially Romans 8:22-27

I’ll stop sharing for now, though.  I was so thankful to have that time in my Bible on Sunday, it was something I really needed. . .and I’ve had so many of these ideas and phrases running through my head since then.  Romans, in the past, was so confusing, but now I am able to read and understand more than I used to.  This has greatly encouraged me, because it proves that God is WORKING on me, and growing me.  I am so happy about that!

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Last night, an excavator (I called it a bulldozer and Rich was quick to correct me) was dropped off next to the house.  It will be used today to start digging and preparing the ground for the foundation of our garage.  I had to take advantage of a photo opportunity!!

Future Excavators of America?

It’s going to be an absolutely gorgeous day today!  Stop on by, if you’re in our neck of the woods! ~

There is a lot to do today.  I have errands to run (with five precious ones in tow), school to teach, and the van to pack.  We are leaving tomorrow to go see family.  We will visit Rich’s family tomorrrow and have Easter dinner at my parent’s house on Sunday. 

Today is Good Friday.  A day in which my spirit is meditating on the death of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  I was reading Spurgeon this morning and thought I would share this quote:

We never should have known

Christ’s love in all its heights and depths

if He had not died;

nor could we guess the Father’s deep affection

if He had not given His Son to die.

The common mercies we enjoy all sing of love,

just as the sea-shell, when we put it to our ears,

whispers of the deep sea whence in came;

but if we desire to hear the ocean itself,

we must not look at every-day blessings,

but at the transaction of the crucifixion.

He who would know love,

let him retire to Calvary and see the Man of sorrows die.

~Spurgeon

“Herein is love! and truly it is love that ‘passeth knowledge.’

O let this love fill our hearts with adoring gratitude,

and lead us to practical manifestations of its power.”

~Spurgeon

“For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son,

that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish,

but have everlasting life.”  John 3:16