Song for the Sabbath

'Tis So Sweet to Trust

A couple weeks ago I was at the North American Christian Convention in Indianapolis, and one of the pastors who spoke had everyone sing the chorus to a hymn that I love, "'Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus." 

Here are the lyrics to the first and last verse, and the chorus:
(Scroll to the end of this post to watch a beautiful music video that tells the powerful background of this song!)

’Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to take Him at His Word;

Just to rest upon His promise,

And to know, “Thus saith the Lord!”

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!

How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er;

Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!

Oh, for grace to trust Him more!

I’m so glad I learned to trust Thee,

Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend;

And I know that Thou art with me,

Wilt be with me to the end.

I love these words, and I believe them with all my heart.  My life has been a journey of learning to trust my sweet Savior who has pursued me and demonstrated his faithfulness in my life over and over.  Jesus has consistently shown himself by the ways he has worked in my life. 

Considering the great news I have to share with you, I can honestly say, "How I've proved Him o'er and o'er."  After a bummer of a situation with losing my job last year, (which I shared about here), I am happy to say that I have a new job for this coming school year!  And what an unexpected blessing; I have been asked to homeschool one 4th grade boy next year, and I am incredibly excited!  This came about the day after I was ready and willing to accept a job that I wasn't incredibly excited about, but had become very grateful for. 

God continues to do immeasurably more than I could ask or imagine in beautiful, bold ways, even when it becomes so difficult to trust during what might feel like a serious valley.  I personally have come to see it as, "the adrenaline rush of trust". I am just so thankful for this answered prayer, and I am ridiculously humbled by how God's divinity and redemption has shown itself in my life over the last couple years.  Much of it has so clearly led to the unique and fun experience I will get to have this year.

So do not be alarmed if I begin to share all about my new homeschooling journey, and all that I am learning.  There are some great resources out there, and the community is just amazing.  It is really eye-opening to see what kind of education and experiences can be provided for a child who is taught at home.  Of course I will always be thankful for the experience I was blessed with in the classroom last year, and how I will be able to refine my passion as a teacher so much by the work I will be able to do this year.  I know many bloggers are homeschoolers, so please feel free to share any advice or resources you may know of with me!  So far these are a few of my favorite sites:
Sonlight

Heart of the Matter Online

Heart for His Glory

The Old Schoolhouse

The Well Trained Mind

The above picture of the rainbow is one my husband took just this past Monday night while I was at Bible Study.  There was a fairly strong thunderstorm that blew through, and this was the result.  He says the picture doesn't do it justice.  What a beautiful example of God's unending promise to be for us; to love us, provide for us, and take care of his children.  Although often difficult, it is truly so sweet to trust in Jesus...to rest upon his promise, and to know that he is in control.  To sincerely experience this rest, I know I must first surrender my own hard-to-admit personal desire to be in control.  I have to believe in the deepest places of my heart, that the the God who created me can be completely trusted with my entire life.  When I embrace this, my striving can truly cease.

So I sincerely pray for the grace to trust God more and more.  And I pray that you would know how sweet it is to surrender and trust him as well.

A Time to Pray

I was browsing around on several blogs last night, and I came across two powerful stories about families that need very serious prayer.  The first is the story of Preslee Jo, a precious 2 yr old girl who just passed away from a tragic drowning accident.  It is heartbreaking to read about this sweet, faithful family's fight for her life over the past several days.  The parents of Preslee are Patrick and Ashley Sullenger, and they are obviously in desperate need of prayers for healing and comfort as they grieve the loss of their beautiful baby girl.  They are an awesome example of trusting God through this difficult time.  Please take time to pray for God to carry them through the difficult days ahead.

Secondly, I was on Angie Smith's Bring the Rain, and linked to her friend Adrienne's blog Another Ordinary Miracle.  She just had baby Bennett, at 27 weeks.  She has an incredible story of how God grew their family through adoption, and the heartache of the miscarriages that she has endured.  This is the first baby that she has been able to carry this far and deliver.  Please pray that their sweet baby boy keeps growing and getting stronger, and that God would allow this awesome family to enjoy him for many years to come.

Thanks for joining me to pray for these two families who especially need to experience God's presence more than ever.

I'm Back...and Say Hello to Sweet Scarlet!

Hello my Crazy Joy friends!  I know I've been more than a little MIA, but I am motivating myself to slowly re-embrace the blog world! The summer is just such a sweet time, and the sunshine continues to beckon me to enjoy it.  It's also proven to be difficult to share a laptop with Kevin in the summertime - but just last week my gracious mom passed on her old one.  So thank you to her for her generosity...it will definitely be a blessing to my blog!  I have so much to share about this summer - it has been quite fun and definitely eventful. Most importantly, God's faithfulness has been extremely evident. I have admittedly been avoiding tackling the Israel experience, which is more than difficult to put into words. So many pictures to share...I promise, it's coming! I have simply been telling everyone, "I left my heart in Israel!" All this to say, I will fill you in on everything soon.  In the meantime, there is one exciting piece of news I have yet to share....

Welcome to the world little miss Scarlet!!!  Traci had her baby on June 18, right before I came home from Israel.  She is so beautiful, and her brothers adore her.  Such a sweet baby.  These pics are from our phones, but more to come soon! 

I hope you are having a wonderful summer, and feeling grateful for each sunny day we are blessed to enjoy.  The seasons in this part of the country always amaze me - I love them!