savoring greatness

Tuesday, April 12, 2016 (5:50 a.m.)

Great and Merciful God,

We look to You. Holy Father, thank You. Thank You that we get to come before You. Always. Exactly as we are.

Thank You that You are indeed great. My heart and soul rejoice with thoughts of the blessings You so generously provide.

Father, how I thank You for all the ways You want to lead and teach us. Thank You for creating us in Your image (Genesis 1:26-27) and 'then surveying everything You had made, “savoring its beauty and appreciating its goodness...”' (v. 31a The Voice).

Blessed Holy God, teach me to savor the greatness of this day today. Use me as You wish. Make me aware of Your presence. Your power. Your protection. And Your plan. I love You. I long to serve You. Well. Thank You. Amen.

(140 words ~ 7:17a.m.)

"Great!"

Monday, April 11, 2016 (5:47 a.m.)

Most Holy God,

Let's talk about Your greatness (1 Chronicles 29:11-12) shall we?

“Great!” was an answer we were introduced to almost two weeks ago. When asked by our cruise director how we were all doing, he encouraged our group response to be a resounding, “Great!” It got me thinking. As John Blair later explained that he hoped it would.

We are blessed. Duly. Extravagantly. Continually. He hoped to remind us of that Truth. Often.

Thank You Father for the privilege of having a God fearing man and his wife in charge of shipboard activities. Thank You for their readiness to give You the glory while urging others to do the same.

How cool is that Father? 10 days of being readily reminded of Your unequalled greatness (Psalm 150:2). Great is Your faithfulness (Lamentations 3:23). And Your love (1 John 3:1 NIV). Your power (Exodus 32:11). You! (Deuteronomy 7:21, 10:17; 1 Chronicles 16:25.)

Great, Holy, praise deserving Father, thank You. Thank You for the blessings that You provide. Go with us today. There's a medical procedure scheduled to take place this morning. Guide, direct, instruct, dictate every single aspect of all that is involved.

We love You. We look to You. We ask (Matthew 7:7) Your presence. Your might. Your goodness to encompass us all as You continue teaching us what it is to live as though we truly believe Your greatness ultimately makes us great in the process.

Use us this day Holy Dad. Exactly as You wish. Work as You must that our eager response is, “Great!” when asked how we're doing. Empower me to remember that God Readily Excels At Tribulation!”

I love You Father. Thank You. Amen.

(289 words ~ 7:22 a.m.)

home

Sunday, April 10, 2016 (5:31 a.m.)

Holy God,

Thank You

"Real" life

Saturday, April 9, 2016 (2:49 p.m. EDT)

SWA ~ BWI to PHX

Holy God ~

Thank You! All these days of fun and frolic. New sights. Foods. People. Father, thank You!

Now as we prepare to return to our “real” life I pause to remember [or is it become aware? Even acknowledge?] that no matter where we are or what we are doing that is indeed our “real” life!

Flying beneath, through and now above the clouds again I'm reminded... REAL life! Thank You Father. Thank You!

(3:14 p.m. EDT)

Ten love-filled days

Friday, April 8, 2016 (3:29 p.m. EDT)

Still heading/chugging north toward Baltimore, MD

Grandeur of the Seas

Awesome, Holy God,

Thank You! Three parts of our family have spent the past ten days together. Laughing. Crying. Smiling. Caring. Reading. Learning. Listening. And loving. Yes Father. Thank You for ten love-filled days aboard this ship.

Ten days filled with meeting new people. Making new friends. Thank You for the life changing opportunity of helping an 81 year old woman learn to relax and have fun in the water. What an extreme treat for me. Thank You.

Thank You for the willingness to approach strangers and offer assistance. A heart-filled compliment here. A bit of encouragement there. Whatever positive words come to mind.

This is You at work. You showing us Your handiwork. From the unexpectedness of the early morning sky turning to rough and storm tossed seas then back to the calmness with which we are currently chugging along, You have been in every single scenario.

Here we had the weather dictate one family member's sheer joy of swimming in an actual, authentic, nature driven wave pool while it directly contrasted another's disappointment over the cancellation of a much anticipated aerial act. Father, we thank You for all You have to teach us. Make us willing students.

We have a final night's dinner we get to attend together. Another opportunity to smile. Laugh. Share. Possibly even cry. Be there with us in every single emotion. Especially the love. Thank You Father. Amen.

(252 words ~ 4:19 p.m. EDT)

not at all what I expected

Friday, April 8, 2016 (6:53 a.m. EDT)

Grandeur of the Seas – back balcony

Heading North toward Baltimore, MD

You did it again God! Thank You.

This sunrise we just experienced together. Not at all as I expected. Waking over an hour ago I was sure it was going to be a clear, unobstructed view filled with color. Something I definitely didn't want to miss.

Setting myself up for the long watch included a thick robe, two pool towels, a lounge chair, blanket, pillow and far more time than I had anticipated. Thank You. What I thought was going to be relatively simple, with me back asleep in a nice warm bed in no time didn't happen.

Coming out to check on the stars still visible in the darkened western sky, I was immediately aware of the way the sky was lightening in the east. It took some moments to recognize this as my last unhurried morning of this trip to take the time and watch Your day unfold.

As quickly as ♫Morning Has Broken♫ came to mind, the clouds moved in. Dark, heavy clouds. Right over my head. Thank You Father.

Thank You that we can wake up expecting and preparing for one thing only to have various other circumstances come along. Thank You that I decided to wait and see what would happen.

Thank You that even though I wasn't sure what, if anything, I might witness I was beyond any doubt that Your sun would indeed rise. Although I might not get to actually see it, it was going to happen regardless.

Thank You for allowing me to think of all the dark clouds that pass through my thinking on any given day. Thoughts of gloom or doom that can many times offset my trust in You.

I come to expect certain things. Wanting them to be delivered as I envision. Thank You that Your thoughts are not my thoughts. Your ways are SO much better than mine (Isaiah 55:8)!

Thank You Father for the tango lesson we had yesterday. One in which we clearly did not excel! Thank You most importantly for my take away from that class, I still have far more practicing to do. I am not easily led. Learning, relaxing, trusting, believing these are all areas on which I can improve.

Thank You that You are not One to only give us what we expect. You give us far and exceedingly above (Ephesians 3:20) all that we think we want. Take this morning for instance.

I thought I wanted to catch a sunrise and go back to sleep. Instead You gave me the opportunity to wait and watch. To think and trust. Thank You Father.

Thank You for that first glimpse of orange in the eastern sea. Sitting up straight and watching it grow into a beautiful ball before going behind the ominous clouds allowed me more time to consider all You have for us every single day.

Still waiting, I saw as that orange ball seemed to transform into a crown above those clouds. Fingers of light splayed out in all directions. And then, the sun. Far too bright to even glance upon. Thank You for another reminder of Your brightness. Your brilliance. Your glory.

Thank You for this time together. Not at all what I expected. Use me this day Blessed Lord. To Your good and to Your glory. I love You. Thank You. Amen.

(575 words ~ 7:50 a.m. EDT)

solid and firm

Thursday, April 7, 2016 (7:41 a.m. EDT)

Heading north to Baltimore, MD

Grandeur of the Seas – back balcony

Holy, Loving God,

Thank You that You are holy. Thank You that You are loving. Kind. Forgiving. Understanding. Unchanging. Solid. Firm. Faithful.

We are getting tossed about out here. Thank You that Your intrinsic nature is solid and firm. Not at all like the waves of the sea.

My feelings often go all over the place. Highs. Lows. Stormy. Peaceful. Then I come back to You. Your Word. Your Truth. Your promises. And I am settled. Calmed. Reminded. Hope-filled.

Thank You Father. There are many things to do today. Pack. Play. Relax. Rejoice. Renew. Thank You for this blessed opportunity to sit with You.

Thank You for the privilege of bringing all of my heart, soul, mind and strength to You. You absolutely know all I am thinking, feeling, wanting. Even attempting to avoid. Thank You Father. Thank You for a quick thumb through of Your Word.

Thank You that in revisiting The Celebration Hymnal the deeper in I went I ended up exactly with the Bible verse with which I began this time together with You. 2 Timothy 2:19, “God's solid foundation stands firm; The Lord knows those who are His.”

♫How Firm a Foundation♫ speaks Truth directly from Your Word. Isaiah 41:10 immediately brings the tears straight into my eyes.

It's my decision. Do I keep fighting them? Or just let them flow? I honestly don't know Your best for me here.

Malachi 3:3. Deuteronomy 31:6, 8. Verses from Your Word put to music, reminding us of Your solid and firm presence in every single moment of our lives. Continue Your work in teaching me to truly trust You with all aspects of my day.

Take all of my heart, soul, mind and strength and use them to Your good and to Your glory. Do all You must in truly training me to love You, myself and others as You command (Mark 12:30-31).

I love You. I need You. I want You. And I ask You (Matthew 7:7) to lead that I would wholeheartedly follow. I love You Father. Do all You must in helping me love You well. Thank You that You are solid and firm. Teach me to know, trust, believe and fully enjoy You. I love You. Thank You. Amen.

(400 words ~ 8:47 a.m. EDT)