Now, on to my post....
I just recently returned from our family vacation -- went to one of my favorite spots in the whole wide world -- the Frio River. I practically grew up on that river. My mom took my brother and me there every year. We'd stay a week or two, and no matter how long it was we were never ready to go home. I have 18+ years of memories that bring a smile to my face and joy to my heart. I remember thinking, "When I have kids I'm gonna bring them here every summer."
Every child needs to......
.....drink water flowing from the springs on the side of a cliff
.....take a bath in the freezing cold river at dusk
.....dance under the stars in the pavillion at Garner State Park
.....swing from the branches of Cypress trees that are hundreds of years old
.....learn how to leap from stepping stone to stepping stone to get across the river
.....float the river at least once so they can become an official "River Rat"
It's a magical place. Something happens there......
....it gets quiet,
you slow down,
you listen............
to the water trickling, the crickets chirping,
the still small voice of God.
SNAP! Now back to reality..............
Life happens.
We don't get to go every summer.
We're lucky if we get to go every other, but one thing is certain....when we do, it's God-ordained. It's just WHAT we need, WHEN we need it.
I've been in quite the valley lately, so the timing is no surprise. God is so good that way.
"He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul." Psalm 23:2-3
I needed restoring. Needed to be reminded that He is the GREAT I AM, and that He's done MANY miracles in my life before. In fact, Psalm 106 pretty much sums it all up. Guess you could say it was the "state of my union." Here are excerpts from that Psalm in Eugene Peterson's "Message". Oh, and by the way, I changed all the "they's" to "we's."
6-12 We've sinned a lot....
We've fallen short....
taken your wonders for granted,
forgot your great and wonderful love.
We were barely beyond the Red Sea
when we defied the High God
—the very place he saved us!
—the place he revealed his amazing power!
He rebuked the Red Sea so that it dried up on the spot
—he paraded us right through!...
...saved us from a life of oppression,
pried us loose from the grip of the enemy.
Then we believed his words were true
and broke out in songs of praise.
13-18 But it wasn't long before we forgot the whole thing,
wouldn't wait to be told what to do.
We only cared about pleasing ourselves in that desert,
provoked God with our insistent demands.
He gave us exactly what we asked for—
but along with it we got an empty heart.
19-22 ......We forgot God, our very own Savior,
who turned things around in Egypt....
So what did I do? I prayed a lot and asked the Lord to encourage me. I set out to find reminders of his love for me. The kids and I started looking for heart shaped rocks, and this is what we found.....
The one on the bottom left is my favorite because it looks like it was broken....and that reminds me of one of my favorite verses. Psalm 147:3 says, "He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds."....and that's exactly what He did for me.
"when God saw the trouble we were in and heard our cries for help, He remembered his Covenant with us, and, immense with love, took us by the hand.
He poured out his mercy on us..." Psalm 106:44-46 (MSG)
He poured out his mercy on us..." Psalm 106:44-46 (MSG)
Oh, how he loves us! (Click on this link to hear the song and be blessed.) Do you KNOW that you know that you know He loves you? And do you KNOW the depth of that love? Jesus has the nail-scarred hands to prove it....and one day, if we believe, we will get to take the hand of our beloved and be with him forever.
Proverbs 8:17 says, "I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me." I am SO thankful that he "hearts" me! He "hearts" you too!
Precious! And I've danced under the stars in that pavilion and been a river rat in that water and it is a wondrous thing! So glad ypu hung out with Daddy there and that you are looking for the heart-rocks! It's a wondrous thing to see Him in nature and, well, everywhere! By the way, we stole that from Sharilyn at "Heart Rock Life." Love you friend!
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