The little girl grew up...

The little girl that just graduated is going to get married. She grew up somewhere along the way when I wasn't looking. Many congratulations and best wishes to Crystal and Seth!

Just a bit busy...

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. Between fixing up the house, working and taking a required class for the business, I haven't had much time for writing. So, here are a couple of pictures of exciting events.

A hitting lesson for one of the kids Hubby is coaching.

Some pictures of a walk in the arboretum. I love the new growth on the evergreens each Spring. It is so soft and bright. The last picture is of a Birch Bark Cherry Tree. I thought it was gorgeous.

My Mother

The Example

Each morning in prayer,
My mother spoke with God
Asking I would escape the devil's lair
And travel the path He, Himself had trod.

Each morning in prayer,
She knelt beside her bed
Not asking for material things
Seeking the wisdom of God instead.

Each morning in prayer,
I now kneel beside my bed
Following her faithful example,
Seeking the strength to be led.

Teaching me how to smile,
Showing me how to walk the extra mile,
Giving me love all the while,
My mother prayed for me.

On to the next step...

The house is ours now. It is time to get busy--building a deck, putting up a fence, stretching carpet, painting, moving, etc. Then it is on to getting the business licensed and the bureaucracy it entails.

In the Front Yard

Our Rhododendrons

Anywhere With Jesus

Anywhere with Jesus I can safely go;
Anywhere He leads me in this world below;
Anywhere without Him dearest joys would fade;
Anywhere with Jesus I am not afraid.

Refrain:
Anywhere! Anywhere! Fear I cannot know;
Anywhere with Jesus I can safely go.

Anywhere with Jesus I need fear no ill,
Tho' temptations gather round my pathway still;
He Himself was tempted that He might help me;
Anywhere with Jesus I may victor be.

Anywhere with Jesus I am not alone;
Other friends may fail me, He is still my own;
Tho' His hand may lead me over dreary ways,
Anywhere with Jesus is a house of praise.

Anywhere with Jesus over land and sea,
Telling souls in darkness of salvation free;
Ready as He summons me to go or stay,
Anywhere with Jesus when He points the way.

Anywhere with Jesus I can go to sleep,
When the dark'ning shadows round about me creep;
Knowing I shall waken, never more to roam,
Anywhere with Jesus will be home, sweet home.

By Jessie H. Brown

Jessie H. Brown, an American woman from Cleveland, Ohio, wrote this hymn in 1886. Between 1910 and 1920 two other stanzas were added by Helen Cadbury Alexander, daughter of the famous Richard Cadbury, a Quaker philanthropist.

Graduation

This little girl, my niece, graduated from college this morning. Okay, she isn’t this little anymore, but this is how I remember her. She was valedictorian and graduated summa cum laude. At least now I know where the brains went in the family! I remember the day she was born. I was there when her parents took her home from the hospital. It is hard to believe that was so many years ago. Now she heads into “real” life. Congratulations to her for a job well done! Click here to see a picture of her now.

Salvation

If you ever wondered how to demonstrate salvation, read this. It is an amazing example of what Christ did for us in a real world simple story.

Nothing But the Blood

What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Refrain:
Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

For my pardon, this I see,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
For my cleansing this my plea,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Nothing can for sin atone,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
Naught of good that I have done,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

This is all my hope and peace,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
This is all my righteousness,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Now by this I’ll overcome—
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
Now by this I’ll reach my home—
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Glory! Glory! This I sing—
Nothing but the blood of Jesus,
All my praise for this I bring—
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Words & Music by Robert Lowry

Robert Lowry was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 12th March 1826. He studied theology at the University of Lewisburg and on graduating, in 1854, became ordained as a Baptist minister. He had charge of churches in a number of places including New York, Brooklyn, West Chester, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. In 1869 he returned to Lewisburg as a faculty member (having previously served as a professor of literature) and later went on to become its chancellor. From 1880 until 1886 he was president of the New Jersey Baptist Sunday School Union. He is most remembered as a composer of gospel music and a hymn writer, and also worked as a music editor at the Biglow Publishing Company. He was responsible for around 500 compositions, including Beautiful River and Nothing But the Blood.

Despite his success as a hymn writer, it was as a preacher that Lowry would have preferred to be recognized. He once stated: "Music, with me has been a side issue... I would rather preach a gospel sermon to an appreciative audience than write a hymn. I have always looked upon myself as a preacher and felt a sort of depreciation when I began to be known more as a composer."

Despite this, it is as a hymn writer that he remains renowned, songs such as I Need Thee Every Hour and Christ Arose as popular now as they ever were.

Lowry was married with three sons and died in Plainfield, New Jersey on 23rd November 1899.

Hat Tip: Poem Hunter

In the Backyard