~A Gathering of Sunday Thoughts~
I've always loved Sunday Mornings. They represent not only a day of gathered worship for me but also bring back to my mind the best (and the worst) of my childhood memories. Whether I was watching my beloved Father buff his well-worn shoes to a brilliant shine or indulging in a single frosted coconut donut (a real treat on a preacher-man's salary), you could count on the day ushering in more than it's fair share of love, drama and sometimes even things that tested our faith.
Additionally...
Someone in my family was always fighting to get into our home's one tiny bathroom...
Someone(usually ME!)was continually (and frantically)looking for a lost shoe or a missing white sock (gee...some things never change!).
My brother and I were constantly arguing over just WHERE we would sit on the drive to church (neither of us wanted to sit in the back seat on the middle 'hump').
And then there were days...
When we found ourselves thankful for the found pennies to purchase gasoline for our broken down, barely running car and for the food-pounding from our local church...
(I will always be grateful for those who generously gave the 'good stuff' from their pantry and chose to gift us with something OTHER than canned Okra or Spinach.)
When times got really tough (and they always did), when the cake donuts were gone, spare pennies couldn't be found, the cupboards were empty and when only outgrown shoes and clothing filled our closets...
Our faith stood strong. For this I owe my parents a wealth of gratitude. My father's faith was unshakable and he believed God would keep His promise and supply all our needs. And He did.
Today I'd like to remind those of you who might be facing days of loss, discouragement and life altering experiences that God never changes. He loves you and wants to bless you. He's the same yesterday, today and forever.
Below are the lyrics to one of my favorite newer inspirational songs. I've had it on my eBay About Me Page for several years and I hope it will be a blessing and encourage you this very day.
Note to my sweet sister:
No one sings this song more beautifully than you! Remember what you told me in 2003 when I was in my darkest hour..."What may seem really big for you isn't for God" ~I love you most~Beck
"He's Been Faithful"
by Cathy Goddard
In my moments of fear,
Through every pain every tear
There's a God who's been faithful to me
When my strength was all gone,
When my heart had no song
Still my God has been faithful to me
Every word He promised is true
What I thought was impossible
I've seen my God do
He's been faithful, faithful to me
Just looking back His love and mercy I see
When in my heart I have questioned
And failed to believe
He's been faithful, faithful to me
When my heart looked away,
The many times I could not pray
Even then He's been faithful to me
The days I've spent so selfishly,
Reaching out for what pleased me
Still in love He's been faithful to me
And every time I come back to Him
I see Him waiting
With His open arms
And I know once again
He's been faithful, faithful to me
Just looking back His love and mercy I see
When in my heart I have questioned
And failed to believe
He's been faithful, faithful to me
Love to all my visitors this beautiful Sunday~
27 comments:
What a beautiful reminder of God's grace, love and mercy. Hope your Sunday is blessed all day!
Hi Sweetness again ~
Okay, I'm off to church, and ready to go, and now tears are running down my cheeks .. Soo much for make-up looking fresh !! Darn you .. Noo, I always need my sweet, loved words of encouragement from you !! I KNOW God only gives to each of us what we can handle, and HE alone will carry us through each day and sometimes each and every minute !! Thanks for feeding my soul as always, and praying you are well, and having a wonderful day planned ..
I'm off and running, after I fix my face :) Than off to Target to get my new magazines .. Go read Brenda's blog .. This looks delich .. can't wait to just sit and thumb through later !!
LoVe and HuGs as always, and soo wonderful to talk yesterday ..Can't wait to get my pretties !! Yippee skippee to PiNk RoSE heaven for TeA ~ xo
Huggers ~meeee~
Thank you Rebecca for reminding me of the faithfulness of God. I needed that today especailly. I am brought to tears with those beautiful words from the song. Thank you!
Thank you my sweet friend for those words to remember.
As you know, I have been down that path many times these past few years and my faith has been very weak, or even non-existent at times...yet I KNEW God was and still is faithful. I have truly learned what walking by blind faith is really about.
In his faithfulness to us, we are seeing a slight light at the end of that long tunnel...I am hoping in the next week I will have more to share with my friends!
Blessings...Lorena
Oh, wow!! You brought back so many memories. There were times our family consisted of too many children (eleven total) and not enough food (sometimes no food but what our generous neighbors sent). But we always had our church and faith. It is difficult remembering the hard times but there were so many good times too. Have a blessed Sunday.
Blessing to you Dear Rebecca..have a wonderful Sunday!
hugs,
Wanda
I really needed to read this poem today. It gave me strength and encouragement.
Your right, through these economical times, jobs are cut every day and it's very stressful. I'm biting my nails if they are going to cut my hours soon due to the economy.
I'm a Christian and draw strength from my faith. But it has ever been tested in the past year with my family who practically has decided to deny I exist anymore. I don't know why and maybe I will never but reading your post reminded me of taking care of kids and then when they get out of the house, they don't appreciate anything of our hard work. So glad you have a sister and famiy who care. That is like a dream for me.
Jennifer
Feathers in the Nest
what a nice post for those out there feeling alone in their own life experiences. i'm a fellow bloggerette (just joined recently) so am visiting all the blogs and saying hello. also, i host an event every friday called Flea market fridays - so stop by (or play, as i see you have some yummy vintage goodies as well!)
i am following you, so i'll see you again!
kecia
Hi Rebecca, Those words of encouragement are just what I needed today! Thanks for sharing with us. You're a blessing!
Love,
Lisa
Hi Rebecca,
Thanks for the sweet blessings this morning.
hugs
Sissie
Thank you for this.
I remember those days of having little.... Unfortunately, those days are back again and I am fighting to have faith that God will bring us through it.
He is my rock and on Him I stand.
We always went to Church too, most of the food we ate came from the garden, chickens that laid eggs and cows that gave milk! We didn't buy many groceries:) We wore hand-me-down clothes and were happy to get them. My Dad worked hard so that my Mama could stay home with us kids and I appreciate it all! I remember those things and it makes me be so thankful for the times today! It is good to know what "not having" is like to appreciate "having"!
Thanks for this story! Big hugs and a blessed Sunday!
Thank you for writing just what I needed to hear today...sometimes we forget that God is so very faithful and will see us through all our troubles~ God Bless You! Ann
A lovely post. I watched Dateline on TV tonight and it showed many people living in poverty right here in America. It reminded me of some lean times of my childhood but mostly it saddened me. As I watched I was yet again reminded of how blessed I am, especially during these hard times. We all need to thank our God daily for all He has blessed us with.
Beautiful blog and love these song lyrics!!
dear rebecca,
that is such a sweet sunday tale. i
have fond sunday memories, too.
and that song is one of my all time
favorites to sing!
your comment at my place about the
miss placed shoes and all the visitors
made me smile.
Hi Rebecca: I was going to email you to pray for me. However, this post was what I needed to read today. Thank you for never letting me feel alone. I love you. Martha
Oh how this brings back memories of my childhood. Some how my parents managed to always have what we needed, not what we always wanted. I remember when I grew up that I never new that we were poor when I was young. Our home was full of love and fun and I thought everyone lived just like we did. The Lord is always so faithful. I did a post about how he can turn your worst nightmare into your biggest blessing when my grandson had significant brain damage and how the Lord completely healed him. We need to remember that He loves us so much and is always there.
Thanks also for your kind words on my post. I would love it if you were here to shop with us gals. What fun that would be. Ceekay, Jamie and I are going to Calif to visit Karen the first week in Aug. for 3 days. Wish you could join us. What a fun girls trip we would have. Hope you are having a super day. Hugs, Marty
beautiful post. we should appreciate what we have and if it's gone, we should see there are things/people that we shouldn't ignore and remember to feel blessed .
Thank you for this beautiful post and the reminder of His faithfulness always. I always love to hear your wonderful childhood memories. May you have the best of weeks, sweet friend! Love and hugs to you~ Vicki
G'morn, R ~ There is nothing more rewarding to give, than to receive. God's blessings ...... so fulfilling to one's heart.
Have a beautiful day.
TTFN ~ Marydon
You bless me.
Debbie@houseatthelake
Beautiful!!!!!!!!!! And oh so true! Have a great week. Charlene
Hi Rebecca,
What a beautiful post and a beautiful promise in knowing our Father is so FAITHFUL!! So thankful that no matter what the day may bring, we know He remains faithful to take care of us!
Hugs, Carolyn
A lovely post and reminder. Thank you.
Rebecca, I missed this post....I am just now seeing it (I think it was when I was MIA!) It is beautiful!! Those words are so perfect! We all go through awful pain at some point in our life and feel He has deserted or neglected us....BUT He hasn't! What a sweet truth that I never ever tire of acknowledging or embracing!! :)
Come see my blog....you will be pleasantly surprised... LOL!
Love ya, love ya honey! (old Doris Day song) :D
Hugs, Carolyn ~Cottage Sunshine
LOL! I did see it before...I commented on it!! Well, let's just say it was a fresh reminder that God knew I needed to know today! :) God is good....all of the time!
Hugs, Carolyn ~ Cottage Sunshine
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