How Lovely Is Thy Dwelling Place 2

How Lovely Is Thy Dwelling Place 1

In 2012 I was blessed to go to Ireland for my 60th Birthday gift from Bob.
This to me was the most holy place we visited. What better way to remember 9/11 than to focus on our Lord?

I was for once without my camera so Bob lovingly took the photos for me. I was so moved that I could barely speak. When I came home I realized that on Celtic Treasures there was a great song "How Lovely Is Thy Dwelling Place" that absolutely summed up the experience for me. Based on Psalm 84 it goes something like this:

 How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts!  My soul longs, indeed it faints for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.  Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God.  Happy are those who live in your house, ever singing your praise. Selah

 This is the same altar from further back. If you look to the right of the window there is what looks like a small hole in the wall.

 On closer inspection you can see that "even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at Your altars, O Lord of hosts."

This is not the same recording, but close.

Show me the way I should go

Psalm 143:5-8 I remember the days of long ago;

I meditate on all Your works and consider what Your hands have done.

I spread out my hands to You; I thirst for You like a parched land.

Answer me quickly, Lord; my spirit fails.

Do not hide Your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit.

Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You.

Show me the way I should go, for to You I entrust my life.

 

Several years ago I learned two verses and somehow in my mind combined them into one reminder for life.

"I entrust myself to my Faithful Creator."

The actual verses read:

1 Peter 2:23 When they hurled their insults at Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats. Instead, He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.

 

1 Peter 4:19 So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves t

o their faithful Creator and continue to do good.

 

Radical acceptance requires Total Surrender to the Holy Spirit.

Birth Order

Here is some humor. Were you first born, baby, or middle child?
Enjoy!

Patsy Clairmont on Emotions

Patsy drives home the point that we are born with emotions and we need God's help to tame them. Enjoy!

He Poured in the Oil and the Wine!

In Luke 10:30 we read about the Good Samaritan who took care of the man who was traveling and fell into the hands of robbers. "When he saw him, he was moved with pity.  He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.  The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, 'Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.'" The Good Samaritan is a symbol to us of how Jesus loves us, as well as a model for what our behavior is to be towards our neighbors. 

There was a praise chorus in the 80's that went:

"He poured in the oil and the wine
the kind that restoreth my soul
He found me bleeding and dying
on the Jericho road
And He poured in the oil an the wine."

When I heard the broadcast referred to yesterday from Haven of Rest I distinctly heard that the Samaritan did NOT pour grapes and olives on the wounds.

Here is a simple home video of the song. I find it kind of sweet! At least the guy in plaid looks like he is having fun!

"Olives, of themselves"

Oswald Chambers wrote My Utmost for His Highest  around 1935 and it continues to bless readers today!
Here is the Selection for September 2nd.

John 7:38 "He that believeth in Me ...out of him shall flow..."
Jesus did not say 'he that believeth in Me shall realize the blessing of the fulness of God," but - "he that believeth in Me out of him shall escape everything he receives." Our Lord's teaching is always anti-self-realization. His purpose is not the development of a man; His purpose is to make a man exactly like Himself, and the characteristic of the Son of God is self-expenditure. If we believe in Jesus, it is not what we gain, but what he pours through us that counts. It is not that God makes us beautifully rounded grapes, but that He squeezes the sweetness out of us. Spiritually, we cannot measure our life by success, but only by what God pours through us, and we cannot measure that at all."

Years ago (1985) on the radio show "Haven of Rest," I was so struck by what the narrator said I had to request a transcript of the show. "Olives, of themselves, have their greatest value in the press."

You see the greatest value of the olive tree is the rich, abundant oil which is expressed from its berry. One book says the best oil is made from the fruit gathered about November or December. Pressed oil is considered the best. And now, in Ohio in 2013, there are local stores for "oil snobs" that feature specialty olive oils that some chefs swear by.

So if you feel as if the Lord is squeezing you until you can barely stand any more, perhaps He is extracting that special essence from you that is like the oil from an olive. Olive oil is mentioned 200 times in the Bible. Unger's Bible Dictionary says: "It is a fitting symbol of the Spirit by virtue of its power to sustain and fortify the vital energy."

There were different kinds of olive oil in ancient Palestine, just as today. The "pure" oil is now known as virgin oil, extracted by pressure, without heat. There are times of pressure when I get heated up, but you get the meaning, I'm certain.