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“The joy of the Lord is my strength” is an amazing statement. When we go through trials or difficult times, we are supposed to look to the Lord for strength. But how easy is it when we’re struggling, to simply cave to the waves of doubt and depression and wallow in self-pity? For myself, I know this all too well. I firmly believe that God is trying to teach me to find my joy and my strength in Him alone. There is no one person or one possession that will be to me what God is to me.

Great are You, Lord. Isn’t He? The idea of God’s greatness has never been a stumbling block for me. From my earliest of memories, I have always felt special. Special that God sent His Son to die for me. Special that He chose me to be His child. Special in the fact that He wants to use me in His plan. He was and is great in my life.

Hands of Love by Crowder is one of those songs that you simply can’t listen to and sit still. I love listening to this song in the morning as it helps me get up and get moving. Beyond the fun and catchy melody of the music, the lyrics speak of a loving Saviour who covers us with His hands. Oh the protective hands of an all-knowing God. As I consider the concept of what it is to be covered by the hands of God, I am ever thankful for His saving grace and for covering my sin with Christ’s shed blood. I am grateful for the freedom I have found in faith in Christ and the new life I have been given – eternal life.

For those of us who call ourselves Christians, we can easily claim the goodness of God. It is one of His primary characteristics and is apparent all around us. Some years ago, I was not able to claim this truth. I did not see God’s goodness in my life at all. I was blinded by the darkness of infertility.

Words are wonderful things. I have loved reading them and writing them since I was a young child. I think God gave me my love of words because I was such a shy child. It has always been easier for me to write out my thoughts than to verbally share them. I love the editing process and there is no chance for such a thing in face to face conversation!

Two years ago, our family lost two very precious women. Called home to glory within a few weeks of each other were my grandma and my husband’s stepmom. Losing my grandma was an expected loss. She was nearing 90 years of age and we knew that any phone call from my parents could potentially share this news. On the other hand, losing Ray’s stepmom to cancer while only in her 50’s, was much harder to accept.

When I was 12 years old, I participated in my first in-depth Bible study on the book of Revelation. I recall a lot of interesting and somewhat confusing ideas presented in the study, but the most important lesson I learned was that Jesus was going to return for His faithful followers and I wanted to be sure that I would be found among them.

When I was 19, I had the opportunity to travel to Papua New Guinea (in southeast Asia) and serve for 3 months with Wycliffe Bible Translators. My aunt and uncle had been serving there as full-time missionaries for a number of years so I was able to assimilate into the missionary life quite easily under their protective supervision. Those three months marked a turning point in my faith. Prior to that trip, my child-like faith had not been attacked too terribly. During those months abroad, my faith turned into a deep relationship with God and solidified my unwavering commitment for life. It wasn’t easy. I felt attacked by Satan on a regular basis. I felt ill for many of my days in PNG. But, I saw God move mightily in my life and in the lives of those around me during that time. Those memories from half of my life ago are some that stay with me and keep me pressing on in my faith to this day.

There’s nothing more amazing to me than the cross. Honestly, how amazing is it that God would sacrifice His one and only Son to pay the penalty for my sins so that I may have eternal life? It is complete and undeserved mercy and grace. Mercy and grace that I am continually thankful for.

Recently, I watched a movie called, “Far From the Madding Crowd”. It’s based on the classic novel written by Thomas Hardy and centres on a Victorian time. There is one scene from the movie that stands out far above the rest. A farmer has a flock of sheep. One night, the sheep break down the walls of their pen and, one by one, escape. The farm is situated near a cliff shoreline of ocean. Each sheep follows the other, blindly into the darkness, and plunges to its death over the cliff. The farmer sorrowfully realizes the loss of his entire flock of sheep as he views the numerous carcasses at the bottom of the cliff. This scene plays over and over in my mind as I see it as a great warning for those who call themselves Christians but stray from our Shepherd and follow the ways of the world.