Celebration

Gray's Lily

For it is from God alone that you have your life through Christ Jesus. He showed us God's plan of salvation; he was the one who made us acceptable to God; he made us pure and holy and gave himself to purchase our salvation. As it says in the Scriptures, "If anyone is going to boast, let him boast only of what the Lord has done."  1 Corinthians 1:10-11 (LB)

Sing Praise!

Grape hyacinth

 

Shout with joy to God, all the earth!

Sing the glory of His name; make His praise glorious!

Say to God, "How awesome are Your deeds!

So great is Your power that  Your enemies cringe before You.

All the earth bows down to You; they sing praise to You, they sing praise to Your name."

Psalm 66:1-4

Salvation from the Lord

Wild phlox

"Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation."  --Psalm 91:14-16 NIV

He is risen indeed!

Oconee Bells

And the angel answered and said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said."  Matthew 28:5-6



His Kingdom

Jesus said that He was sending out His laborers "as lambs in the midst of wolves." [Luke 10:3] The Good Shepherd is the one sending and He is the one who will guard and protect. He is always near and will be present even during danger.

His Kingdom

In Luke 10:2 Jesus told the seventy, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laboreres are few; therefore, pray earnestly that the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers into His harvest."  If the laborers Jesus is speaking to are the pray-ers, then perhaps He intended the pray-ers to become the laborers. Hmmm. Go and pray; pray and go.

His Kingdom

Luke 10 begins "Now after this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them two and two ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come."  Their message?  The Kingdom of Heaven is near.  The Kingdom is still near; it is come and it has yet to come.  "And He said to them 'The harvest is plentiful, but the laboreres are few; therefore, beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.' "

Steadfast

Indian Paintbrush

"...[R]emain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose." Acts 11:23b

Inclined to His Ways

Harrisburg Covered Bridge ca 1875

May the LORD our God be with us, as He was with our fathers; may He not leave us or forsake us, that He may incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways and to keep His commandments, and His statutes and His ordinances...so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD is God; there is no one else. --1 Kings 8:57-58; 60

His

Purple Fringed Orchid

Close-up shot
The LORD is good,
A stronghold in the day of trouble,
And He knows those who take refuge in Him.
--Nahum 1:7

Daughter of the King

Black-eyed Susan

The King's daughter is all glorious within;

Her clothing is interwoven with gold.

She will be led to the King in embroidered work.

--Psalm 45:13-14a

Sing, Proclaim, Tell

Spreading Pogonia

Sing to the LORD a new song;

Sing to the LORD, all the earth.

Sing to the LORD, bless His name;

Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day.

Tell of His glory among the nations,

His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.

For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised;

He is to be feared above all gods.

For all the gods of the peoples are idols,

But the LORD made the heavens.

Splendor and majesty are before Him,

Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.

Psalm 96:1-6

Omnipresent

Indian Pinks at Seven Islands Wildlife Area

Above photo by Ranger Bill

"Am I a God who is near," declares the LORD, "And not a God far off? Can a man hide himself in hiding places, so I do not see him?" declares the LORD. "Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?" declares the LORD.

--Jeremiah 23:24

Our Stronghold

Speckled Wood Lily

The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knows those who take refuge in Him. --Nahum 1:7 NASV

God's Word

Pink Lady Slippers

Turn to Me, and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other. I have sworn by Myself. The word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness and will not turn back, That to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance. --Isaiah 45-22-23 NASV

Peace

Sweet Betsy

"And I, the LORD, will make a covenant of peace with them and eliminate harmful beasts from the land, so that they may live securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing. And I will cause showers to come down in their season; they will be showers of blessing."--Ezekiel 34:25-26 (NASB)

Hope

Snowdrops March 6

All the earth will worship Thee, and will sing praises to Thee; They will sing praises to Thy name. Come and see the works of God, Who is awesome in His deeds toward the sons of men. Psalm 66:4-5 NASB

His Word

Tremont in January

As for the God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless.--2 Samuel 22:31

Our King

Dogwood berries in December

"But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity." Micah 5:2

Renewal

Monkshood

Therefore, we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18