Monday Monday~Sanctuary

The other morning I sat out on the back porch overlooking Still Waters Pond and was determined to "listen" for the ways that God would be speaking to me.  The past few weeks have been challenging, to say the least, and I have been needing some time alone with God, away from the distractions of what's going on in the world at large, as well as in my own little world.  

As I sat there watching and listening to the birds singing while they were going about their morning routine of finding seeds and berries for food...I thought about this lovely spot as a bird sanctuary...

and then my mind went to the words of this song, "Sanctuary", and I began to sing.

"Lord prepare me

To be a sanctuary

Pure and holy

Tried and true

And with thanksgiving

I'll be a living

Sanctuary, for You"

As I sat there singing and thanking the Lord for this little sanctuary, I prayed, 

"Lord, prepare ME to be a sanctuary."

(these Bluebirds have been spending a lot of time around the birdhouse lately...I don't think it's nesting time for them, but maybe they just need to feel like they are in a safe place...)

Psalm 63

1"O God, You are my God;

Early will I seek You;

My soul thirsts for You;

My flesh longs for You

In a dry and thirsty land

Where there is no water.

2 So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,

To see Your power and Your glory.

3 Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,

My lips shall praise You.

4 Thus I will bless You while I live;

I will lift up my hands in Your name.

5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,

And my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips."

Matthew 11:28-29

28 "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: 

and ye shall find rest unto your souls."

As I sat there thanking God for this time alone with Him, I also did a little reading and research about the word "Sanctuary".  I found a website entitled PreceptAustin.org,  and found this information that was very helpful: 

"A SANCTUARY is a sacred place, a place set apart for a holy purpose, a place to commune with God in intimate fellowship, a place to worship Him "in spirit and in truth" (Jn 4:24), a place to "find rest for our souls" (Mt 11:28-29-note), a "place of refuge from the raging wind and tempest" (Ps 55:6-note), and "a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat." (Isa 25:4) In the New Covenant, our Lord Jesus is our Sanctuary and place of refuge. To use a modern expression, Christ is our "Safe House" now and forever. "How blessed is the one whom Thou dost choose, and bring near to Thee, to DWELL IN THY COURTS. We will be satisfied with the goodness of Thy house, Thy holy temple." (Ps 65:4-note) "Thou wilt make known to me the path of life; In Thy presence is fullness of joy; In Thy right hand there are pleasures forever." (Ps 16:11-note) "How blessed are those who DWELL IN THY HOUSE! They are ever praising Thee. Selah"

Since the past month has been filled with many interruptions to our normal life in the way of medical issues, recuperation and changes in routine, we have not been able to go out of the house except for doctor appointments and other necessities, so therefore we've not been able to attend church or our regular Bible studies, choir practice, etc. Even though we keep up with our daily devotions and prayer times, it still isn't quite the same as being able to worship and fellowship in person with our church family.  Therefore, this place of "sanctuary", beside Still Waters Pond, (Psalm 23:2..."He leadeth me beside the still waters") has become a sacred place of worship and thanksgiving.

I must add, however, that we had good visits with our kids this weekend. Scott came home and mowed grass and took care of several little jobs that needed doing around the house. Benton and Rose and the grandpups came over last night and brought fried chicken for supper, and we had a nice visit with them. So I count those as extra special blessings!

This Eastern Phoebe has also been spending a lot of time in and around this part of Still Waters Pond,

carrying out her duties of catching bugs and singing "Phoebe! Phoebe!" to let her mate and/or family know where she is.  Maybe she's thanking God for the food He provides for her.

The Sand Hill Crane family comes and goes, and they always announce their arrival and departure with loud and raspy trumpet sounds.

Personally, I think they want us to know they are here as a way of showing a kind of friendship.

Here's what popped up on the this little daily devotional calendar for today:

So appropriate for this season of life we are in...

"When you pray, I will listen. You will find me when you seek me..."

Jeremiah 29:12-13

Psalm 23 KJV

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

I hope you enjoyed spending a little bit of time with me today in "The Sanctuary".

I am thankful for each and every one of you and look forward to visiting with you again soon.

Meanwhile, is there a special place that is your "sanctuary"?  Maybe you can share it with us in one of your posts. 

Have a blessed and wonderful day my friends.

 

Friday Foto Friends...As Dawn Awakens

It's Friday morning, and this week has been one for the record books in heat and dryness here in Florida.  I haven't been able to get out much since it has been so very hot, and plus we were dealing with our air conditioner breaking down right at the worst of it...after several days of suffering and waiting for our AC man to figure out exactly what was wrong and finding the right part to fix it, we are finally now back to normal and I can breathe again!  So thankful for the invention of air conditioning. I grew up in Florida without it, and let me tell you, that is not a pretty sight! But we were young and played outside most of the time anyway, so we didn't know the difference. No one else had it either, so we all sweated together!!  But now that we are so accustomed to having it, even one day without it is miserable.  But after seeing what others are dealing with around our nation...horrifying tornadoes, floods, and even fires, I must count my blessings and give praise to God for His protection over us, and for being with us even during times of a bit of inconvenience and discomfort.  God is good...all the time, God is good. 

So, I woke up this morning and realized that I didn't have any new pictures to share with you today, so I hurriedly took a little "walkabout" the neighborhood to see what I could see before it got too hot to go out.  Won't you come along with me?


Okay, this is the one picture I took earlier this week, one hot afternoon as I went out to get our mail.  I looked above me and saw this squirrel spread out on this perfect Y branch, trying to keep his belly cool... at least that is what I think he was doing.  He never even budged when I walked under him and stopped to take his picture. He was really relaxed and happy...

So happy to see that the crepe myrtles are starting to bloom in the garden!  I love it when they bloom...they brighten up the yard and brighten up my day...

When I got to the pond, the sun was just rising up behind this big cloud...Isn't that beautiful? And the reflection in the water is actually a better view of the glow around the top of the cloud...

As I surveyed the water to see if anything was out there, I discovered this bird having his breakfast.

At first I thought it was one of the Sand Hill Cranes, but when I got a better view here on the computer, I can see this is something totally different...but I'm not sure what.

Okay, I just looked it up. It is a "Limpken", https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limpkin, and I discovered that it is actually a threatened species. 

Here is a video about it,  and now I know that I was very privileged to see this bird in action here this morning.  (This video is from YouTube, not my video, but it also tells more about it this bird in the info underneath the video.)

After watching the bird, I moved on around to the other side of the road, and wanted to take a picture of this little vacation home, aptly named "Reality Check". 

Next I headed back toward home, and just snapped a few more pictures of some of my favorite picturesque spots along the way.  Many of these vacation homes are hardly ever used, which I think is so sad. But at least I can enjoy the beauty of their views while the people are away. 

My favorite little red A-frame in the morning light:

Back to my own yard again, and these trumpet vine flowers are blooming...I used to call them "witches fingers" when I was a little girl. I remember them growing at my Uncle's farm in Pennsylvania, and my cousins and I would pick the flowers and stick them on the ends of our fingers and call them "witches fingers".  Silly kid stuff. Did you ever do that? 

And one of my favorite views, the early morning sun in the Secret Garden...

Psalm 63:1-5

1. "O God, You are my God;

Early will I seek You;

My soul thirsts for You;

My flesh longs for You

In a dry and thirsty land

Where there is no water.

2.  So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,

To see Your power and Your glory.

3.  Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,

My lips shall praise You.

4.  Thus will I bless You while I live'

I will lift up my hands in Your name.

5.  My soul shall be satisfied as 

with marrow and fatness,

and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips."

I pray that you and yours will have a blessed and beautiful day and weekend.  Thank you for sharing this special time with me today.  You are friends that I cherish greatly.  

the Secret Garden Chronicles - Speak, Lord, In the Stillness - Revisited

This was written a couple of years ago from the Secret Garden.  Today I am feeling a little under the weather...allergies/sore throat/tired...anyway, this message soothes my soul today, and I wanted to share it with you again.  I hope it will be a blessing to you as well.


Original Post 2/26/2017:

While sitting in the Secret Garden this afternoon, the Lord led me to discover this song in my old hymnbook.  It was not familiar to me, so I found this version on You Tube, sung by Andy Pratt. His words are the modern version, replacing the Thee's and Thy's with You and Your, etc., but the message is still so serene and comforting.  The tune is named "Quietude"....which is exactly how this feels...quiet, peaceful and as if you are in a holy place...which is where we are when we enter the Presence of The Lord...whether it be in a garden, or your prayer closet, or maybe a quiet sanctuary after the close of the services, kneeling before the altar of the Lord...  I hope you will turn on your sound and sit quietly and prayerfully sing along with this beautiful little song. You will be blessed by it, I assure you.

Speak Lord In The Stillness, 

modern version sung by Andy Pratt

written by E. May Grimes

1

Speak, Lord, in the stillness,

  While I wait on Thee;

Hushed my heart to listen,

  In expectancy.

2

Speak, O blessed Master,

  In this quiet hour;

Let me see Thy face, Lord,

  Feel Thy touch of power.

3

For the words Thou speakest,

  They are life indeed;

Living bread from heaven,

  Now my spirit feed!

4

All to Thee is yielded,

  I am not my own;

Blissful, glad surrender,

  I am Thine alone.

5

Speak, Thy servant heareth,

  Be not silent, Lord;

Waits my soul upon Thee

  For the quickening word.

6

Fill me with the knowledge

  Of Thy glorious will;

All Thine own good pleasure

  In Thy child fulfill.

7

Like a watered garden,

  Full of fragrance rare,

Lingering in Thy presence,

  Knowing You are there.

I think I will close with these verses from Psalm 63

1.  "O God, You are my God;

Early will I seek You,

My soul thirsts for You;

My flesh longs for You 

in a dry and thirsty land

where there is no water.

2.  So I have looked for You in the Sanctuary...

to see Your power and Your glory;

(this is not in my Secret Garden, but a lovely place on the Ocklawaha River we hiked to one time, near Davenport Landing)

3.  Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,

My lips shall praise You,

4. Thus will I bless you while I live;

I will lift up my hands in Your Name.

5.  My soul shall be satisfied with marrow and fatness,

and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips."

Praise the Lord!

I hope you've enjoyed this time of "quietude" 

in the Secret Garden with me today. 

May it bring peace and solace to your soul.

Amen 

Friday Foto Friends Oh, Deer Me!

Welcome to Friday Foto Friends...the time when we gather together to share our favorite photos from the week.  I wasn't too sure what I was going to share this week, and then on Thursday morning I took an early walk about the neighborhood, and God provided plenty for me to share with you.

We'll start with this deer playing peek-a-boo with me. He wasn't really as close as this makes it appear, but I believe this is the closest encounter I've had with the deer in quite a while:

See what I mean?  I thought he was going to walk right up to me and say good morning! Yes, I did say good morning to him (or her?)  After giving me a good looking over, she bounded into the woods to join the rest of the family...

Except for this one that was still across the road...

And this one that came down the road a ways to see what was going on...

Kind of looks like she's dancing and prancing for me...maybe this is "Prancer" or "Dancer"...perhaps they are getting in practice for you know what that is coming up in about 95 days?

So, after those deer disappeared into the woods, I walked around to the other side of where they were, and noticed these lovely morning sun rays shining through the trees...I just had to pause and breathe in the morning air, and give thanks to the Lord for another beautiful day to be alive...

And then I turned around and looked into the woods, and what did I see staring back at me?
Another deer playing "peek-a-boo"...

As she started to move on, I noticed a lot of movement coming along behind her...

And so I stood there and watched quietly...

And they just kept coming...that third one in the row is the BUCK...He stood and stared at me for quite a while. I couldn't get a very good picture because he was behind the bushes, but even though he is still a young buck, he is definitely the buck of this family, and he shook his head back and forth as if to say to me, "Back off...this is MY family!!"

 I believe he is still standing back in the shadows in this picture below, waiting for all the family to move on to safety before he brought up the rear...

And then they moved over into another area, and kind of corralled themselves there for a few minutes while the young ones caught up to their mamas...

You can see the youngsters here...one is still nursing, and the other is very curious about me...
I believe I counted over seven or eight deer in total in this group...it was quite a fascinating experience.  I've been watching this family all summer long, but have never seen them ALL together like this before. Wish I could have gotten better pictures, but they just kept moving and camouflaging themselves in the woods.  I didn't dare get any closer, or that buck may have bucked me out of the way!!

Then I noticed this lovely pond, which is the area where the deer were headed.  I waited for a few more minutes, but they stayed hidden, waiting for me to leave...so I decided I'd better move on so they could get on with their daily routine.

It looks like fall leaves are starting to show here...and they are here and there. I love the golden hues of fall in the morning sunshine. Now if we just had the cooler temperatures to go along with this I could be in "hog's heaven"...or maybe I should say "deer heaven!"

Some thoughts from God's Word for today:

Psalm 63:1-5

1.  "O God, You are my God;

Early will I seek You;

My soul thirsts for you;

My flesh longs for You 

in a dry and thirsty land

where there is no water.

2.  So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,

to see Your power and Your glory.

3.  Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,

My lips shall praise You.

4.  Thus I will bless You while I live;

I will life up my hands in Your name.

5.  My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,

and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips."

An Afterthought:
For my less woodsy friends who may not always appreciate just pictures of more DEER, (Oh, dear, I can hear you saying...what next?)
Last Saturday I found this delightful little plate at the flea market, and couldn't resist it as a little early birthday present to myself. (next week) It came already equipped with the little wire hanger thingy, so all I had to do was find a suitable spot to hang it and voila!

I probably need to clean that rust off that wire thingy...hmmm, didn't see that before, but anyway, you can see here that it is entitled "Coaching Scenes" made in England by Johnson Bros., The Ironstone Coach Office!

maybe you can read the details a little better here:

I know it looks lost on this wall, but wanted you to see where it now resides:

right under the picture of the beautiful large wicker chair with a lady's hat, next to a tea table ...ready and waiting for your visit, "mi' lady", so hop on that coach and come on over!
The Teapot is ready and waiting...

Now let us hop on a coach and trot over to visit our other Friday Foto Friends who are waiting patiently for us at Deb's place at Breathing in Grace. 

May your day be blessed with the joy of seeking and finding the Lord in places where you might not have expected!