CandyceLand is in VacationLand

Hello friends,

Most of you may know this already, but Steve and I and all the kids are on vacation, so no posts will be forthcoming. I hope everyone is doing well and I look forward to being back and writing again... sometime.  :)

Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah

Candy's thoughts: It seems as though everything I read these days has to do with the themes of waiting and patience. Hmmm. Is it possible God is sending multiple helps for a persistent sin of mine but I'm just not listening? Yes indeed, I think that is quite likely.

Here is what God put in front of me yesterday, this time written by one of my favorite columnists. For many years I've wanted to compose small articles like Andree Seu Peterson does for World Magazine - brief yet practical. I hope you enjoy her thoughts on the relationship between biblical heroes and a classic '60s camp song.  😉

Soul, Remember, In Your Pains...

"The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice."  Psalm 97:1

Spurgeon's thoughts: "There are no real causes for anxiety as long as this blessed sentence is true. On earth the Lord's power controls the rage of the wicked as readily as the rage of the sea; His love refreshes the poor with mercy as easily as the earth with showers. Majesty gleams in flashes of lightning amid the tempest's horrors, and the glory of the Lord is seen in its grandeur in the fall of empires and the crash of thrones. In all our conflicts and tribulations, we may behold the hand of the divine King."

                                       

God is God; He sees and hears

All our troubles, all our tears.

Soul, forget not, in your pains,

God o'er all forever reigns.

Fear not death, nor Satan's thrusts,

God defends who in Him trusts;

Soul, remember, in your pains,

God o'er all forever reigns.

For this life's long night of sadness

He will give us peace and gladness.

Soul, remember, in your pains,

God o'er all forever reigns. 

Candy's thoughts: I have to admit that my first response to this devotional was something like "easier said than done."  Not the holiest of impulses, I know. But then I remembered that throwing off anxiety must be active and not passive. I often tell my friends in GriefShare that we all have to "lean into our grief," meaning we have to work hard in order to heal. We can't just try to convince ourselves that losing someone doesn't hurt and so we should stop crying or being sad. Instead, in both grief and anxiety we have to confront our fear of the future and then do something - read God's loving promises to us in His Word, pray for relief and a return to stability, preach the gospel to ourselves daily, seek out godly counsel, find comfort in serving others, etc. We can't simply ignore our emotions or distract ourselves with meaningless activities. We have to "lean into" the trouble we face and "lean upon" the Lord with appropriate action.  Soul, remember, in your pains, God o'er all forever reigns. 

Lost and Found

Candy's thoughts: Most of you know that our family lost a son and brother to death back in 2007. The truth is, though, that I don't believe we "lost" Sam because I know exactly where he is - in heaven.

I love the writings of J.C. Ryle, a country pastor for 39 years and the Bishop of Liverpool in England for 20 more during the 19th Century. He authored several books, and the one entitled Holiness is my favorite. Here is an excerpt from it in which he reflects upon the reality of what happens to our saved loved ones as they pass from life into eternity. I hope that this is a help to those of you who need some encouragement as to the present existence of those in Christ who have gone before us. They are not lost, but found.

Ryle's thoughts: "Blessed be God, the souls of departed saints are free from the very moment their last breath is drawn. While we are weeping, and the coffin is preparing, and the mourning being provided, and the last painful arrangements being made, the spirits of our beloved ones are enjoying the presence of Christ. They are freed forever from the burden of the flesh. They are 'where the wicked cease from troubling, and the weary be at rest' (Job 3:17).

The very moment that believers die they are in paradise. Their battle is fought; their strife is over. They have passed through that gloomy valley we must one day tread; they have gone over that dark river we must one day cross; They have drunk that last bitter cup which sin has mingled for man; they have reached that place where sorrow and sighing are no more. Surely we should not wish them back again! We should not weep for them. but for ourselves.

We are warring still, but they are at peace. We are laboring, but they are at rest. We are watching, but they are sleeping. We are wearing our spiritual armor, but they have forever put it off. We are still at sea, but they are safe in harbor. We have tears, but they have joy. We are strangers and pilgrims, but as for them they are at home. Surely, better are the dead in Christ than the living! Surely the very hour the poor saint dies, he is at once higher and happier than the highest upon earth."

Is God My Co-Pilot?

Charles Spurgeon's thoughts: "Upon some points a believer is absolutely sure. He knows, for instance, that God sits in the center of the vessel when it rocks most. He believes that an invisible hand is always on the world's tiller, and that wherever providence may drift, God is steering it. That reassuring knowledge prepares him for everything. He looks over the raging waters and sees the spirit of Jesus walking on the water, and he hears a voice saying, "It is I - do not be afraid." He knows too that God is always wise, and knowing this, he is confident that there can be no accidents, no mistakes, and that nothing can occur that ought not to happen."

Candy's thoughts: This quote reminded me of two things, a bad bumper sticker and a beautiful song. A frequent decal on cars is this one: "God is My Co-Pilot." While I understand the sentiment behind the phrase, it somehow seems wrong to me. The idea that God and I are fully equals in determining the course of my life makes me uneasy. I prefer God to be totally in charge steering the course of my days on earth while I seek to follow His wise and loving lead.

The song is "Jesus, Pilot Me." While it was written in the late 19th Century, the version I love the most is by BiFrost Arts. Wikipedia describes the group this way: "It is an ecumenical religious organization closely linked with the Presbyterian Church in America that produces written and recorded religious music." I very much appreciate their music, and for reasons that will become obvious as you listen to this old hymn, it totally expresses my desire for Jesus to be "in the center of [my] vessel when it rocks most." 

Listen to the song

Lyrics:

1. Jesus, Savior, pilot me,
   Over life’s tempestuous sea;
   Unknown waves before me roll,
   Hiding rock and treach’rous shoal;
   Chart and compass came from Thee:
   Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

Though the sea be smooth and bright, Sparkling with the stars of night, And my ship's path be ablaze With the light of halcyon days, Still I know my need of Thee; Savior, pilot me.

As a mother stills her child,

Thou canst hush the ocean wild;

Boist’rous waves obey Thy will

When Thou say’st to them, “Be still!”

Wondrous Sov’reign of the sea,

Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

When at last I near the shore,

And the fearful breakers roar

’Twixt me and the peaceful rest,

Then, while leaning on Thy breast,

May I hear Thee say to me,

“Fear not, I will pilot thee.”

(Sort of) Breaking News!

For months I have been sharing on CandyceLand excerpts from Prayers of the Bible: 366 Devotionals To Encourage Your Prayer Life by Gordon Keddie. I was also asked to write an actual book review for Ordained Servant, a publication of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, which I did and submitted a few weeks ago.

If you are interested, click here to see the Review that was posted yesterday on the OS website.