A Classic and a Reminder

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul. 

    It is well, with my soul,

    It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

Proverbs 12:10 (a)

Whoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast. ~ Proverbs 12:10

I am a little bit of a basket-case this morning and I am working in my office alone, with no Mr. Darcy. He is currently at the vet getting x-rays and measurements for hip surgery next week. I dropped him off this morning and as they took him back, he cheerfully trotted with the vet tech and looked back at me like he was asking if I was coming with him. It's a good thing no one at the front desk talked to me, since I wouldn't have been able to talk.

The verse above from Proverbs has comforted me this morning as we prep for a difficult few weeks ahead.

Sunday in Jerusalem

Luke 24:1-12; John 20: the Tomb is empty and Jesus is risen, just like He said He would!

The Garden of the tomb is absolutely beautiful.

the empty tomb

 
Revelation 21:4-5: "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." And He who was seated on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new."

Saturday in Jerusalem

Luke 23:56; Matthew 27:62-66: The people celebrate the Passover as commanded in Scripture. A guard of Roman soldiers is placed at the entrance of tomb until the third day is passed, lest Jesus' body be stolen.

A dark quiet. Dreams dashed. Confusion. Mourning. An empty cross. A tomb holding the body of the Son of God.

Everything they knew about God and Jesus must have been in question. Did they have the faith to trust that He would return like He said He would?

What would you have been thinking on that Saturday?

Friday in Jerusalem

Luke 22:66 to 23:25: Jesus before the chief priests and scribes at the Court of Caiaphas; then taken before Pilot (possibly at or near the Antonia Fortress on the north side of the Temple Mount);

The Antonia Fortress is in the middle of the photo, on the north side of the Temple

 then taken before Herod (possibly at Herod's Palace, south of the Jaffa Gate);

The Jaffa Gate today, the main entrance to the Old City

 then sent back to Pilot where He is finally condemned to death and beaten by the Roman guards.

There is no sin that is not covered by the blood of Him Who died for me.

a room at the historical site of the Antonia Fortress, which today is about 20 feet underground; possible location where Jesus was beaten by the Roman soldiers

Luke 23:26-49: Jesus carries the cross to Golgotha and is crucified and dies, taking on the full wrath of God in our stead

Look for the eyes of the skull just to the right of the middle of the photo

Luke 23:50-56: Jesus' body is taken down from the cross, wrapped in a linen shroud, and laid in a stone tomb

the entrance to the tomb is in the top right of the photo

Thursday in Jerusalem

Luke 22: 7-38: The Upper Room, Passover meal, the First Communion, Washing the Disciples' Feet

walking the steps up to the place of the historical Upper Room

Luke 22:39-53: The Garden of Gethsemane

Matthew 26:36-46 (Gethsemane means "olive oil press"; He was crushed for our iniquities)

Luke 22:54-62: Peter denies Jesus in the courtyard of Caiaphas'

Caiaphas' house (court)

Luke 22:63-65: Jesus is held overnight at the court of the High Priest and mocked and beaten

prisoners were lowered by rope into the dungeon

Jesus was kept down in this dungeon overnight after He was beaten and mocked

Thoughts on vocation and calling

I think there are a couple types of people when it comes to the category of vocation and calling:

A) Those who have clear vision as well as gifting to a specific task.
B) Then there are those who God seems to let pick their own course and they just do it, because they are either good at it and it makes good money or it comes easy to them or all three.
C) The third category are those who seem to only get one step at a time in knowledge of what they are to do next and their only clear direction is to follow God and trust him with just that next step.

I would put myself somewhere between B and C. I like business and it comes fairly easy to me and I am successful in it, but I have to trust God with the big picture part of it, because I'm still not sure what His plans are for me in it.

I would put a couple close family members in category A. They had/have a specific and clear calling, they were/are naturally gifted at it, had/have the passion for it, and saw/see themselves in that future very clearly.

All three categories require trust and humility:

B - because it's easy to pick the well traveled path and avoid the difficult ones, and miss God's urging to do harder things (David (if I may be so bold as to use biblical examples to show my point)).
C - because you can't see your next step and need to rely on Him for that (Joseph).
A - because God can, at one or two or more points, ask you to lay those clear plans on the altar (Abraham).

The comforting thing is this: with the A or B or C person, if there is a willingness to humbly follow him in trust, ultimately you will end up where God called you to, but in ways far beyond what you could think or imagine.

Something to challenge you with.

Observations on a recent trip

Laptop: check
iPad / Kindle / Nook: check
iPod: check
Smartphone 1 (work): check
Smartphone 2 (personal): check

Question: have we really increased productivity by introducing the above as necessary for work and / or travel?