Moment by Moment ~ Hymn

Moment by Moment

Dying with Je­sus, by death reck­oned mine;
Living with Je­sus, a new life di­vine;
Looking to Je­sus till glo­ry doth shine,
Moment by mo­ment, O Lord, I am Thine.

Refrain

Moment by mo­ment I’m kept in His love;
Moment by mo­ment I’ve life from ab­ove;
Looking to Je­sus till glo­ry doth shine;
Moment by mo­ment, O Lord, I am Thine.

Never a tri­al that He is not there,
Never a bur­den that He doth not bear,
Never a sor­row that He doth not share,
Moment by mo­ment, I’m un­der His care.

Refrain

Never a heart­ache, and nev­er a groan,
Never a tear­drop and nev­er a moan;
Never a dan­ger but there on the throne,
Moment by mo­ment He thinks of His own.

Refrain

Never a weak­ness that He doth not feel,
Never a sick­ness that He can­not heal;
Moment by mo­ment, in woe or in weal,
Jesus my Sav­ior, ab­ides with me still.

Refrain

Words: Daniel W. Whittle, 1893.

While I was attending the World’s Fair in Chicago, Henry Varley, a lay preacher from London, said to Major Whittle: “I do not like the hymn ‘I need Thee every hour’ very well, because I need Him every moment of the day. Soon after Major Whittle wrote this sweet hymn…[He] brought the hymn to me in manuscript a little later, saying that he would give me the copyright of both the words and music if I would print for him five hundred copies on fine paper, for distributing among his friends. His daughter, May Whittle, who later became the wife of Will R. Moody, composed the music. I did as Mr. Whittle wished; and I sent the hymn to England, where it was copyrighted on the same day as at Washington.

In England the hymn became very popular. Falling into the hands of the well-known Rev. Andrew Murray, of South Africa, then visiting London, he adopted it as his favorite hymn. A year later Mr. Murray visited Northfield [Massachusetts], and while holding a meeting for men in the church he remarked, If Sankey only knew a hymn which I found in London, and would sing it, he would find that it embraces my entire creed.

I was very anxious to know what hymn it was, and when he had recited it I said to him: Doctor, that hymn was written within five hundred yards of where we are standing.

For years Dr. Murray had his wife sing this hymn in nearly all his meetings. It also became a great favorite in South Africa during the war.

Sankey, pp. 190-91

ht: Cyberhymnal

The Other College Town

We have had some great visits to Oxford in the past so we decided this time around to visit the ‘other’ college town, Cambridge. When our river cruise was over on Sunday March 8th, we flew from Budapest to London. From Heathrow Airport we boarded a National Bus at the central bus terminal that is located outside terminal 3. We had reserved seats on the bus.

I was still being careful about my right foot, elevating it as much as possible while we waited for our bus. I wanted to be able to walk about Cambridge for the next 6 days without pain and swelling.

We were dropped off in central Cambridge and found the best walking route to The Wilde where we had reservations for the next 6 nights.

The lobby was a very nice welcoming space. We settled in and headed out to The Baron of Beef for a meal.

We had breakfast at the Budapest airport and were ready for a good meal this evening.

We were back in the land of Sticky Toffee Pudding, Meat pies, and Fish and Chips.

Satisfied we headed back to the Wilde to get some rest for Monday March 9th, our first full day in Cambridge.

 

Truth for Today #189

Friday May 29th

On Fridays my posts will include verses that stood out in my readings from the Bible during the week. One, two, three or maybe more. If you have a verse/verses that you read during the week and would like to share, leave it/them in the comments and I will add it/them to the post. Let’s continue to dig deep into God’s truth.

The verses that you share are appreciated and so encouraging, I’m thankful for them and for each of you! 

Deuteronomy 4:2

 You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you.

Revelation 22:18-19

 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book,  and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.

From Vera:

“And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” ‭‭

1 Peter‬ ‭5‬:‭10‬-‭11‬ ‭ESV‬‬

From Leonard:

John 14:27

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”

Living Vicariously

Four of ours were able to travel to Kalispell to meet up with many of their cousins over Memorial Day Weekend. There was a special wedding that six of our people were attending on Saturday so the annual ‘Arizona Cousin’s Memorial Weekend’ was moved to Kalispell this year. It was a great accommodation to make.

Their VRBO was on Foys lake close to Kalispell.

Our niece Debbee turned 50 in the middle of May and our DIL Laura was inspired to order a special t-shirt for each of the ‘cousins’ with a special moment in their life with their cousin Debbee. The photo above shows the original cousins with Babushka and Dzeda all together back then and then this photo below of the now.

A re-enactment…

Laura found special photos for all these peeps!

It was a wonderful way to celebrate Deb Deb’s birthday.

It was time for these six to leave for the wedding.

These 6 enjoyed a meal out while the others were at the wedding.

Sunday was a full day for all to be together.

 

 

On Memorial Day it was decided that a trip to Glacier National Park and a hike was in order. Donning their Memorial day t-shirts and coats they set out at 5:30 am!

Another meaningful, encouraging and rewarding Cousin Memorial Weekend in the books!

Ellen with an E, Hodgepodge

Thank you to Joyce From This Side of the Pond for our weekly Hodgepodge questions.

1. Do you like your name?s

I have grown into it. I do not have a middle name on my birth certificate.

Are you named after someone (grandparent, etc)?

No. After my older sisters got the more traditional Russian names, my mother decided I’d get a name none of her friends would choose for their children. Ellen is not a typical Russian name.

In Russian, the name Ellen translates to Эллен (pronounced EL-len) when used for an English name.
However, because Ellen is a variant of the name Helen, the traditional Russian equivalent is Елена (pronounced yeh-LYEH-nah), which is often shortened to the nickname Лена (pronounced LYEH-nah)
Лена is what I was called by our Russian family and friends.
Ellen, Ellen, Watermelon. That is something I remember some classmates in elementary school repeating to try to irritate me. 🙂
I also had to correct people over and over again when they tried to call me Helen. I’d say, NO, Ellen with an E.

If you have children how did you choose their names? 

For our sons we chose strong Biblical names, Joshua and Daniel. For our daughter we chose a name from Greg’s heritage and also a strong name, Katherine.

2.  A piece of red velvet cake, a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a slice of blueberry pie? You can only have one…which will you choose?

I’ll go with red velvet cake.

If you could pick any red, white, or blue dessert other than those listed here, what would you choose? 

Fourth Festivities3

I love a good patriotic berry trifle.

3.  What’s a job you’d like to try for just one day? 

I’d like to try being a detective and solving a murder.

4. Any patriotic decor in your home currently or coming up this summer? 

Yes! And I’m on the lookout for more since this is the 250th year of freedom!

5. It’s the end of May, so let’s exercise our brains. Sum up your month with an acrostic using the word MAY. We can do it!!

M emorials beginning and ending the merry month of May with

A wakening buds and weeds displaying a springtime

Y ard that needs attending to!

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Memorial weekend scattered many of our family to Texas and Montana, far south and far north! The travelers originated from California or Washington State.

Kathy is our oldest sister and turning 80 over Memorial weekend she deserved a celebration all her own. She was in Texas on her day so our sister, Lana, threw a birthday party for her. Our youngest sister, Lana, lives in Texas.  Both my older sisters (Kathy and Vera) were in Texas to attend our youngest niece’s graduation from high school. The graduation ceremony was on Friday. Our youngest niece is the daughter of our youngest brother who also lives in Texas. Are you following? Anyhoo, hats off to Lana for giving Kathy a very special celebration.

In Texas our friend, Heidi, sat in for me for this ‘sister’ photo above since I couldn’t be in Texas for the events this past weekend. Lana, Heidi, Vera and Kathy on Kathy’s 80th birthday.

Kathy’s kids and grands were all in Montana for a wedding. Our kids and Vera’s kids were in Montana, too, for the annual ‘cousins memorial day weekend’. This group of cousins sent their mom, nana, auntie a special photo greeting for her 80th. There was some face timing, too.

Meanwhile back in Texas…

Our niece, Hope’s graduation ceremony.

Graduations, weddings, cousin’s annual gathering, it was a full weekend! Why were we absent? We enjoyed taking care of our Grands while their parents had fun with the cousins in Montana!

Each of these loved ones got a t-shirt with a photo of a special moment in their history with their cousin Debbee. She turned 50 in May and our DIL Laura was inspired to celebrate her at cousins weekend in this special way.

The original ‘band of cousins’.

Whew! That was a very busy weekend. Our Colville kids made it back Monday evening and our ‘sitting’ duty was over. We shared our time watching over our Grands with our DIL Jamie’s dear mom. She got the evening/overnight duty while and we got the daytime duty. I’m sure our Grands had stories to tell about their caretakers and didn’t hesitate to throw us ‘under the bus’. 🙂

And just like that, May is almost over!

Last Day on the Danube

We had our night time shots of the Parliament Building in Budapest and now sailing in during the day time hours we took more photos.

After traveling all night from Vienna we sailed into Budapest on the morning of March 7th, a Saturday.

The Liberty Statue that overlooks Budapest. It is hard to miss.

  • The Monument: The bronze female figure holds a large palm leaf of peace overhead. The statue itself is 14 meters (46 feet) tall, standing on a 26-meter (85-foot) pedestal.
  • History: It was erected in 1947 to commemorate the Soviet Red Army’s liberation of Hungary from Nazi occupation during World War II.
  • Rededication: Following the fall of communism, the Soviet inscriptions and statues around the base were removed. The monument was rededicated to all those who sacrificed their lives for the independence and freedom of Hungary.

On this day we were signed up for an excursion to the Fisherman’s Bastion and Castle but my right foot swelled up and was painful so we opted to stay on the boat with my feet elevated. We thought that I might have a stress fracture. With ice and elevation the swelling went down.

On this evening we enjoyed Hungarian Folklore performances on board.

Our shuttle to the airport in Budapest for our flight to London left the boat at 8am Sunday March 8th. A shout out to the Amawaterways added service to the airport. Our luggage was handled for us. The agent who went with us on the bus guided us to the correct check-in desk and then showed us the way to go for security. We were thankful for this service. These extras in service really mean a lot when you are traveling in foreign countries.

Our flight to Heathrow airport was smooth and easy. My next travel posts will be about our days in Cambridge, England.

Memorial Day 2026

Blades of grass and pure white stones
Shelter those who’ve come and gone.
Just below the emerald sod
Are those who reached the arms of God.
~
Buried here with dignity
Endless rows for all to see,
Freedom’s seeds in sorrow sown,
‘Neath blades of grass and pure white stones.
~
Blades of grass and pure white stones
Cover those who left their homes
To rest in fields here, side by side,
Lest we forget their sacrifice.
~
Buried here with dignity
Endless rows for all to see,
Freedom’s seeds in sorrow sown,
‘Neath blades of grass and pure white stones.
~
Written by Lowell Alexander, Orrin Hatch, and Philip Naish.
Hope you have a meaningful Memorial Day.

Ten Thousand Times Ten Thousand ~ Hymn

Ten Thousand Times Ten Thousand

Ten thou­sand times ten thou­sand
In spark­ling rai­ment bright,
The ar­mies of the ran­somed saints
Throng up the steeps of light;
’Tis fin­ished, all is fin­ished,
Their fight with death and sin;
Fling op­en wide the gold­en gates,
And let the vic­tors in.

What rush of al­le­lu­ias
Fills all the earth and sky!
What ring­ing of a thou­sand harps
Bespeaks the tri­umph nigh!
O day, for which cre­ation
And all its tribes were made;
O joy, for all its for­mer woes
A thou­sand­fold re­paid!

O then what rap­tured greet­ings
On Ca­naan’s hap­py shore;
What knit­ting sev­ered friend­ships up,
Where part­ings are no more!
Then eyes with joy shall spar­kle,
That brimmed with tears of late;
Orphans no long­er fa­ther­less,
Nor wi­dows de­so­late.

Bring near Thy great sal­va­tion,
Thou Lamb for sin­ners slain;
Fill up the roll of Thine elect,
Then take Thy pow­er, and reign;
Appear, De­sire of na­tions,
Thine ex­iles long for home;
Show in the heav’n Thy pro­mised sign;
Thou Prince and Sav­ior, come.

Words: Henry Alford, 1867.

Back to the Beach

Staying in Huntington Beach with my sister, Vera, gives us the best chance to see the Pacific Ocean again. It had been a while since we enjoyed the sea air and the waves. Vera dropped us off at the pier and went on to an appointment and would pick us up afterwards. She lives about 5 miles from the ocean.

Classic morning June gloom even though this was May.

The surfers and the fishermen were gathered next to the pier and on the pier. Only experienced surfers were closer to the pier pilings or that is what the loud speaker on the pier announced with forcefulness!

There is some construction on the pier. A new restaurant is going in about midway on the pier.

Watching wave after wave never gets old.

Looking north toward Newport Beach.

Looking south toward Bolsa Chica.

It was breezy but we didn’t need a coat.

Duke Kahanamoku, three time Olympic gold medalist swimmer, public servant, goodwill ambassador of the State of Hawaii, and considered by many to be the father of modern surfing. In the early 1920’s, the Duke surfed under Huntington’s Pier. In his 70’s, he returned to Huntington Beach to help promote the U.S. Surfboard Championships. For many years the championships were dedicated in honor of Duke’s contributions to the sport of surfing. He will long be remembered for his principles of fair play, good sportsmanship and his gracious aloha spirit.

Main Street in Huntington Beach ends (or begins) at Pacific Coast Highway. We crossed the highway and wandered down Main street checking out some shops. I remembered Vera’s son in law mentioned a new doughnut shop we shouldn’t miss on PCH (Pacific Coast Highway). We walked back to the statue and turned left and found Parlor Doughnuts.

 

This is a franchise and if you are in Huntington Beach or another location where they have a shop, we recommend this treat to you. The dough was lovely and the flavors good.

Vera found us on Main street and she parked the car and we decided to have breakfast together on Main Street at the Sugar Shack Cafe before heading back home.

I’m adding my photos of the Pacific from our plane ride home here, too.

Micah 7:18-19

Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of your inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love. He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. 

Truth for Today #188

Friday May 22nd

On Fridays my posts will include verses that stood out in my readings from the Bible during the week. One, two, three or maybe more. If you have a verse/verses that you read during the week and would like to share, leave it/them in the comments and I will add it/them to the post. Let’s continue to dig deep into God’s truth.

The verses that you share are appreciated and so encouraging, I’m thankful for them and for each of you! 

Isaiah 45:22 ~Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.

Isaiah 12:2 ~ Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.

Psalm 56:3-4 ~ When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me?

Joshua 1:9 ~ Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

From Vera:

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭58‬:‭11‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.” ‭‭

From Karen:

Not with eye service, as menpleasers: but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.

Ephesians 6:6 KJV