Grace Greater Than Our Sin ~ Hymn

Grace Greater Than Our Sin

Marvelous grace of our loving Lord,
Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt!
Yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured,
There where the blood of the Lamb was spilled.

Refrain

Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that is greater than all our sin.

Sin and despair, like the sea waves cold,
Threaten the soul with infinite loss;
Grace that is greater, yes, grace untold,
Points to the refuge, the mighty cross.

Refrain

Dark is the stain that we cannot hide.
What can avail to wash it away?
Look! There is flowing a crimson tide,
Brighter than snow you may be today.

Refrain

Marvelous, infinite, matchless grace,
Freely bestowed on all who believe!
You that are longing to see His face,
Will you this moment His grace receive?

Refrain

Words: Julia H. Johnston, 1911.

Peonies

This bush is a white Peony. It’s the largest of our Peonies.

These Peony bushes above are the ones we will need to transplant. The one on the left is a pink Peony. All the others are the deep red ones. The deep red ones bloom first.

By the time we return to our home these white Peonies will be bursting forth in all their glory.

We are sojourning with our Coast Kids for a few days where I can upload as many photos as I want. I’m in uploading heaven.

We have already enjoyed hugs from our daughter and her husband who we hadn’t seen since Christmas. It is good to be together. Our oldest son and DIL are hosting us and we were with them last on Mother’s Day weekend. It was clear sailing all the way to the Steven’s Pass in the Cascade Mountain range where we finally encountered rain.

A Decade Ago…

Since I’m in that part of the month when our broadband isn’t strong enough to upload photos, I found these photos I took at the Seattle Japanese Garden in 2010. A decade ago when it was safe to travel all about the Seattle area. The area of Seattle on Capitol Hill that has been taken over by Antifa is a short distance from the Arboretum and the Japanese Gardens. I’m praying that there will be law and order again. In the meantime we wait and pray.

These quotes popped up in my Facebook Feed from years past…

Salvation is not a reward for the righteous but a gift to the guilty. -Steven Lawson (7 years ago)

Convicting thought from Jonathan Alexander during Sunday’s sermon...Am I educated in God’s Word beyond my obedience? Be a doer, not a poser! (6 years ago)

“You don’t have to be dead to move toward the light!”
I’ll add this verse to go with it…Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (3 years ago)

“You can get glad in the same shoes you get mad in.” (3 years ago)

And 1 year ago…
A little of this world will satisfy one who is strong in grace,
much will not satisfy one who is weak in grace,
nothing will satisfy one who is void of grace.
~Thomas Brooks

Have a great weekend everyone!

Irises

We have one Iris bush and it’s always a treat when it blooms. When the plant is spent this year we will try our hand at digging it up and putting it in another spot where it will be enjoyed more. Right now it’s position is between our garage and new shop. We also have 4 Peonies to move.

Wednesday I finished up JJ’s 1st year Memory book and then went out to mow the front and back. When we were done with our outdoor work we decided on enjoying a meal out at Backyard Barbecue in Kettle Falls. They opened up to indoor seating today and wanted to support them during this hard time. The food was delicious.

Thank you dear blogging friends and others who check in and wonder how we are all doing during this time. You remain a good normal constant in our lives right now when the world seems to be turning upside down. Keep shining God’s light in these dark times. God is still in control and that’s not to say things will be easy on us but we will make it through.

Looking Up Hodgepodge

1. Last thing you said yes to? Did you regret it?

I said yes to watching our little grandson Jaymison on Tuesday morning. No regrets at all. It’s always fun even though I come home tired.

2. No big deal, no contest, no dice, no hard feelings, no ifs ands or buts, no kidding, no offense, no pain no gain, no way…choose one and tell us how it applies to your life currently.

No offense but you are wrong! What most of my comments would be on a lot of facebook and instagram posts lately if I really thought it would matter to make a comment. I have only commented when I have felt I have a voice in someone’s life and the post does not line up with the gospel of Jesus Christ and the shared faith I thought we had together…

3. Thursday June 11th is National Making Life Beautiful Day…in this strange season how are you adding beauty to your days/life?

I’m in the process of completing a scrapbook for Jaymison’s first year of life. Getting pages accomplished and seeing all that has happened in his life in just one year has added beauty and smiles to my days. I have his 1 year pages to do and I’m all finished.

4. According to an article found here, these six foods taste better in June than at any other time of the year-strawberries, asparagus, peas, peaches, beets, and garlic. How many of these have you tasted so far this month? Anything on the list you’d say ‘no thank you’ to trying? Rearrange the list starting with your favorite (1) to your least favorite (6).

I’ve only tasted strawberries and garlic this month…but the month is young. I wouldn’t say no to anything on this list. This Ice Cream cake has strawberries in it and no garlic. 🙂 Recipe on my blog yesterday.

Strawberries 2. beets 3. garlic 4. peaches 5. asparagus 6. peas

5. Describe your current mood in three words.

Content but bewildered.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Back to question 5 and my response. I’m bewildered and distressed by dear friends who seem to have left their faith for rubbish. I went back and forth from Galatians where Paul says who has bewitched you foolish Galatians…and this.

The Light of the Gospel (2 Corinthians 4)

4 Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. ²But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. ³And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. ⁴In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. ⁵For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. ⁶For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

I’m looking up and in the Word of God (The Bible) to get my bearings…

Thank you to Joyce for coming up with the questions for Hodgepodge!

Strawberry Ice Cream Cake

We had the kids over for dinner on Monday night and I served this Ice cream cake that I made the night before. It has a few steps but is pretty easy to make. It’s a dessert you can make a few days ahead. I think it would easily serve 10-12 people. I’ll give you the link so you can see how much prettier you can make it look with whip cream and fresh strawberries on top. I only used a large carton of good Strawberry Ice Cream. My carton was not 1/2 gallon so my version is not as tall as the showstopper…

I used vanilla wafers and regular Strawberry Ice Cream.

To see the showstopper version of this cake and get the recipe click below!

You can find the recipe here.

It’s called Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Cake. I did not think it was overly sweet and we all enjoyed it. I would make it again.

June Spring Walkabout…

Our red Peonies are the first to burst forth in all their splendor. We have 5 bushes.

These sweet violas? seeded themselves in this planter. They pop up all over our property and I’m happy to see them.

This is a dwarf lilac that is deer resistant. I was weeding around it and it gives off those wonderful lilac scents!

You can see the shop in the background and we’re happy to say it is ready for it’s metal roof.

Our red peonies are fading. Our pink and white peonies are still ready to bloom. These were all the photos I was able to upload.

Some kind of wild rose?

What a wonderful time we had meeting as a church body again in our building instead of online. We are still having online services for those who are in risky health categories and who are still uncomfortable with meeting together. The singing was so robust and our pastor was on fire! It was good to be together again.

Our views on the way to church in the photo above and the views after church below.

We had some good periods of rain which means I will not need to water for a couple days. I welcome that.

Quotes of the day from the sermon today:

The only cure for sin is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

You cannot educate sin out of people.

We need to be reconciled to God in order to be reconciled to man.

Additional notes from gracechurch.org

Jesus is Lord and Savior. Romans 10:9 says, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved.” Even though God’s justice demands death for sin, His love has provided a Savior who paid the penalty and died for sinners (1 Peter3:18). Christ’s death satisfied the demands of God’s justice, and Christ’s perfect life satisfied the demands of God’s holiness(2 Corinthians 5:21), thereby enabling Him to forgive and save those who place their faith in Him (Romans 3:26).

1 Peter 3:18 ~ ¹⁸For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit;

2 Corinthians 5:21 ~ ²¹He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Romans 3:23-26 ~ ²³for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, ²⁵whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. ²⁶It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Is God calling you? Confess your sins and accept His forgiveness and new life in Him.

I hope your faith is in the One who can save you and give you a future with Him in Heaven.

Blest is He Who Loves God’s Precepts ~ Hymn

Blest is he who loves God’s precepts,
Who from sin restrains his feet,
He who will not stand with sinners,
He who shuns the scorners’ seat.

Blest is he who makes the statutes
Of the Lord his chief delight,
In God’s law, divinely perfect,
Meditating day and night.

He is like a tree well planted
By the flowing river’s side,
Ever green of leaf and fruitful:
Thus shall all his works abide.

Like the driven chaff the wicked
Shall be swept from off the land
With the just they shall not gather,
Nor shall in the judgment stand.

Well the Lord will guard the righteous,
For their way to Him is known;
But the way of evildoers
Shall by Him be overthrown.

In the Morning…

Psalm 5 ~ NASB

Prayer for Protection from the Wicked.

5 Give ear to my words, O Lord,
Consider my groaning.
²Heed the sound of my cry for help, my King and my God,
For to You I pray.
³In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice;
In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch.

⁴For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness;
No evil dwells with You.
⁵The boastful shall not stand before Your eyes;
You hate all who do iniquity.
⁶You destroy those who speak falsehood;
The Lord abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit.
⁷But as for me, by Your abundant lovingkindness I will enter Your house,
At Your holy temple I will bow in reverence for You.

⁸O Lord, lead me in Your righteousness because of my foes;
Make Your way straight before me.
⁹There is nothing reliable in what they say;
Their inward part is destruction itself.
Their throat is an open grave;
They flatter with their tongue.
¹⁰Hold them guilty, O God;
By their own devices let them fall!
In the multitude of their transgressions thrust them out,
For they are rebellious against You.

¹¹But let all who take refuge in You be glad,
Let them ever sing for joy;
And may You shelter them,
That those who love Your name may exult in You.
¹²For it is You who blesses the righteous man, O Lord,
You surround him with favor as with a shield.

Friday Fete

It’s not a hummingbird but it flies like one. What kind of bug is this?

Turkeys continue to visit here and there.

Fun to catch the fan.

This little guy is probably going to have a growth spurt. He’s eating everything in sight.

Addy is enjoying her bicycle and she got a bell and handle streamers this week. I think she likes them and riding with her new accessories!

I’m limiting social media at present. Many mean well but there is just too much noise. I need to protect my head and heart. I haven’t stopped praying. I’m reading my Bible which is the best Truth I can digest right now. The only dialogues I’ll participate in are face to face, one on one conversations. That way I can see and hear the tone of the conversation instead of trying to guess what is being communicated. I do have phone conversations with my “Coast” kids since I can’t see them face to face right now.

My morning readings this month are Psalm 19, Psalm 119, The Gospel of Luke and then I read a chapter in Proverbs that corresponds with the day. I finish up with a good dose of Spurgeon. Thursday was the 4th so I read Proverbs 4. These verses stood out to me;

Proverbs 4:13-18 (ESV)

Keep hold of instruction; do not let go;
    guard her, for she is your life.
¹⁴Do not enter the path of the wicked,
    and do not walk in the way of the evil.
¹⁵Avoid it; do not go on it;
    turn away from it and pass on.
¹⁶For they cannot sleep unless they have done wrong;
    they are robbed of sleep unless they have made someone stumble.
¹⁷For they eat the bread of wickedness
    and drink the wine of violence.
¹⁸But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn,
    which shines brighter and brighter until full day.

Hope you all have a good Friday and great weekend in your corner of the world.

The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b.

To honor and encourage

Grace Greater Than Our Sin ~ Hymn