Be Still My Soul: a place to be still and know God
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
God is Love
God Is Love
Earth, with her ten thousand flow’rs,
Air, with all its beams and show’rs,
Heaven’s infinite expanse,
Sea’s resplendent countenance—
All around and all above
Bear this record: God is love. Sounds among the vales and hills,
In the woods and by the rills,
Of the breeze and of the bird,
By the gentle murmur stirred—
Sacred songs, beneath, above,
Have one chorus: God is love.
All the hopes that sweetly start
From the fountain of the heart,
All the bliss that ever comes
To our earthly human homes,
All the voices from above
Sweetly whisper: God is love.
Text: Thomas R. Taylor, 1807–1835
Music: Thomas C. Griggs, 1845–1903
"But I always think that the best way to know God is to love many things."
~Vincent van Gogh,
Dear Theo: An Autobiography of Vincent van Gogh, 1937
"Love is the condition in which the happiness of another person
is essential to your own."
~Robert Heinlein
Sunday, November 8, 2009
the joy of service
ALEX NOBLE:
If I have been of service, if I have glimpsed more of the
nature and essence of ultimate good, if I am inspired to
reach wider horizons of thought and action, if I am at
peace with myself, it has been a successful day.
Have I Done Any Good?
Have I done any good in the world today?
Have I helped anyone in need?
Have I cheered up the sad and made someone feel glad?
If not, I have failed indeed.
Has anyone’s burden been lighter today
Because I was willing to share?
Have the sick and the weary been helped on their way?
When they needed my help was I there?
Then wake up and do something more
Than dream of your mansion above.
Doing good is a pleasure, a joy beyond measure,
A blessing of duty and love.There are chances for work all around just now,
Opportunities right in our way.
Do not let them pass by, saying, “Sometime I’ll try,”
But go and do something today.
’Tis noble of man to work and to give;
Love’s labor has merit alone.
Only he who does something helps others to live.
To God each good work will be known.Text and music: Will L. Thompson, 1847–1909, alt.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Now Let Us Rejoice
Now let us rejoice in the day of salvation.
No longer as strangers on earth need we roam.
Good tidings are sounding to us and each nation,
And shortly the hour of redemption will come,
When all that was promised the Saints will be given,
And none will molest them from morn until ev'n,
And earth will appear as the Garden of Eden,
And Jesus will say to all Israel, "Come home."
We'll love one another and never dissemble
But cease to do evil and ever be one.
And when the ungodly are fearing and tremble,
We'll watch for the day when the Savior will come,
When all that was promised the Saints will be given,
And none will molest them from morn until ev'n,
And earth will appear as the Garden of Eden,
And Jesus will say to all Israel, "Come home."
In faith we'll rely on the arm of Jehovah
To guide thru these last days of trouble and gloom,
And after the scourges and harvest are over,
We'll rise with the just when the Savior doth come.
Then all that was promised the Saints will be given,
And they will be crown'd with the angels of heav'n,
And earth will appear as the Garden of Eden,
And Christ and his people will ever be one.
Text: William W. Phelps
| “Let my name stand among those who are willing to bear ridicule and reproach for the truth's sake, and so earn some right to rejoice when the victory is won.” | |
Oh let us rejoice, for the Lord has died for us, that we may be redeemed, and live in love and joy. |
Sunday, October 25, 2009
A Brighter dawn is Breaking
A brighter dawn is breaking,
And earth with praise is waking;
For Thou, O King, most highest,
The power of death defiest.
And Thou hast come victorious,
With risen body glorious,
Who now forever livest,
And life abundant givest.
O free the world from blindness,
And fill the world with kindness,
Give sinners resurrection,
Bring striving to perfection.
In sickness give us healing,
In doubt Thy clear revealing,
That praise to Thee be given
In earth as in Thy Heaven.
I pray that the brightness of the Son
will shine forth in my life,
that I can be the kind of daughter/sister/woman
He will be proud of.
“Better keep yourself clean and bright. You are the window through which you must see the world.”
Sunday, October 18, 2009
New Eyes
"Living is being born slowly.
It would be a little too easy if we could borrow ready-made souls."
~Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
All things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful:
The Lord God made them all.
Each little flower that opens,
Each little bird that sings,
He made their glowing colors,
He made their tiny wings.
The purple headed mountains,
The river running by,
The sunset and the morning
That brightens up the sky.
The cold wind in the winter,
The pleasant summer sun,
The ripe fruits in the garden,
He made them every one.
The tall trees in the greenwood,
The meadows where we play,
The rushes by the water,
To gather every day.
He gave us eyes to see them,
And lips that we might tell
How great is God Almighty,
Who has made all things well.
"Upturned toward the sun, eyes closed.
That color and warmth I see and feel is the soul on fire. "
~Jeb Dickerson
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Instruments in God's Hands
| “We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls.” | |
If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour. Savior, may I learn to love thee, Walk the path that thou hast shown, Pause to help and lift another, Finding strength beyond my own. Savior, may I learn to love thee- Lord, I would follow thee. Who am I to judge another When I walk imperfectly? In the quiet heart is hidden Sorrow that the eye can't see. Who am I to judge another? Lord, I would follow thee. I would be my brother's keeper; I would learn the healer's art. To the wounded and the weary I would show a gentle heart. I would be my brother's keeper- Lord, I would follow thee. Savior, may I love my brother As I know thou lovest me, Find in thee my strength, my beacon, For thy servant I would be. Savior, may I love my brother- Lord, I would follow thee. Text: Susan Evans McCloud |
Monday, October 5, 2009
D&C 93: 2, 9, 28
And that I am the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world;
• • •
The light and the Redeemer of the world; the Spirit of truth, who came into the world, because the world was made by him, and in him was the life of men and the light of men.
• • •
He that keepeth his commandments receiveth truth and light, until he is glorified in truth and knoweth all things.
I know that my Redeemer lives.
What comfort this sweet message gives.
He lives, He lives who once was dead.
He lives.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
peace...
Fill Thou My Life
Fill Thou my life, O Lord my God, Praise in the common words I speak, Fill every part of me with praise; So shall each fear, each fret, each care
Peace is more than a lofty ideal. It is a practical principle that, with conscious effort, can become a normal part of our lives as we deal with matters both large and small.
Words: Horatius Bonar
Music: Gesangbuch der Herzogl
In every part with praise,
That my whole being may proclaim
Thy being and Thy ways.
Not for the lip of praise alone,
Nor e’en the praising heart
I ask, but for a life made up
Of praise in every part!
Life’s common looks and tones,
In fellowship in hearth and board
With my belovèd ones;
Not in the temple crowd alone
Where holy voices chime,
But in the silent paths of earth,
The quiet rooms of time.
Let all my being speak
Of Thee and of Thy love, O Lord,
Poor though I be, and weak.
So shalt Thou, Lord, from me, e’en me,
Receive the glory due;
And so shall I begin on earth
The song forever new.
Be turned into a song,
And every winding of the way
The echo shall prolong;
So shall no part of day or night
From sacredness be free;
But all my life, in every step
Be fellowship with Thee.
Joseph B. Wirthlin, Ensign, May 1991, 36–38
"Fear not to do good, my sons, for whatsoever ye sow, that shall ye also reap; therefore, if ye sow good ye shall also reap good for your reward.
"Therefore, fear not, little flock; do good; let earth and hell combine against you, for if ye are built upon my rock, they cannot prevail.
"Behold, I do not condemn you; go your ways and sin no more; perform with soberness the work which I have commanded you.
"Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.
"Behold the wounds which pierced my side, and also the prints of the nails in my hands and feet; be faithful, keep my commandments, and ye shall inherit the kingdom of heaven"
(D&C 6:33–37).
Sunday, July 5, 2009
the dark and the light, light will prevail
| “When you have come to the edge Of all light that you know And are about to drop off into the darkness Of the unknown, Faith is knowing One of two things will happen: There will be something solid to stand on or You will be taught to fly” | ||||||
~unknown source
| ||||||
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Another Beginning
My heart spoke to her.
Go into the good night, dear one.
It is done.
So many arms wait to embrace you
through your diaphanous veil of existence.
It is time.
Her passage,
a sanctified resolution,
of a sacred journey.
She goes into a different light.
Complete,
though unceasing.
She is gone,
and she is here.
Replete with
joy and tranquility.
Death teaches that we do not experience a fulness of joy in mortality
and that everlasting joy can be achieved only with the assistance of the Master.
Merrill J. Bateman, Ensign, May 1995, 13–14
Death is a necessary component of our eternal existence.
No one knows when it will come, but it is essential to God's great plan of happiness.
Russell M. Nelson, Liahona, May 2005, 16–18; or Ensign, May 2005, 16–18
Death, though bitter to observe, is not the end, but is, rather,
only another graduation
from which we go on to a better life.
Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, May 1988, 65–68
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