Like A White Lamb

March 23, 2018 / Following Him / 20 Comments

It is week 112 of Three Line Tales, and here is the photo prompt and my response. 🙂 If you’d like to participate, just click the link! 😉

photo by Sam Carter via Unsplash

Jesus was led to die like a white Lamb to the slaughter

Never once did The Christ on this quest falter

God could then call all Who believe in Him His sons and daughters

What Doesn’t Blow You Down Makes You Stronger

February 19, 2018February 16, 2018 / Following Him / 36 Comments

Special thanks to Daily Thankful, Adrianna, and Angela (click to read their fantastic posts) for unknowingly helping to inspire the words in this image and in the post below – seems that we are on the same wavelength. ❤

For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. (Jeremiah 17:8 KJV)

“He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers.” Psalm 1:3 (NASB)

Grab a cup of tea or hot chocolate or coconut water or whatever beverage you enjoy sipping on while reading long articles because this is going to end up being a long one. 😅

Last fall, I put some apple seeds that I saved out of an apple into some dirt to allow it to naturally go through the winter. I also put some in the refrigerator last November and again in January. I took them out briefly for the photo below. The seeds are wrapped in a damp paper towel which I placed in a Ziploc bag so that they wouldn’t dry out.

This process is known as stratification. “In horticulture, stratification is the process of pretreating seeds to simulate natural conditions that a seed must endure before germination. Many seed species have an embryonic dormancy phase, and generally will not sprout until this dormancy is broken.” — Wikipedia

When it comes to apple seeds, it usually takes, according to the linked article, 70 to 80 days. However, it looks like they can sprout too soon. I say that because one of the little apple trees I planted to be stratified this winter sprung up too early instead of waiting for spring like it was supposed to. The silly thing. Anyway.

Johnny Appleseed the Second, in his pig pot under the plant light

I brought that one inside and left the rest to be good little seeds and go through the rest of stratification. The little tree (whose name is Johnny Appleseed the Second, by the way – because I name everything – and this was my dad’s suggestion for a name) is now about three inches tall; I didn’t expect it to survive because it sprouted at the wrong time. But it did. So I put it under my plant light with my citronella plant, garlic, rubber plant, daffodil, Aloe Vera, Venus flytrap, pitcher plant, tomatoes, peppers, lemon trees, Mandarin orange saplings, and one other citrus tree that I am unsure of what it is. I think I’ve turned our “Arts and Crafts room” into a nursery at this point. 😅 Oh, I’m digressing. Getting back on topic…

So far, Johnny Appleseed the Second looks healthy. However, since Johnny Appleseed the Second will be indoors until spring, I wanted to make sure I was taking proper care of him. The ones I had last year (that came up in the spring like good little seeds) nature took care of, except for the occasional watering, so that they would be used to being outdoors. I thought I remembered this, and so researched it:

“Wind greatly affects plants throughout their growth. When plants are seedlings, slight breezes help them grow more sturdy. ” — Gardening FAQ

Turns out I remembered correctly. Thus, if the little guy is constantly protected from the wind and then planted outside this spring, his trunk will be weak and the wind could break him.

Therefore, staking a plant or blocking the wind from reaching a plant can actually do more harm than good in the long run, as long as the wind is not storm-strength. Every other day or so, I blow on Johnny Appleseed the Second, trying to mimic wind to make him stronger.

Tree trunk silhouette at sunset

And then I realized… just like I am doing for little Johnny Appleseed the Second, God allows us to go through trials that make us bend and knocks us around so that we get stronger in Him. He allows the wind to blow, and with it, strengthens us so we don’t break when the stronger storms come later.

In conclusion to this long-winded (sorry bad pun) post: We’re like apple trees! 🍎 🍏 Okay, okay: Our Father in Heaven allows turbulence to strengthen His children because He loves them. ❤

This poem by Lillian E. Barr was in Streams In The Desert in the January 16th devotional; it seems relevant here. I hope you enjoy her poem as much as I did:

THE TREE GOD PLANTS

The wind that blows can never kill
The tree God plants;
It bloweth east, it bloweth west,
The tender leaves have little rest,
But any wind that blows is best;
The tree God plants
Strikes deeper root, grows higher still,
Spreads wider boughs, for God’s good will
Meets all its wants.

There is no frost hath power to blight
The tree God shields;
The roots are warm beneath soft snows,
And when Spring comes it surely knows,
And every bud to blossom grows.
The tree God shields
Grows on apace by day and night,
Till sweet to taste and fair to sight
Its fruit it yields.

There is no storm hath power to blast
The tree God knows;
No thunderbolt, nor beating rain,
Nor lightning flash, nor hurricane
When they are spent it doth remain.
The tree God knows
Through every tempest standeth fast,
And from its first day to its last
Still, fairer grows.

If in the soul’s still garden-place
A seed God sows
A little seed it soon will grow,
And far and near all men will know
For heavenly lands, he bids it blow.
A seed God sows,
And up it springs by day and night;
Through life, through death, it groweth right;
Forever grows.

Jesus Will Be With Me

February 9, 2018September 13, 2022 / Following Him / 84 Comments

When I go through water’s deep
Jesus will be with me

When billowing waves overtake
With me, He will still be

When at night I fall fast asleep,
Jesus will be with me

And when in the morning I wake
With me, He will still be

For without Him I would drown
In brutal waters deep

If He were not with me, I know
Water would overtake

For without Him, when I lay me down
Fears would keep me from sleep

If He were not with me, from sleep’s hold
I would not ever wake

Thank you for always being there, Jesus! ❤

When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown… (Isaiah 43:2 NLT)

Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all Thy waves and Thy billows are gone over me. Yet the LORD will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life. (Psalm 42:7-8 KJV)

In peace I will both lie down and sleep, For You alone, O LORD, make me to dwell in safety. (Psalm 4:8 NASB)

On an unrelated note, while catching up on responding to all of your wonderful comments, it only let me go back for four days. 😲 If you left a comment or responded to me before that, I am so sorry that I didn’t reply – I didn’t know that the notifications would only let me go back that far and I don’t know how to check for comments before that time. If there is a comment that I missed, please let me know and I’ll come respond! ❤

Edited to add: If you would like to hear this poem sung, Hayley did a wonderful job – click here to check it out!

Review: Evidence Not Seen

January 30, 2018 / Following Him / 12 Comments

Evidence Not Seen: A Woman’s Miraculous Faith in the Jungles of World War II by Darlene Deibler Rose
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1.)

Darlene Deibler and her husband went to New Guinea as missionaries, and at first, all was well. But then World War Two came along and she found herself separated from her husband and a prisoner of war. This book is about how Jesus sustained her during those hard times. Even after all she went through in the course of the book, she never lost her faith. She was quite an amazing women of God!

“Lord, I believe all that the Bible says. I do walk by faith and not by sight. I do not need to feel You near, because Your Word says You will never leave me or forsake me. Lord, I confirm my faith; I believe.” – Darlene

A friend gave this book to me Christmas 2016, and I’ve been slowly reading it since the beginning of 2017. Even though it took me a while to finish, it wasn’t because of the lack of interest. I didn’t want to rush through the book too fast and miss something because there were many times I needed to stop and mull over the points she made or how God was working in her life and the lives of others. (Though I ended up reading much faster at the end of December when I first started to get sick; it was such an encouragement during that time, though I almost regret reading the end so fast because now it’s a giant blur. 😆)

This book was incredible and I highly recommend it. 🙂

View all my reviews

In Your Strong Wing’s Shadow

January 26, 2018January 27, 2018 / Following Him / 30 Comments

Wildflower at my grandma’s

I’m to fear no evil in this world,
Since You make it all Your footstool;
I await the day when Your plans are unfurled,
And You, King of Kings, on Your throne forever, rule.

It’s an uphill battle and I’m losing ground,
Hide me in Your strong wing’s shadow
So that I may be safe and sound.
Hug me and never let me go!

Hold me in Your loving arms,
Protect me, even if it is from me.
Don’t let anyone bring my soul harm,
But if trials come, let it bring glory to Thee.

As long as You, my Lord, are walking beside me,
I shall try my best to fearlessly follow You;
Please, Jesus my Savior, abide in me,
So that Your will I may do!

And David himself saith in the book of Psalms (Grace’s note: Psalm 110:1), “The LORD said unto my Lord, ‘Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool.’ ” Luke 20:42 – 43

Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in Thee: yea, in the shadow of Thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast. (Psalm 57:1)

Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of Thy wings… (Psalm 17:8)

Because Thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of Thy wings will I rejoice. (Psalm 63:7)

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28)

If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. (John 15:7)

Another poem I found in my drafts that I never posted. This one from July of last year. 🙂 And so is the photo. That was taken with my old camera if you can believe that. 😅

I Trust In You

January 22, 2018 / Following Him / 32 Comments

Do I have faith? Do I have the courage to take the leap?
Are these empty promises that You could not keep?

No! I trust in You, Lord; You never break Your promises,
You keep Your word; there are never hits and misses!

You were not lost forever in eternal sleep,
You rose from the dead; from the deep!

I will follow You, no matter where You lead me,
Whether it is through green pastures where you feed me,

Or besides still waters where I may be washed spotless,
I bow to You and I shall all that is on my heart, to You, confess!

And that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures… (First Corinthians 15:4:)

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. (Psalm 23:2: )

For it is written, ” ‘As I live, ‘ saith the Lord, ‘every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God.’ ” (Romans 14:11:)

Hello everyone! 🙂 I found this poem in my drafts – from last June! I thought it was time it made its debut. Not sure why it hadn’t before now, haha. Anyway. I was thinking about fear of the unknown and trusting Him with leading me – and having the courage to follow that leading wherever He may lead. Sometimes I fear where I’m being led (or think I’m being led), and wonder what God is thinking – but He knows best, and He is a faithful God! ❤

Faith of a Mustard Seed

January 17, 2018 / Following Him / 26 Comments

This was supposed to have been posted for week 53 of 100 Word Wednesday, but somehow I messed up the scheduling. 😅 Anyway, here is the photo prompt and my response, even though I’m a week late.