In the Valley

In the Valley

                 When You lead me to the valley of vision

I can see You in the heights

And though my humbling wouldn’t be my decision

It’s here Your glory shines so bright

So let me learn that the cross precedes the crown

To be low is to be high

That the valley’s where You make me more like Christ

 Let me find Your grace in the valley

Let me find Your life in my death

Let me find Your joy in my sorrow

Your wealth in my need

That You’re near with every breath

In the valley

 In the daytime there are stars in the heavens

But they only shine at night

And the deeper that I go into darkness

The more I see their radiant light

So let me learn that my losses are my gain

To be broken is to heal

That the valley’s where Your power is revealed

Always Experiencing Him,

Jody

Morning

Morning

Compassionate Lord,

Thy mercies have brought me to the dawn

of another day,

Vain will be its gift unless I grow in grace,

increase in knowledge,

ripen for spiritual harvest.

Let me this day know thee as thou art,

love thee supremely,

serve thee wholly,

admire thee fully.

Through grace let my will respond to thee,

Knowing that power to obey is not in me, but

that thy free love alone enables me to serve thee.

Here then is my empty heart,

overflow it with thy choicest gifts;

Here is my blind understanding,

chase away its mists of ignorance.

O ever watchful Shepherd,

lead, guide, tend me this day;

Without thy restraining rod I err and stray;

Hedge up my path lest I wander into

unwholesome pleasure,

 and drink its poisonous streams;

Direct my feet that I be not entangled

in Satan's secret snares,

nor fall into his hidden traps.

Defend me from assailing foes,

from evil circumstances,

from myself.

My adversaries are part and parcel of my nature;

They cling to me as my very skin;

I cannot escape their contact.

In my rising up and sitting down they

barnacle me;

They entice with constant baits;

My enemy is within the citadel;

Come with almighty power and cast him out,

pierce him to death,

and abolish in me every particle 

of carnal life this day.

(The Valley of Vision)

Thank You, Jesus, this day.

Protect and guide us on our way.

In the very name of Jesus,

AMEN

Take time and give thanks today.

Be grateful in all things.

Trust in Him, He is good.

Always Experiencing Him,
Jody

1st Fire of the Season

Jamin built us a fire last evening for us, because the temperature was going to be around 36 degrees!  Oosh!  That's just cold!  The rising flames were so warm and beautiful.  Thanks, Son!  

I sit, I watch, I bask in the wonderful glow pouring from the fireplace.  Such warmth bathes my body and my soul as I ponder the fire, the burning, the coals and ashes.  

(The pictures are from last year's season)

Comforting, warming, relaxing, it smells so good, the sounds of the wood crackling under the heat, the mesmerizing flames make you want to curl up with a good book and sit, or with a big quilt and nap.  Four of the five senses have been touched.

But, if you get too close, it burns, hurts, singes, but it also refines, purifies, and seals.
Staying close to God, our Father, so He can continually purge us of our impurities, our sins, purify us, refine us as silver and gold, listening to hear His voice and being obedient to His will is where we will find the warmth and comfort from Him.  We hear Him best when we are close, where we feel the comfort, the warmth, but also the heat, and the burning.

             Purification
"Lord Jesus,
     I sin - Grant that I may
never cease grieving because of it,
never be content with myself,
never think I can reach a point of perfection.
     Kill my envy, command my tongue,
trample down self.
     Give me grace to be holy, kind, gentle, pure, peaceable,
to live for thee and not for self,
to copy thy words, acts, spirit,
to be transformed into thy likeness,
to be consecrated wholly to thee,
to live entirely to thy glory.
     Deliver me from attachment to things unclean,
from wrong associations,
from the predominance of evil passions,
from the sugar of sin as well as its gall,
that with self-loathing, deep contrition,
earnest heart searching
  I may come to thee, cast myself on thee,
trust in thee, cry to thee,
be delivered by thee.
     O God, the Eternal All, help me to know that 
all things are shadows, but thou art substance,
all things are quicksands, but thou art mountain,
all things are shifting, but thou art anchor,
all things are ignorance, but thou art wisdom.
     If my life is to be a crucible amid burning heat,
so be it,
but do thou sit at the furnace mouth
to watch the ore that nothing be lost.
     If I sin wilfully, grievously, tormentedly,
in grace take away my mourning
  and give me music.
remove my sackcloth 
  and clothe me with beauty;
still my sighs
  and fill my mouth with song,
then give me summer weather as a Christian.
                  (The Valley of Vision)

"The words of the Lord are pure words;

As silver tried in a furnace on the earth, refined seven times.

You, O Lord, will keep them;

You will preserve him from this generation forever."

Psalm 12:6-7

"Some of those who have insight will fall, in order to refine, 

purge and make them pure until the end time; 

because it is still to come at the appointed time."

Daniel 11:35

"And I will bring the third part through the fire,

Refine them as silver is refined,

And test them as gold is tested.

They will call on My name,

And I will answer them;

I will say, 'They are My people,'

And they will say, 'The Lord is my God.'"

Zechariah 13:9

Are you listening to the One who refines?

How are you being tested this day?

Are you staying in His warmth, His comfort?

Always Experiencing Him,
Jody

The Deeps

Lord Jesus,

Give me a deeper repentance,

a horror of sin,

a dread of its approach;

Help me chastely to flee it,

and jealously to resolve that my heart

shall be thine alone.

Give me a deeper trust,

that I may lose myself to find myself in thee,

the ground of my rest,

the spring of my being.

Give me a deeper knowledge of thyself

as Saviour, Master, Lord, and King.

Give me deeper power in private prayer,

more sweetness in thy Word,

more steadfast grip on its truth.

Give me deeper holiness in speech, thought, action,

and let me not seek moral virtue apart from thee.

Plough deep in me, great Lord,

heavenly Husbandman,

that my being may be a tilled field,

the roots of grace spreading far and wide,

until thou alone art seen in me,

thy beauty golden like summer harvest,

thy fruitfulness as autumn plenty.

I have no Master but thee,

no law but thy will,

no delight but thyself,

no wealth but that thou givest,

no good but that thou blessest,

no peace but that thou bestowest.

I am nothing but that thou makest me,

I have nothing but that I receive from thee,

I can be nothing but that grace adorns me.

Quarry me deep, dear Lord,

and then fill me to overflowing

with living water.

(The Valley of Vision)

What is your favorite devotional or prayer book?

The Valley of Vision is one of many I love to read through, let me know what you are reading...

Always Experiencing Him,
Jody

Searcher of Hearts

Self-Knowledge

SEARCHER OF HEARTS,
It is a good day to me when thou givest me 
  a glimpse of myself;
Sin is my greatest evil,
  but thou art my greatest good;
I have cause to loathe myself,
  and not to seek self-honour,
  for no one desires to commend his own dunghill.
My country, family, church
  fare worse because of my sins,
  for sinners bring judgment in thinking
   sins are small,
  or that God is not angry with them.
Let me not take other good men as my example,
  and think I am good because I am like them,
For all good men are not so good as thou desirest,
  are not always consistent,
  do not always follow holiness,
  do not feel eternal good in sore affliction.
Show me how to know when a thing is evil
  which I think is right and good,
  how to know when what is lawful
  comes from an evil principle,
  such as desire for reputation or wealth by usury.
Give me grace to recall my needs,
  my lack of knowing thy will in Scripture,
   of wisdom to guide others,
   of daily repentance, want of which keeps thee at bay,
   of the spirit of prayer, having words
without love, 
   of zeal for thy glory, seeking my own ends,
   of joy in thee and thy will,
   of love to others.
And let me not lay my pipe 
  too short of the fountain,
  never touching the eternal spring,
  never drawing down water from above.


(The Valley of Vision)


Always Experiencing Him,
Jody

In the Valley

Go here, In the Valley, and.... 

                                                               Thank Him.

The Valley of Vision

Lord, High and Holy, Meek and Lowly,

Thou hast brought me to the valley of vision,

where I live in the depths but see thee in the heights;

hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold Thy glory.

Let me learn by paradox

that the way down is the way up, 

that to be low is to be high,

that the broken heart is the healed heart,

that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit,

that the repenting soul is the victorious soul,

that to have nothing is to possess all,

that to bear the cross is to wear the crown,

that to give is to receive,

that the valley is the place of vision.

Lord, in the daytime stars can be seen from deepest wells,

and the deeper the wells the brighter Thy stars shine;

Let me find Thy light in my darkness,

Thy life in my death,

Thy joy in my sorrow,

Thy grace in my sin,

Thy riches in my poverty,

Thy glory in my valley.

(The Valley of Vision Puritan Prayers and Devotions)

Always Experiencing Him,

Jody

Reflection

"For God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."

1 Samuel 16:7

Christlikeness

Father of Jesus,
Dawn returns, but without thy light within no outward light can profit;
Give me the saving lamp of thy Spirit that I  may see thee,
the God of my salvation, the delight of my soul, rejoicing over me in love.
I commend my heart to thy watchful care, for I know its treachery and power;
Guard its every portal from the wily enemy,
Give me quick discernment of his deadly arts,
Help me to recognize his bold disguise as an angel of light, and bid him begone.
May my words and works allure others to the highest walks of faith and love!
May loiterers be quickened to greater diligence by my example!
May worldlings be won to delight in acquaintance with thee!
May the timid and irresolute be warned of coming doom by my zeal for Jesus!
Cause me to be a mirror of thy grace, to show others the joy of thy service,
May my lips be well-tuned cymbals sounding thy praise,
Let a halo of heavenly-mindedness sparkle around me and a lamp of kindness sunbeam my path.
Teach me the happy art of attending to things temporal with a mind intent on things eternal.
Send me forth to have compassion on the ignorant and miserable.
Help me to walk as Jesus walked, my only Saviour and perfect model,
His mind my inward guest, His meekness my covering garb.
Let my happy place be amongst the poor in spirit,
my delight the gentle ranks of the meek.
Let me always esteem others better than myself, and find in true humility an heirdom to two worlds.

(From The Valley of Vision-Puritan Prayers and Devotions)

My Jesus, Lord and Savior, help me to always be a reflection of Your love, Your life, Your will.

Always Experiencing Him,

Jody