For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; it is he who will save us. — Isaiah 33:22
The pattern is in the Sicilian style - it matches my tablecloths perfectly.
As Kirk commented, we will be getting lots of use out of it!
What a thoughtful and ideal gift for my retirement.
I'm overwhelmed.
The Lord is our King.
It is He who will save us.
For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with victory. — Psalm 149:4
So many people from across the bank stopped by to wish me well.
The commercial team gave me flowers.
And my consumer team gave me tickets to the next opera season.
I am blessed to have made many good friends over my six years here.
My final four days are definitely bittersweet.
God takes delight in his people!
I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. — Philippians 3:15
So God calls us to press on toward heaven.
Our prize is living forever with Him in heaven.
And our goal is to follow the Lord Jesus,
Becoming more like Him each day.
Growing in the love of Jesus Christ.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. — Hebrews 12:1
It brought back memories of our wonderful time in Paris two years ago.
And the crowd of spectators gathered there now for the games.
We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, too.
But our crowd consists of the saints who've gone before us.
My mom, Kirk's mom, Polly Whigham, Mildred & Blain Marksbury, Burt Smith, Penny, Paul Pulliam, Gabe Saliba, and so many more.
Our lives have been blessed by each of them.
And we pray that our lives, too, will be a blessing to many.
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. — Hebrews 11:1
And we had 36 people singing our summer choir.
That afternoon, our France tour choir shared a beautiful concert with some wonderful testimonies.
It makes me want to sing with them in Italy next year!
For now, I'm blessed to be able to sing God's praises and worship in this beautiful city.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. — 1 John 1:7
He purifies us with the blood of His Son, Jesus.
And if we walk in that lights, we have fellowship with one another.
The blood of Jesus Christ purifies us from all sin.
Thanks be to God.
The light of our lives.
Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you. — Jeremiah 32:17
He is our Lord.
He created the heavens and the earth.
Nothing is too hard for Him.
He formed the heavens and earth by His great power and outstretched arm.
And He formed us, too.
He loves us even when we mess up.
Just as a Father loves His children.
If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. — John 15:10
Just as Jesus kept His Father's commands.
And just as Jesus remains in His love.
But because we're sinful, Jesus paid the ultimate price for us.
He died on the cross and came alive again on the third day.
Now he reigns with God the Father in heaven.
Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” — Matthew 4:4
He is the Word and was able to live and breathe it.
So He had a ready answer from Scripture for Satan.
Even though He had fasted for 40 days, He was not tempted by food.
He received His nourishment from God's Word.
And He commanded us to live by God's Word too.
Help me, Lord, to get to know Scripture as you did, hiding it in my heart.
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. — Philippians 2:9-11
He lives with the Father in heaven.
That every knee will bow at the name of Jesus.
Whether in heaven or on earth.
Every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is Lord.
And will glorify God, our Father.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost.
World wthout end. Amen.
Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. — Philippians 1:6
God, who began a good work in us, will carry it on to completion.
And He will continue that work until the day of Christ Jesus.
This week I gave my notice to my coworkers.
I'll be retiring as of August 1.
I'll miss this view from my office window.
And I'll miss many of the people.
But I'm ready to stop working so many hours away from my family.
And my 23-year-old coworker will be moving to South Korea to teach students in August, leaving our company as of July 30.
God is working His purpose out in me and in her.
Very exciting to see Him at work in our lives.
As for God, his way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him. — Psalm 18:30
Scripture is inerrant and true.
God's way is perfect.
He shields all who take refuge in Him.
Yesterday we celebrated our friend Donna's 90th birthday.
Her daughter-in-law had these cute cookies made for all the guests.
It brought back lots of memories of her husband Ralph and his astute Bible teaching.
And his book, Roman Catholics and Evangelicals: Agreements and Differences.
Happy 90th Birthday, Donna!
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. — Matthew 24:35
Earth will one day pass away.
But the Word of God will never pass away.
God's Word is forever.
This summer we're going through the book of Proverbs for our sermon series at church.
These Words of wisdom will last forever.
They are like water for the thirsty and bread for the hungry.
Help us to follow Your Word, oh Lord.
Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the Lord. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord. — Jeremiah 23:24
No one can hide from Him.
Even the secret places are not secrets to Him.
He fills the heavens.
And His glory fills the whole earth.
God has declared it.
Our nation belongs to God the Lord.
In that day you will say: “Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted. — Isaiah 12:4
Give praise to the Lord.
Tell the nations what He has done.
Proclaim that God's name is exalted.
Give praise to the Lord our God!
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance. — Psalm 33:12
What a fun time!
It felt like we had our own private fireworks show.
They even had a Midway Mai-Tai drink with a glowing ice cube and a plumeria.
And the band was fabulous.
Their daughter who just turned 14 had a powerful voice.
A wonderful way to celebrate Independence Day after gathering with our family and friends.
For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. — Romans 12:3
With sober judgment, we are to think of ourselves humbly.
Not putting ourselves above others.
In accordance with the faith God has given us.
The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.” — Jeremiah 19:9-10
He examines our minds.
And He sees our deceit.
Even when we can't understand it.
He knows we are beyond cure.
Which is why He sent His Son, Jesus.
To die on Golgatha (pictured).
To redeem us from our sin.
So we are no longer rewarded by what our deeds deserve.
The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name. — Zechariah 14:9
Hard to believe.
Yesterday marked the 12th anniversary of our Pastor Jeff and his wife Greta.
And it was also the day 68 years ago that Kirk's mom and dad were married.
Here they are after the ceremony.
The wedding took place at the Catholic church in Spencer, Iowa.
Then they headed over the United Methodist Church for the reception.
We miss them both!
The Lord is king over the whole earth.
There is only one Lord.
And one Savior — out Lord Jesus.
On the day He returns, there will be proclamations about His majesty.
On that day, His name will be the only name in heaven and on earth and under the earth.
