Rest. An encouraging poem by Paul Tripp

"Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!"
Psalm 27 v.14

Rest:

a faint dream for many
a treasured commodity
in a fallen world,
a thing so needed,
yet so easily interrupted.
The Garden was a place of
rest,
no violence in creation
no weed or thorn
no cleft between God and man
no reason to hide
no cause for fear
no need unmet
no grief to face.
Bright sun
pure love
unfettered peace
unstained beauty
man and God
worship and love.
But a voice
interrupted the rest:
strategies of death
words of deceit
actions of rebellion
fingers of blame
expulsion from the Garden
judgment and death
rest interrupted
rest shattered.
So we wait for the Lord.
His grace strengthen
His presence comforts
His promises assure
His power activates
His rule guarantees
that someday rest,
real rest
pure rest
eternal rest
will reign once more.
No violence in creation
no weed or thorn
no cleft between God and man
no reason to hide
no cause for fear
no need unmet
no grief to face
between God and man.
Yes, rest, true rest
will live again
and last forever.
So we wait for the Lord
to restore us to that place.
Bright Son
pure love
unfettered peace
unstained beauty
God and man
together forever.
Until that day,
with hearts
that are strong
and hope
that is undimmed
and joy
that embraces the future,
We wait for the Lord.

by Paul Tripp, Paul Tripp Ministries
http://www.paultrippministries.blogspot.com/

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Ouma's Visit

After our visit in SA, we had the privilege of Granny (aka "Ouma") coming to stay with us for 10 days. It was such a good visit. We actually did very little, partly due to the weather, partly due to our health (I brought some gogo back with me from SA!), but mostly because we just relaxed and just visited. For the first few days Granny run my home for me, washing and ironing-I felt terrible that she was working so hard, but it was such a help, and I was very grateful that it was being done!!

We did go shopping a little bit, but it is dangerous to shop with a South African Rand mindset, in a UAE Dirham currency setting, using United States Dollars!!

The other times we managed to get out, we went eating, as you do! Everything from good old Mugg 'n Bean, (here in Dubai!), to a beautiful quaint tea shop, to the Noodle House at Madinat. They and the others were all great!! And of course, we went to Naomi's 4th Birthday party, with a whole bunch of 2 to 4 year old girls. Donna was voted the prettiest girl there by her biggest fan-Ouma!

We had a great time with you here Granny. I really hope we could get your mind off things a bit, and share our lives with you. We are really happy that you got to laugh so much!

Please come again!!

Our Niece and Cousin Kathleen

It was such a privledge to meet and get to know John and Candice's baby-Kathleen.

She is so beautiful and so precious, an absolute joy! John was holding Kathleen the first time I saw her, at first I didn't even see her, but when I realised it was her he was holding - I couldn't believe...anything! She was so small! She was real! She was my sister's baby! She was my niece! As I took her, a new type of love filled my heart in places I didn't know even existed!

To see Donna with her was just so heartwarming. Donna loves her baby cousin and I know that will be a love that will just continue to grow. She just loved to sit on a couch and hold Kathleen, she was so proud, and they just looked so comfortable together. Now that we're home she doesn't stop talking about her; "When Kathleen gets bigger, we can play in my tent, we can draw, we can eat Jelley Tots, we can swim together....." she can (and does!) carry on for a while!

We just can't wait to see them again!

Donna's second birthday

Our baby has now really seized to be one-she is now a beautiful "grown-up" little girl.

The Lord has blessed her so much with great health, a huge vocab, physical and mental growth, and the beginnings of the most precious understanding of our great Lord. She often asks us to pray for people, just in the midst of the day. She knows that "God made everything", the other day she asked me where one of her CDs came from and I said it was gift that a friend had made, to which she quickly added "AND God made it...". And she loves the bible, she asks to read it more than other books-and then she reads it to us, "Let me tell you..." and proceeds to tell us all sorts of things about what Jesus has done and where He has been-it's awesome to listen to!

But the Lord has blessed Ryan and I so much more! Donna is a joy beyond what I thought possible, and an occasional "perfecter of our faith" and we learn vital lessons from being a sweet sinner's parent!

A mere 2 years ago, I had only just seen her for the first time, but over this short time she has turned my life around, to a point where I hurt when I think of life without her. I am so thankful for these past 2 years that we have had the pleasure of sharing with Donna Lucia Penny!!

Happy Birthday Big Girl!!