The Last Homely House is a home in Imladris, from Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Nestled in the mountains, nearly impossible to find unless you know where to look, Imladris is a beautiful haven where elves reside. Music, singing, and storytelling abound, and the peaceful atmosphere is a welcome refuge for a weary soul.
Since the last post, I have gotten my own domain, so moved my blog there! You can find it at blog.wovenandspun.net. There isn't anything yet on the main page of the domain, wovenandspun.net, but I hope to fix that soon. Feel free to drop by my blog, and commenting to let me know you're reading is greatly appreciated! :)
I haven't been using this blog much because I've wanted to start a new blog for a while, and it seemed rather pointless to put much up here if I wasn't going to keep it. So I've finally gotten around to creating my new one, and here it is!
I wrote this sometime last year, and in reading it over again, I thought I'd share it.
All to You, Lord,
I give it all to You.
All my hopes, all my dreams,
all I say and do.
Help me follow You,
to know and do Your will.
I know that when I fail,
You will be there still.
You will lift me up,
help me find a way,
You will always be there,
each and every day.
When I'm growing tired,
I grieve or I despair,
I will give it all to You,
for You are always there.
One of my latest favorite songs is Nichole Nordeman's Gratitude. The lyrics are beautiful and thought-provoking, and each time I listen to the song, I get something new from it. The more I listened to the song, the more I wanted to share about it, so here are my thoughts along with the lyrics. :)
Gratitude
Send some rain, would You send some rain?
'Cause the earth is dry and needs to drink again
And the sun is high and we are sinking in the shade
Would You send a cloud, thunder long and loud?
Let the sky grow black and send some mercy down
Surely You can see that we are thirsty and afraid
But maybe not, not today
Maybe You'll provide in other ways
And if that's the case . . .
(Chorus)
We'll give thanks to You
With gratitude
For lessons learned in how to thirst for You
How to bless the very sun that warms our face
If You never send us rain
Daily bread, give us daily bread
Bless our bodies, keep our children fed
Fill our cups, then fill them up again tonight
Wrap us up and warm us through
Tucked away beneath our sturdy roofs
Let us slumber safe from danger's view this time
Or maybe not, not today
Maybe You'll provide in other ways
And if that's the case . . .
(Chorus)
We'll give thanks to You
With gratitude
A lesson learned to hunger after You
That a starry sky offers a better view if no roof is overhead And if we never taste that bread
Oh, the differences that often are between
What we want and what we really need
So grant us peace, Jesus, grant us peace
Move our hearts to hear a single beat
Between alibis and enemies tonight
Or maybe not, not today
Peace might be another world away
And if that's the case . . .
(Chorus)
We'll give thanks to You
With gratitude
For lessons learned in how to trust in You
That we are blessed beyond what we could ever dream
In abundance or in need
And if You never grant us peace
But Jesus, would You please . . .
I find the words to be such a beautiful reminder of how we should give thanks to God in everything. Please, Jesus, give us bread, but if you don't, thank you for the lesson in trust. That's such a trusting attitude, and it shows the kind of gratitude we really should have for Him.
Too often, people question why they don't have more. Why don't they have money for all these nice cars, or money for expensive clothes or big vacations or even more simple things. Instead of asking why He doesn't give us these things, we should ask why He gives us anything at all. Not why He doesn't relieve us of pain, but why He suffered and died for us. We should be grateful for all He has done for us; He's given us so much more than we deserve, and we should be immensely grateful for all that He has given us.
This extends into greater issues too, such as suffering. It's all too common for Christians to ask why God allows them to suffer, why He doesn't take that away. Instead, we should be praising God that we have life at all, especially eternal life. We should be grateful for all the ways He has provided for us, and learn what we can through trials.
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. - James 1:2-3
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. - Romans 8:28
God will work things together for good, even if we can't see how at the time. He has a reason and a purpose, and He will work things together for the ultimate good, to fit His purpose.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; - Philippians 4:6
We should make our requests with thanksgiving rather than anxiety, thanking God in the midst of our needs. I think that message is so powerful in this song, and so beautifully written.
This site is hilarious!
One of our most often quoted rights as Americans is our right to free speech. But too often when this right is being exercised, people seem to overlook two other things. First off, if you have the right to say whatever you want, I have the right to not like it and say so. There's been this big to-do with Imus and what he said, some people upset over his words, then others getting up in arms about it and saying he has the right to say what he did. Sure, he has the right as an American, but I also have the right to not like what he said and to express my thoughts on the matter. It goes both ways.
The second overlooked issue is more important, because it comes from a higher mandate than the Constitution.
Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one. - Colossians 4:6
Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. - Ephesians 4:29
A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver. - Proverbs 25:11
These verses tell us how we should speak, with grace and edifying words. We need to examine what we say against those principles.
Let no one seek his own, but each one the other's well-being. - 1 Corinthians 10:24
Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. - Philippians 2:3,4
These verses show attitudes we should have toward others. If we're truly seeking the good of others above our own desires, if we try to edify others rather than make ourselves look good or superior, we should desire to speak with grace and to encourage others and build them up. Sometimes it even means saying something the other person doesn't want to hear, but it should be done in love and with grace. We should want to encourage and edify them rather than accuse and shame them, and rather than wanting to say anything that comes to mind because we have "the right to free speech".
This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. - John 15:12, 13
We should love others as Christ loves us, and show them His love and treat people the way He would treat them. If a person is willing to lay his life down for his friend, should he not also be willing to put aside his own desires enough to speak in a manner which is edifying?
Our American rights are nothing compared to the love we should have for others, the love Christ commanded us to show. The right to free speech is a very good thing to have as a law, to keep the government from infringing upon us any more than it already does, and it can be a useful right when it comes to spreading the gospel. But more importantly, we need to filter what we say through those standards we were given by God, and make sure our words would have His approval, rather than that of the first amendment.
I really did intend to keep you all updated more...I guess a lack of activity has kept me from posting much, but I should start posting again anyway. I've been wanting to write more, and maybe journaling would be a good start. I used to write in journals a lot more, but online and on paper, but I've slacked off the past several months.
First off, I haven't been doing much, on account of the fact that I'm still trying to get myself well. I went back to the doctor earlier in the week to refill a prescription, and apparently the sinus infection from four weeks ago is still hanging around, which would explain a lot of why I've been feeling so bad. That also irritates the asthma. So I've been staying on antibiotic and heavy decongestants a lot this week, which has been rough, but I think it's helping me. I've had a rough night, but also felt better this morning than I've been feeling, so maybe it's a good sign, and hopefully I'll be feeling better sometime over this next week.
I had so many writing goals for the month! I wanted to get a ton written in February, but between being sick and being drugged because I was sick, that hasn't exactly happened. Hopefully I can get more written throughout this month. I'm making it a goal anyway...maybe if I post about it here, I'll be more inclined to do so.
Randomness:
99% cocoa dark chocolate is good, especially with coffee. It's very strong though, so I would recommend working your way up to it in degrees. Wal-mart has Ghirardhelli 60% cocoa with ground espresso beans, and I think that's the best chocolate I've ever had. Absolutely fabulous. I don't know if you can get the 99% stuff here in America though. I have friends in high places... ;) Well, Europe, really. That's where mine came from. :P
I'm tired of computer problems. Our router died earlier this week, and our modem was acting up as well. They were almost five years old and really needed to be fixed anyway, but it was still frustrating, especially considering I spent three hours trying to get the new router working before I found out the modem was having trouble too. But my laptop is now wireless, which makes me happy! *grin* Maybe I'll post more about the other computer problems later. I'm more cheered up right now and don't want to think about that anymore. :P
I need something to read. Of course, I have plenty of books I haven't read or want to read again, but I'm indecisive and none of them interest me at the moment. Though I would like to read The Silmarillion again. Maybe I'll read that one.
I'm writing a short story in the style of Wodehouse. It's rather fun, though I haven't gotten very far. I decided I wanted to have a go at that writing style, so we'll see how that turns out! I've read a bit of Wodehouse before, then this week, have started watching Jeeves and Wooster. Hugh Laurie is brilliant as Wooster! He's really a great actor, and does the role perfectly. :)
I'm getting rather sleepy now, so toodle pip!
