The Secret Place

As I wind down from a busy day, and begin preparing my heart for a day of worship tomorrow, I have the melody of RC Sproul's song, The Secret Place, on my heart.  Our congregation will sing it in the morning for the first time, and I can hardly wait. 

The imagery of such a shelter, a safe place, gives me comfort.  I'm especially drawn in to consider His close communion, my loving, heavenly Father God who intentionally and tenderly cares for, and protects me from whatever threatens harm (spiritually, physically, emotionally, mentally, …), because He cherishes and delights in me so.     

Thank you, Father! 


The Secret Place  

Who dwells within His most secret place
Is never far from His blessed grace
‘Neath His great shadow all will be well
No better place now for us to dwell

Refrain

The secret place of God Most High
The shadow of our mighty King
The dwelling place where angels cry
Is where our praise will forever ring

Fear not the terror that comes at night
Nor flaming arrows by morning light
His truth is always our sword and shield
Against His power, all foes must yield

Refrain

A thousand fall now at ev’ry side
Ten thousand more may have yet to die
Yet plague and sword can
Ne’er kill the soul
His angels guard us now safe and whole

Refrain

Refuge and fortress for all who trust
No safer pasture for men of dust
‘Neath wings and feathers of Holy Lord
No greater comfort can He afford

Refrain

Psalm 91-

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

² I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.

³ Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.

⁴ He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

⁵ Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;

⁶ Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

⁷ A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.

⁸ Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

⁹ Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;

¹⁰ There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.

¹¹ For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

¹² They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

¹³ Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

¹⁴ Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.

¹⁵ He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.

¹⁶ With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

King James Version (KJV)

Public Domain

Photo: Bagheera was extra quiet one day this week, so when I went to look for him, this is where I found him.  It was just the reminder I needed to do the same, to get alone with the LORD when my heart was tempted to fret and feel anxious, which seems to be more of a constant struggle lately.

Happy Birthday, John

The LORD knew we needed this lighthearted, fun-loving guy!
Happy Birthday John!
You were every bit the happy and sweet contentedness I needed, being that your sister was still a babe herself.  I surely wasn't ready for her to be a big girl when you were born, but she suddenly became that in my eyes, as she was always very eager to help our "Real baby".
To my disappointment, when her "Real baby" brother was born, Katherine no longer enjoyed playing with her pretend babies. "Mommy, that baby is not real."

So John, we all know you're real.
We're thankful for you.  You are indeed a gracious gift from God!
I love you,
M❤️M

Our Fathers Have Told Us

In the fear of the LORD one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge.  Proverbs 14:26, ESV

As a father shows compassion to his children,

so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.  

Psalm 103:13, ESV 

Last Sunday was Father's Day.  As I approached that special day last week, I felt emotional and apprehensive for wanting to unify, but not having a lot of energy to make it happen.  I simply wanted to celebrate the blessing of our fathers, but felt weak to inspire.  I'm thankful the children helped to make the day special for their dad, and with their company, they helped me fulfill the desire I had to visit mine!  As another year without Mark's father has passed, we're nonetheless mindful of how much we miss his presence and godly influence.  

  

When the children were young, we never made a huge 'to do' over these holidays.  The children and I might've picked up a gift while out shopping, but those gifts were usually token and inexpensive.  

Now that the children are older, Matt and Kat are working (at a seafood market) and making their own money, so they are beginning to purchase their own gifts.  Lately they've brought home gifts of fresh seafood for a tasty meal, which is always enjoyed and goes over extremely well!  Ha!   

While cleaning out a closet yesterday, I sorted through a box of old pictures, and found mixed with them a construction paper tie that one of our older boys made many years ago for Mark.  I wish I could remember who made it; it wasn't named.  It was cut out and hole punched by one of their Sunday School teachers, but creatively colored orange and blue by  our son. Whichever son it was, sure wasn't confused about their dad's favorite colors!  
At the time, it was strung with yarn so Dad could wear it around his neck, which he did!  

There are other mementos, but this one really drew me in.  It wasn't just a hand-made gift;  it was a precious memory of a priceless season, of a proud son who made and gave.  
It stirred a thankful memory of a dad who proudly wore his orange and blue tie into the church service because he cherished the influence he had on his child, and he received and sported the gift, whether he thought it was cool or not.  
This token gift put on display the value of a father/child relationship.  Far more reaching was a relationship rooted by faith in a covenant keeping Father God whose enduring multi-generational promise is to those who fear Him, to thousands who love him and keep his commandments.  Our desire has always been that our children would come to know God's faithfulness in their lives as we've known in ours, in hopes that one day they would tell their children.  That is the deepest, most fulfilling blessing of children, that they would be a channel through which God's testimonies flow to the next generation of Grays.  
OH Lord, make it so, and may we come to know the sweetest joy for knowing our sons will one day become fathers that will one day be celebrated too!     


Give ear, O my people, to my teaching; 
incline your ears to the words of my mouth!  
I will open my mouth in a parable; 
I will utter dark saying from of old, 
things that we have heard and known, 
that our fathers have told us.
We will not hide them from their children,
but tell to the coming generation 
the glorious deeds of the LORD, and his might, 
and the wonders that he has done.  
Psalm 78:1-4

The End of the Matter...

"I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.
And I find something more bitter than death:  the woman whose heart is snares and nets, and whose hands are fetters.
He who pleases God escapes her, but the sinner is taken by her.
Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things-which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.
One man among a thousand I found, but a woman among all these I have not found.
See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes."
Ecclesiastes 7:25-29

I don’t want to be such a woman, who schemes ways to accomplish and take what God has not given me by His hand to be satisfied by. He has blessed me with so many things, especially the gift of each family member;  we live and enjoy life together, but to idolize them as my own, and to seek satisfaction from each of them,  when my ONLY true satisfaction and JOY should come from HIM is folly and vain. 
Solomon experienced bitterness of soul and repentance for his own pursuit to love women who were strange and foreign of knowing and representing the Author of LOVE.  
 I pray I would seek to be satisfied in the LORD; “...this is the gift of GOD.  For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart” (Eccl. 5:19b-20).

“The end of the matter; all has been heard.  Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.  For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil” (Eccl. 12:13).  ❤️

The richest man ever known on earth schemed and experienced all he ever lusted after, and realized it was vanity.  God gave him wisdom because he asked for it,  but true wisdom and prudence came to him near the end of his life when he realized after experiencing “all is vanity (empty, worthless)”, that there is nothing under the sun that satisfies a man’s heart like the fear and knowledge of God and His ways!

Nothing else will ever measure up, nor supply the satisfaction and JOY we crave!
I pray and seek to be satisfied In Christ Alone!! ❤️
It would be wise to do a character study on Solomon, to learn all the LORD accomplished in his life to fulfill His purpose of giving to us the truth message we read in Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and The Song of Solomon.  Solomon’s story can be found in 1 Kings 1-11.

Photo: Mark recently completed his first piece of furniture for separating out his favorite books, all of which encourage his heart to a better knowledge and faith in, and love for the LORD.   

Our Glorious Eternal God

The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
4 Their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
5 which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them,
and there is nothing hidden from its heat.

7 The law of the Lord is perfect,
reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is sure,
making wise the simple;
8 the precepts of the Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is pure,
enlightening the eyes;
9 the fear of the Lord is clean,
enduring forever;
the rules of the Lord are true,
and righteous altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than gold,
even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey
and drippings of the honeycomb.
11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
12 Who can discern his errors?
Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
13 Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;
let them not have dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless,
and innocent of great transgression.
14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Psalm 19  

Our friend captured this beautiful picture of this morning's sunrise as he was on his way over the bridge to the SGBC men's Bible study.  I needed this!! 

In the news today, the iconic SJRPP cooling towers (on the horizon) were imploded at 8 am. It took 12 seconds to tear down what took years of time and skill for man to build. 
Below is a zoomed in view of the towers.  

As I anticipated the implosion, I saw the cooling towers in the background.  The skyline would dramatically change in a short amount of time.  Mark spent 27 years of his life at SJRPP.  In the light of who God is, his job was temporary/fleeting.  God is eternal and should be considered a far greater treasure.    


Mark spent many man hours in those cooling towers; they were HUGE (462 feet tall) and WEIGHTY (many tons of concrete). They mattered to Mark and our family, but they were brought down in 12 seconds.

God is GREAT and past finding out, but we are capable of learning of Him by reading our Bible and getting under the faithful preaching/teaching of a pastor who has a jealous heart for His Word. 

May the LORD bless the reading and hearing of God's Word!!

❤️K~

Happy Grannie Thelma Day!

I have anticipated today all week, June 14th, not because it's Flag Day, but because it  would have been my Grannie Thelma's birthday.  What I didn't realize until this morning is that this would have been her 100th birthday!! WOW!!
She passed away almost 17 years ago, soon after she turned 83.

When our family moved from Nebraska to FL, Grannie allowed us to live with her for several months (post military) until we found a new home.  I realize now what a sacrifice it was to welcome five additional people, three of which were ornery children, learning to adjust to everything new.  Suzie, Grannie's Pekingese dog, probably took her on a lot of walks during those 5-6 months.





Grannie gave of herself from the bounty of God's provision in her life.  She gave to many she knew, especially those who were in need.  
My recollection of things she enjoyed the most were her job with Pantry Pride, her two homes: one in the city and the other in the country, deep sea fishing, the Farmer's market, crocheting, boiled peanuts, Pina Colada Cake (I believe the non-alcoholic recipe 😜), attending family reunions, the auction (and the loot she returned home with...thus my love for milk glass and dishes!), her family and church, her cats with extra toes, and gardening.
I miss Grannie Thelma.  
She passed away soon after John was born, so she never really got to spend a lot of time with him before she got sick, and then eventually passed away.  Her memory had declined, and was such that she didn't remember me being pregnant when I took John to visit her.  

One of the hard realities of  days as this are the memories that flood your heart and mind and cause you to long for your loved one.

After Grannie retired, she moved back to her home in the country, to the acreage she inherited and built on many years ago after her parents passed away.  Her property near and adjacent to the property of all of our other relatives, some of which were her sisters and their families.  Our visits were not frequent enough when our children were young.  
I oft think, "I wish...", but I can't.  
The special visits we were able to enjoy with Grannie were special, and memorable.  I'm thankful for every gift of time we shared together while Grannie was in good health.  
I miss my children experiencing the joy of getting to know her better, and she being able to watch them grow up.  She would love her great grandchildren and their new spouses, and now great-great grandchildren.  
One of my favorite memories was of going to visit and pick blueberries from her backyard.  That made for a fun and special memory we enjoyed, that I still cherish today.  
There'll never be better blueberries than those we picked from her yard! 

❤️ Happy Grannie Thelma Day!
K~

His Maker's Praise

This is my Father’s world, the birds their carols raise,
The morning light, the lily white, declare their Maker’s praise. 

Maltbie D. Babcock, 1901

New 'Keet to Keep?

Who said we were gonna stop collecting pets? 

After recently adding Eileen's canary to our household, I'd come to the decision, "This is it.  Our pet collecting days are over.  We're done!!"  

I did say that, but …
This handsome 'keet flew down to the pool where our friends' children were swimming on Saturday.  Frightened by the splashing water, he then flew into a window a couple of times, before perching on our friend's finger, then walked up to his shoulder.   
Some discussion with the children about the parakeet led one child to ask if he could keep it, but his parents quickly decided their son had enough pet responsibilities to maintain.  Neither he, nor they, wanted another pet to take care of.  So, the children said, "Mrs. Gray has parakeets.  Let's ask her to take care of him."  

<Smile>  

Mark said, "What's one more parakeet?" 
Bagheera says, "Yeah, what's one more parakeet?"  >*.*<

This guy came to us on Sunday after noon, and he is adjusting well.  

I've since moved him to a taller cage for some extra flight room, and he's also further removed from Bagheera's close supervision. 

He'll be quarantined in a separate cage until we either find his owner, or add him to our aviary on the back porch. 

 
 I've searched on and off for a LOST bird post on Facebook, but I've not learned of anyone looking for this guy.  
We'll see what happens in the days and weeks to come.  

Happy Birthday, My Brother Tommy

My Big Brother is a stabilizer in my life. He is monumental, a consistent testifier of Truth. He is real and unpretentious. He remembers everything! He thinks deeply, and lives whole heartedly. He gives, and gives!
I especially love that he plumbs the line of Scripture in the hardest of times. 

When I was diagnosed with cancer last fall, my big brother hugged me. For those who know him, you know that's a big deal! I'm a hugger, but he is not. He didn't say a word, but his hug said a lot. 

The day my radiation journey began, I found a painted rock, and then several more on the days that followed.
Finding those rocks along my journey reminded me of the Hebrew practice of the Israelites who set up "standing stones" to commemorate God's covenant mercy and care for His people, to remind them of His supernatural acts on their behalf.  Children would ask their parents, "What do these stones mean?".  Stories of the stones were passed down from generation to generation.
Finding several painted rocks was an encouragement to me. They steered my fearful heart away from the radiation, from my circumstances, to the LORD's unchanging faithfulness! 

Last week, Tommy presented to me another rock.
This rock originated from my birthplace, Newfoundland. He painted it with the tartan, and on the back he'd painted my birthdate and the statement he'd made about his answered prayer for a sister, "I was pleased with the outcome." 

Thank you, Brother, for being you!
Thank you for encouraging me and steering me to the LORD's unchanging love and grace to be sustained in the hardest of circumstances.
Thank you for being REAL in your struggles to trust Him.
I love you when you’re grumpy, and even when you are "dang" aggravating to be around!!
(I can't believe I said that!!  Don't tell Mom!)
I love you!!
I am thankful for another day to thank the LORD for YOU!

Happy Birthday! 

K~

Judges 4 

When all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, ² “Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man, ³ and command them, saying, ‘Take twelve stones from here out of the midst of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests' feet stood firmly, and bring them over with you and lay them down in the place where you lodge tonight.’” ⁴ Then Joshua called the twelve men from the people of Israel, whom he had appointed, a man from each tribe. ⁵ And Joshua said to them, “Pass on before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take up each of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, ⁶ that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ ⁷ then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever.”

⁸ And the people of Israel did just as Joshua commanded and took up twelve stones out of the midst of the Jordan, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, just as the Lord told Joshua. And they carried them over with them to the place where they lodged and laid them down there. ⁹ And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the covenant had stood; and they are there to this day. ¹⁰ For the priests bearing the ark stood in the midst of the Jordan until everything was finished that the Lord commanded Joshua to tell the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua.

The people passed over in haste. ¹¹ And when all the people had finished passing over, the ark of the Lord and the priests passed over before the people. ¹² The sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh passed over armed before the people of Israel, as Moses had told them. ¹³ About 40,000 ready for war passed over before the Lord for battle, to the plains of Jericho. ¹⁴ On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they stood in awe of him just as they had stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life.

¹⁵ And the Lord said to Joshua, ¹⁶ “Command the priests bearing the ark of the testimony to come up out of the Jordan.” ¹⁷ So Joshua commanded the priests, “Come up out of the Jordan.” ¹⁸ And when the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord came up from the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests' feet were lifted up on dry ground, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed all its banks, as before.

¹⁹ The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they encamped at Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. ²⁰ And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. ²¹ And he said to the people of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’ ²² then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’ ²³ For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, ²⁴ so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.”