Hope Harbor

As the first month of the new year draws swiftly to a close, I wanted to take the opportunity to reflect on the refreshing hope of "newness". In faith we can experience regeneration and become new creatures. (2Corinthians 5:16-19) One true promise in which I find much comfort is that the mercies of our faithful God are new every morning. (Lamentations 3:20-21) A new commandment Jesus gave is to love one another. (John 13:34) We can look forward to a new heaven and a new earth. (2Peter3:13) Here is a link to an encouraging song entitled All Things New http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_Q3NrB_eHM May all our days be joyful and new.

Be on the lookout for mercies. The more we look for them, the more of them we will see.  Blessings brighten when we count them.

There is nothing but God's grace. We walk upon it, we breathe it, we live and die by it; it makes the nails and axles the universe.         Robert Louis Stevenson For in Him we live and move and have our being.          Acts 17:28 KJV

Today is my beloved dog Tanner's birthday. It's a nice time to reflect on how special he is, and how grateful I am to have him as an important part of my life. It's also a good excuse to "brag" about him and share some favorite pictures: This is when we first met. I can hardly believe it has been three years already! Tanner won my heart right away  He can be quite silly! Tanner loves to play... But he does his job when I need him - a very talented dog indeed! He closes the door                                                            Tanner turns on and off lights And we have even had the opportunity to teach children  about service dogs. Tanner is excellent at many th...

Today I found a message from a friend which she posted on my Facebook wall. It stated simply: "I miss the doses of hope." I regret to have disappointed her or anyone else who may find the inspirational quotes from my calendar to be helpful. I am also pleased to know that there are those who find the blog posts encouraging. So... in honor of my Facebook (and real life) friend, and with hopes that it will be a blessing, following are many quotes on the theme of hope taken from my daily calendar: If you had no winter the spring would not be so pleasant. If we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.                         Keith Bradstreet The three grand essentials of happiness are: something to do, something to love and something to hope for.                ...

Today phrases of a song have been echoing in my mind. With the help of a friend, I came to realize that it is a hymn composed by Fanny Crosby entitled To God Be The Glory . Regrettably, I often lack sufficient appreciation and gratitude for all that God has done for me. He has indeed done great things. Most notably, our redemption from sin has been purchased by the precious blood of Jesus. The lyrics written by Fanny Crosby help us to get in touch with what has been done on our behalf. She reminds us that salvation is available to “all who believe. We must remember that our pardon is not because of anything we have earned, but because of the work our Savior has done. Therefore, so very appropriate is the proclamation: To God Be The Glory Below I have posted the lyrics of this hymn as well as a history concerning its’ origin. At the end of this blog post, I have included links to 2 versions of this hymn as well as a link to the song My Tribute which has a similar theme. The realiz...

Today this is the entry on my HOPE calendar: January 8 The very least you can do in your life is to figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live within that hope. Barbara Kingsolver That certainly is a profound statement. What matters in life is to identify what it is that we hope for and to order our lives accordingly. For many of us, it isn't easy to identufu what we hope for. Perhaps because of disappointments, we find it difficult to dare to dream. We wonder what the future might hold and whether what we long for could actually come to pass. It might be even more difficult to live in such a way as to honor our hope. However, it is vital that we remember that we have a good and kind Heavenly Father who intends only for our welfare. Twila Paris' song Sing Me A Lullaby conveys the soothing message that we can rest in God's care. Lyrics to Sing Me A Lullaby: All I see is that I don't see what's ahead of me , I'm afraid my life will nev...

I did not post yesterday, so today I'll share 2 quotes from my HOPE calendar: January 6 For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11 (NASB) January 7 Always be in a state of expectancy. and see that you leave room for God to come as He likes.

Today's quote from my HOPE calendar: January 5 May your troubles in the New Year be as short-lived as your resolutions. I must confess I am a bit ambivalent about this one. Sadly it is true that most of us give up on our good intentions after only a short time -so if our troubles could be brief too that's a nice sentiment. Wouldn't it be good if we would be faithful to our commitments and when we do have troubles, we continue to peacefully trust.

Today's quote from my HOPE calendar: When you are lonely, I wish you love, When you are down I wish you joy, When you are troubled I wish you peace, When things are complicated I wish you simple beauty, When things are chaotic, I wish you inner silence, When things seem empty, I wish you hope.

I have a calendar entitled 365 Days of Hope. (It's one of those perpetual flip calendars with a daily quote on the theme of Hope.) It ocurred to me at the beginning of this new year that since my blog is named Hope Harbor, it would be appropriate to post a daily dose of hope taken from that calendar. (Some friends may remember that previously I had sent regular emails with doses of hope.) Since I did not get started on day one or even the second day, today I will include 3 entries: January 1 God of the years that lie behind us, Lord of the years that stretch before, Weaver of all the ties that bind us, Keeper and King of the open door... Hold us close in Your tender keeping, O Maker of all New Years! January 2 We do not how this is true - where would faith be if we did? - but we do know that all things that happen are full of shining seed. Light is sown for us - not darkness. January 3 Life is like an exciting book, and every year starts a new chapter. I hope to con...

Happy New Year greetings from Tanner, and also Bridget (and me too)! Happy New Year ! C hristmas 2011 may already be in the past, but I am absolutely gleeful with excited anticipation about what’s ahead in 2012!                                       This is a more dignified pose … pensively pondering the future (or perhaps wondering why it is winter and still no snow.) Greetings from Bridget too! (Did you catch the tricky wave with her hind paw?) Well... I guess there really can be peace on earth.