Inspired by . . . the Hope of His Coming Vol. 0

 

 

We should have begun our Advent series with this, beloved.

But I have only just discovered it. Rather like finding the key to the center drawer of that old desk you found in your mother’s attic years before.

Let’s unlock the mystery together, shall we?

 

Griffith Thomas said of the Old Testament:

It is a book of unfulfilled prophecies,

unexplained ceremonies, and

unsatisfied longings.

ALL of which are resolved

in the New Testament focus on

JESUS CHRIST.

Who fulfills in His life the prophecies,

explains in His death the ceremonies, and

satisfies in His resurrection the longings.

 

It is HIStory.

From before time begin – for all time.

 

“Her offspring will crush your head, and you will bite her offspring's heel."  Gen 3:15

 

But when the right time finally came, God sent His own Son.

He came as the son of a human mother and lived under the Jewish Law,
to redeem those who were under the Law,

so that we might become God's children. Gal 4:4-5

 

In the beginning the Word already existed; the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1

 

kk_waterstained frame and pdpa_Golden bokeh overlay

 

 

Blessings,

 

 

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Inspired by . . . spontaneous praise

 

Focusing on Thanksgiving as a Lifestyle, not just a holiday.

 

I will give thanks to Him in song. Psalm 28:7

kk_Monday

 

German pastor Martin Rinckart lived in Eilenburg, in Saxony during the Thirty Years’ War. During that time the city was overrun by the opposing army three times. The villagers were subject to overcrowding, disease, and famine among other horrors. In 1637 a severe plague hit the city. Rinckart was the only surviving pastor and performed more than 5000 funerals that year, including that of his wife.

Most of us are so far removed from anything remotely like the suffering Rinckart witnessed and endured. Some of us can relate to some of it, disease, loss, but the total package? Probably not. But try. Try to imagine being under the constant threat of war. Sickness, the gnawing of hunger in your belly. Loss, such great loss. For decades.

How would you think? how would you feel? about God?

In 1648 a series of peace treaties were signed that ended the war.

By then, this hymn was already being widely sung throughout the region, “Nun danket alle Gott,” Now Thank We All Our God:

 

Now thank we all our God, with heart and hands and voices,
Who wondrous things has done, in Whom this world rejoices;
Who from our mothers’ arms has blessed us on our way
With countless gifts of love, and still is ours today.

 

This beautiful song of praise and thanksgiving was written by none other than Martin Rinckart.

 

kk_restmagic

 

A similar expression of gratitude is found in Exodus 15 when Moses bursts into a spontaneous song of praise after God delivered them from the hands of Pharaoh. We noted in a previous post that failing to thank God went hand in hand with forgetting God and worshiping idols. Here we see just the opposite. Focusing on what God has done and praising Him leads naturally to worshiping Him. This passage also shows that there's a strong connection between praising and thanking God.

 

Gratitude is a characteristic of those who love God.

As believer’s we have the opportunity to bear witness to a loving and faithful God.

An “attitude of gratitude” can be a powerful witness for Christ in an increasing ungrateful world.

 

Blessings,

 

PS Don’t forget to check out my Facebook page for daily inspirations on cultivating a grateful heart! I would love for you to join the discussion!

Note: My inspiration for this series comes from the November 2009 issue of Today in the Word. A ministry of Moody Bible Institute.

#monthofthanks

 

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Inspired by . . . an announcement

I've been on vacation {it was either that or a straight jacket} and so I'm a little late with this . . .

 

Available Now!

 

 

 

I shared some excerpts from this book in a recent blog post.

If you're interested in learning more about Gladness for Mourning, or Heart's Desire, the first book in the Whispers of Grace Series, please visit my website at junecaedmon.com

 

I'm looking forward to sharing some of my vacation photos with you soon!

 

Have a wonder-filled day,

 

 

 

 

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Inspired by... days gone by

 

There are a lot of special and neat things about where I'm living now. And today I'm going to share one of them with you.

Anybody know what this is?

 

 

Most people guess: a cannon. But it's actually an engine from an original 1898 oil rig. Not only is it a neat story (how it came to be sitting where it is today – that is my cottage, Casa Verde, in the background) but it also provided me with an interesting composition from which to create an abstract for this week's Photo Art Friday Challenge!

 

A screenshot of my layers is at the end of the post. I layered the original photos and used Bonnie's Chinks of Light and Off Kilter textures to create the affect.

 

The Story: Back in the early 80's my friend's dad was working down in south Texas on the oil fields. He would travel the pipe lines, through the vast south Texas ranches, and read the pressure gauges to make sure there weren't any leaks. Over the course of 80+ years the oil companies had left a lot of junk treasure laying around. Eventually, one of the ranchers asked my friend's dad if he knew anyone who would be interested in cleaning up his ranch. He immediately contacted his son and grandson.

If I haven't lost you already, here's where the story gets interesting...

 

On the rancher's property, nearly hidden by trees, was an old tin building about 30ft wide x 100ft long. The building had been erected some 60+ years before by Magnolia Oil to preserve one of the last known, complete, original oil rigs. Somehow, as Magnolia became Mobile, became Exxon, the rig down in Web County was forgotten.

For my friend, it was love at first sight. He's still looking for the pictures he took of the rig as they found it inside this tin building, and I'll post them here when he does, but see if you can imagine what he saw:

The engine, pictured above, was attached to a wheel, about 14ft in diameter which rotated and engaged the walking beam, a 24ft x 18inch x 20inch solid piece of wood, mounted on an "A" frame. At the end of the walking beam was the shaft that went down into the earth, usually a quarter-mile or more, and brought up the oil. A massive, complex system with many parts, the oil companies quickly engineered to the more streamline rigs you still see today.

 

It took about a year-and-a-half, but my friend and his son cleaned up the rancher's property and moved the rig with the intent of setting it up exactly as they had found it. As you can see, they got as far as the engine. But the other parts have been preserved and one day (hopefully soon) people driving by won't be pointing to the "cannon" anymore...

 

 

Tico 2

Titusville Iron Works

Titusville PA.

Pat. 1898

 

The last picture is textured with Kim Klassen's awaken. It's just enough, don't you think {wink}. I've enrolled in her Beyond Layers class, and am looking forward to a "year of art full inspiration!"

I have to admit, I'm intrigued by stories like the one shared above. I love old equipment, gears, rigs, etc. and believe history comes alive when you can teach it through personal stories. It's more interesting and meaningful, because it's the people in history that makes it matter.

I hope you've enjoyed the story. And if you have one of your own or know about these old rigs, I'd love to hear from you!

 

Blessings,

 

 

 

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