Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Last Hurrah of Summer!!

This sign is on a tree by a river. 
It reminds me of a verse in Isaiah:


Fear not: for I have redeemed thee,
I have called thee by thy name;
thou art mine.
When thou passest through the waters,
I will be with thee;
and through the rivers,
they shall not overflow thee:
when thou walkest through the fire,
thou shalt not be burned;
neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.
~Isaiah 43:1b-2~

A few years ago, our family went through deep waters
and it felt like those waters would overflow us.
These verses carried me through that time and
still remind me to keep my eyes on Jesus.


For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, 
and that spreads out its roots by the river, 
and shall not fear when the heat comes, 
but its leaf shall be green; 
and shall not be anxious in the year of drought, 
neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
~Jeremiah 17:8~


Do you have a peaceful river near you?? 
Do you stay inside too much; finding the days slipping away,
eventually getting shorter and cooler as Fall approaches? 
We have two absolutely beautiful rivers that merge into each other at a fork. 
When I sat by the river today I could feel the peace of God even just in the air. 
The warmth and sun enveloped me like His arms enfolding me.

I remembered the days when seven young children 
played along another river.
They would throw in rocks, sticks, 
and any debris they could find.
Then they watched it float lazily or rapidly downstream. 
Sometimes they would crawl out onto a tree that might have 
fallen in a storm and was caught by the slight current. 
Eventually, always eventually, if not sooner...
someone would fall into the river and 'accidentally' get soaked!! 
They knew they had to come immediately 
when it was time to walk home or I might hesitate to come again!!


Like a river glorious, is God’s perfect peace,
Over all victorious, in its bright increase;


Perfect, yet it floweth, fuller every day,
Perfect, yet it groweth, deeper all the way.


Stayed upon Jehovah, hearts are fully blest
Finding, as He promised, perfect peace and rest.


Hidden in the hollow of His blessed hand,
Never foe can follow, never traitor stand;


Not a surge of worry, not a shade of care,
Not a blast of hurry touch the spirit there.


Every joy or trial falleth from above,
Traced upon our dial by the Sun of Love;




We may trust Him fully, All for us to do;
They who trust Him wholly, Find Him wholly true.


Take the time to end your summer well, spending time outside in God's beautiful Creation with your children!!

What fun memories have you made this summer with your children?? Have you taken them on a 'Last Hurrah' before returning to homeschooling or catching the school bus??

I'd LOVE you to leave a comment!!

Since I live out 'in-the-sticks'... friends, like you are a long ways away!!
Sooo, I'd love you to follow me on: 

Link Up with me TOMORROW for 
WholeHearted Home Wednesdays!!
I'd love to have you!!

In Christ Alone,
~Judith~


7 comments:

  1. Dear Judith,
    THANK you so much for such inspired words. The pictures were absolutely fabulous too! I love water in all its forms, though my favorite is the ocean, I do enjoy rivers and lakes too so looking at your pictures brought such joy to my soul. I have not been able to take my boys to a "last hurrah" yet, but as I am feeling stronger after my surgery, I'm thinking even if just go for a walk in the woods or something like that would be a nice farewell to this quite eventful summer.
    I also wanted to say THANKS a BUNCH for stopping by my site. I really appreciate your comments and your time.
    I love your blog. It reflects His Light in you. it is cheerful and soft at the same time. It just makes me feel very at ease and peaceful...and for that I thank you. Have a blessed evening and see you tomorrow at your link up!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gisela, you take it easy and enjoy your boys even inside. It is important to heal from surgery and not to do too much too soon. I love the ocean best too, but I am so thankful that we have had water not too far from us...we have rivers and lakes around here. I grew up around the ocean so I love it!

      Thank you for all your compliments...I loved your blog too!!

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  2. Judith,
    No last hurrah for us yet....DD is only 2! We got some time before we start 'school'. We do live by a river and we are planning a walk soon. The weather is finally cooling off and we have been enjoying evening walks again.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You just left me chuckling!! Yes, you have a few years that will fly by swiftly!! When our children were younger, we always left on vacation (our last hurrah) as kids were going back to school. The campsites were empty and it was wonderful.

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  3. Judith...We don't usually do a last hurrah for summer but we did do some fun things together. My children keep journals so they have written them down and they, too, will remember the summer of 2012. And being outside where we live is crazy sometimes since the heat is too much to bear. We're looking forward to cooler temps, a new school year and our annual family trip in November (God willing). Praise the Lord for new adventures to experience. Love your photos here today.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I want to sit on one of those rocks and put my feet in.

    ReplyDelete

If you have gone a little way ahead, O friend, call back --
Twill cheer my heart and help my feet along the stony track.

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