18. Heartbeats
You, yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. (2 Corinthians 3: 2)
I have lettered family mementos that span nearly two hundred years. Among these treasures is correspondence between my parents during WW II. Though apart, they were together awaiting my birth.
Heartbeats of chronicled genealogy add up to my feeling grateful for the gift of life. But first, I was in the heart of God before creation. He awaited his timing to start my heart’s beat and delivery to my earthly home.
I came with his personalized blueprint of recorded days including his hopes as to how I would embrace his will to contribute to his world.
I continue to desire moving intertwined with the plans He has knit for me— the joys that uplift my heart and the challenges that try it.
He is the wellspring of my heart.
He is near as I live my life.
Paul wanted the Corinthians to recognize that when they entered into a relationship with Christ, his Spirit came to dwell within them. Christ’s love could then be expressed outwardly. This is true for each of us.
. . . .
As the beat of life goes on within me and around me, I want to be intentional to choose and seize with my mind, heart, and spirit any opportunity to express love.
Lynn L. Severance. “Seeking the Light of God's Comforter When Challenges Dim Our View”. 8. Heartbeats. Redemption Press.
This is definitely one of my favorite devotionals; it brought back memories of my own childhood (not that long ago, lol) of my grandmother taking me around to cemeteries to show me my heritage and looking up files and files of genealogy. We can't know where we're going if we don't know where we come from, and God is so wonderful that He knows ALL of our lives from start to finish and guides our steps. Thank you, Lynn, for these beautiful words.
ReplyDeleteShelby - thank you for your thoughtful comments. Each item in this photo is amazing to me. I won't list them all here but will mention the sampler on the wall. It was done by my great-great grandmother on my father's side when she was aged 11 in 1832!! She was learning the different stitches for embroidery and signed the sampler with her name and age and year.
DeleteI was also an avid counted-cross stitch crafter (something I can no longer do) but remember with love the hours I 'stitched away')!
I had never seen it until my Mom gave it to me many years ago when I was teaching 1st grade and it all represented the "ABCs" so prevalent when teaching children to read!
It is a treasure. All of the items are treasures!
Love, Lynn