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<Previous Message Next Message> Monday, June 4, 2012 Listen to this message on your
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"Like A Mighty Sea"
"The seas have lifted up, O LORD, the seas have lifted up their voice; the seas have lifted up their pounding waves. Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea-- the LORD on high is mighty" (Psalm 93:3,4). "For I am the LORD your God, who churns up the sea so that its waves roar— the LORD Almighty is His name" (Isaiah 51:15). This morning we are at Rehoboth Beach Delaware. I was raised in the Midwest and didn't see the ocean till I was twelve. Brooksyne, raised in Oklahoma, didn't see the ocean till 1979 after we were married for several years. As we recall it was near this very beach in Delaware when we enjoyed a vacation here. Ester, on the other hand, has seen the ocean regularly since she was four years old due to our years of ministry in New England. Now that we live inland we find it a privilege to once again view the mighty ocean, walk along the sandy shoreline or boardwalk, and hear the crashing waves all the while experiencing other nautical sights, sounds, and smells! Yesterday afternoon as we drove into the area we were both excited to see our first glimpse of the ocean. As we took in the view of the mighty ocean and watched its pounding waves hit the shoreline an old hymn came to mind, "Like a Mighty Sea". In our first pastorate in Southern Missouri a dear older lady named Beulah Sutherland often requested this song, as it was her favorite. What I find interesting is that she and her husband Tracy had never seen the ocean. Their only distant trip was as far as Illinois, one state to the east, where their daughter lived. (The photo shows Tracy and Beulah Sutherland with a very young Brooksyne during the "big hair" days. The Sutherlands were in their 90's at this time, and we were humbled that they, together representing about 150 years of walking with God, lovingly sat under our ministry though we were still Bible College students in our very early 20's. Their sterling example has served us all these years later. The ocean has inspired quite a number of Scripture verses, hymns, and settings for writings; both fiction and nonfiction throughout the ages. The above Psalm portion extols the might of God. The sea referred to by the Psalmist was likely the Mediterranean Sea. Israel is small geographically and Jerusalem is not far from the Mediterranean Sea. I too am reminded of the awesomeness of God’s power when I look out over the vast ocean and watch the great breakers crash into the shore. The mysteries that lie below the sea only underscore the awesomeness and depth of God's great power. Truly the waves are a great analogy of God’s ceaseless mighty power but the Lord on high is even mightier! How mighty is God? He's mighty enough to rule the great universe, yet small enough to live within my heart. Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber Daily prayer: Father, any words we speak or analogies we use cannot adequately describe your infinite mighty power. It miraculously reaches beyond the heavens, is visible throughout all the earth, and is resident within our own hearts. It is only in experiencing a personal relationship with you that we begin to tap into the inexhaustible power and might that flows from You, Almighty God. Even as the waves of the ocean are powerful and wash up on shore may You fill our lives to overflowing so that Your mighty presence is visible in our lives and spills out to those around us. In Jesus’ mighty name we pray, Amen. Last
Friday afternoon I conducted a wedding at the Donegal Springs, a
beautiful area about a mile from our home. The couple had intended and
desired to have the ceremony outside near the Springs and had the
chairs all set up. But lo and behold a heavy rainstorm came
through and we had the ceremony inside. However, even through the heavy
rain, you can see what a beautiful setting we had. Last Friday I took this photo in the course of our chaplain work. As business chaplains
we have the opportunity to visit companies throughout Lancaster
and Lebanon counties and express interest and care for the employees.
Shirley gave us permission to take and post this photo. She bears a
heavy burden for her husband who's been in the hospital for some time now. She
has a job inspecting small metal precision machined parts.
On the way to the shore we stopped to visit our Amish friends. Here's their beautiful garden. Moses is excitedly preparing to fly the "airplane" kite his mother got at the garage sale the day before. The children were enjoying the kite soaring in the wind until it headed for the windmill and, whoof, it got snatched up by the large turning blades. Dad quickly turned off the wheel. What a sight to watch their lit up faces quickly turn to very disappointed ones as it appeared the windmill was mangling the kite. But, lo and behold, Dad's quick action freed the kite and eventually it untangled itself and looked no worse for the wear. What a relief!! The kids couldn't wait to show me their "Amish go-cart" Dad had made for them. The motor is from Anna Ruth's old washing machine. She now has an electric Amish washer as she describes it, which runs off the generator. The children led me to the nest of newly born song sparrows crying out "I'm hungry!!!" Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources "Like A Mighty Sea" Video
Like a mighty sea, Like a mighty sea Comes the love of Jesus sweeping over me The waves of glory roll, the Savior to extol Comes the love of Jesus sweeping o'er my soul. "The Love Of God" Video MercyMe Could we with ink the ocean fill, And were the skies of parchment made, Were every stalk on earth a quill, And every man a scribe by trade; To write the love of God above Would drain the ocean dry; Nor could the scroll contain the whole, Though stretched from sky to sky. "How Big Is God?" Video The Cathedrals How BIG Is God? An Incredible Perspective! Are our daily encouragement messages a blessing to you? We ask you to consider making a donation to Daily Encouragement Net so that we can continue to prepare and provide this daily resource which is accessed by believers and seekers all over the world. Daily Encouragement Net relies solely on the generosity and financial support of its readers and podcast listeners. See here for more information on supporting this ministry. Gifts are tax deductible. Permissions: Please feel free to pass on, reproduce and distribute any material on Daily Encouragement Net, in part or in whole, in any format, provided that you do not alter the wording in any way or charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. It is our desire to spread this material, not protect or restrict it. I do request that you keep the contact, copyright and subscription information intact. Text only version for printing: To make a text only version for printing (without photos or any of the supplemental materials) 1) Open the basic text editor that comes with all computers (known as wordpad, textpad, etc.) You can also use a program like Word and select paste text only. 2) Select and copy the text from the portion of the message you want to print. 3) Paste into the text pad. (The photos won't show up but you will have a brief text description of the photo which you can delete or just ignore.) 4) Format if you desire (change font, increase or decrease size, etc.) 5) Print! Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity." Daily Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com © Copyright 2012 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA |