How Do We Prepare?

Trials.  How are we to prepare for them?

It's not *if* the trials come ~ it's *when*.

We are not promised a pathway of ease and comfort.
On the contrary.  If we belong to the Lord,
we will face difficulties.  Troubles.  Trials.

It's what we are often called to.
For His glory.  For our good.

Difficulties help to wean us from this world and prepare us for the next.
Trials and troubles refine and sanctify our hearts that we
might be more useful in our Lord's Kingdom here and for all eternity.
All these things are applied to our hearts lovingly
by our gracious Heavenly Father.  He does all things well.  All the time.

So, how do we prepare?  
Is it possible to be prepared?

This question has been posed to us in recent days.
There actually is an answer.  And, it's yes.
Yes, we can prepare.  Yes, we ought to prepare.
Yes, there is something that can be done.



Begin by searching out Who our Great God is.
Study His character.  Dig into His Word.
Equip yourself with Truth so that in the evil day 
you will be able to stand.

Great resources for learning more about the 
attributes of the God of Heaven are readily available.
The London Baptist Confession of Faith ~ 1689
is a wonderful document full of doctrine.  Doctrine = Truth.

It was compiled by a number of godly men
in the 1600's in England who purposed to chisel out
the great doctrines of our faith, and write them down in a concise
manner, so that they could refer their congregations to it.
It was a point of reference to which they could all return
again and again to fortify themselves in what is true.
It would be used to keep error from creeping in.

It is not meant to replace the Bible.
In fact, it is full of God's Word as proof texts for the statements
that they made.  It's a wonderful supplement to the Bible.
It sums up the fundamentals of our faith.  It is deep and it is rich. 



Daily devotional times in God's Word and prayer is important.
If we want to grow and learn, we must have these times of quiet.
Our all-time favourite devotional book is Spurgeon's "Morning and Evening".
Time and time again it has been a great blessing full of wise words
and deep encouragement for our troubled hearts.

I prefer the original KJV rendition as it has Spurgeon's
words unaltered contained within its pages.  He was a master with words.
He is commonly referred to as the Prince of Preachers.
That's my little endorsement of the original work.  :)

Filling our minds with Truth in the form of godly preaching is imperative.
Attending a church where God's Word is faithfully preached is necessary.
Surrounding ourselves with godly friends is wise.
Memorising Scripture is such a precious blessing to 
the heart of the Christian.  Those words hidden in the heart
will return in times of deepest distress to comfort the soul.

My recent favourite verses are these ~

"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.
For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour."
~ Isaiah 43:1b-3a ~



Another wonderful book full of faith-building and
encouraging words is "Trusting God" by Jerry Bridges.
This book has been such a blessing to our hearts.  
It's so full of wisdom and truth.  
It's not a quick read.  There is so much to digest.
But, it is so worth the effort in order to glean from Mr. Bridges' insights.

So, yes.  The answer is a resounding yes!

We can prepare for trials.  We do not have to fear them.
We have been given precious promises by our Great God
that He will never leave nor forsake His own.
He is Faithful.  He will never give more than we can bear.
Of course, at times we will feel like it is much more than we are able to bear!  
But, in the spiritual sense it never will be.  It's His promise.
We move forward following the Lord as our Shepherd.

In His strength.  By His grace.  With His peace and comfort.

"My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.
Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities,
that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, 
in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake:
for when I am weak, then am I strong."
~ II Corinthians 12:9-10 ~

Only with Him.  Only in Him.  Only Him in us.

Many Blessings,
Camille

Time Stands Still

Our Austin is outside of time.

For now, we live within it.

That means that Calvin, Fraser and Emma

will catch up to their big brother in age.

If the Lord allows, they will pass him.

In this way ~ Time stands still.

It's a strange thing, really.
I never thought I would live longer than any of our children.
I thought they would all outlive me.
However, that was not to be.

Our desire for each of our children is that they
would love and serve and follow the Lord all their days.
And that they would go to live with Him in Heaven for all eternity.
I never expected that any would be called Home first.

But, one has.
Our Austin has gone before us.

~ Calvin, Fraser, Austin, and Emma in 2004 ~

Our destiny is the same.
Not for anything good in us.
But, because of the goodness of our Saviour.
He is perfect.  He lived perfectly.
He died to pay the penalty for the sins of His people.
That each one might be made acceptable with God.
So that one day we might go live with Him for all eternity.

What an incredible thought!

May the peace that comes from these truths be yours.
May you know without any doubt where you will spend eternity.
If you are not sure where that will be,
Please seek the Lord while He may be found.

"...behold, now is the day of salvation." 
~ I Corinthians 6:2b ~

"...Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and thou shalt be saved..." 
~ Acts 16:31 ~

"All that the Father giveth me shall come to me;
and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out."
~ John 6:37 ~

Many Blessings,
Camille

Austin's Resurrection Bed

It is such a comforting thing for my Mama heart to consider this ~

Austin's body was sown in corruption, but, it will rise in glory.

Just as the Lord Jesus Christ's body was raised up

in perfection from the tomb, so will Austin's.

From this very spot ~ his resurrection bed.

"But now is Christ risen from the dead,

and become the firstfruits of them that slept."

~ I Corinthians 15:20 ~

"So also is the resurrection of the dead.

It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption:

It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory:

it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:

It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body.

There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body."

~ I Corinthians 15:42-44 ~

**Our last name was photo-shopped out of this image**

The grave marker was fashioned from a slab of polished black granite.
We are so pleased with the workmanship of the carving ~ 
the family who did the work are true craftsmen.

We are also thankful for the message it conveys.  
John 6:37 was Austin's favourite verse ~ please click here to read it.

Austin's trust was solely and alone in the finished work of his Saviour.

Our son's body rests in the ground until that glorious day

when all God's people, in the twinkling of an eye,

will be caught up with the Lord Jesus Christ in the air.

"In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye,
at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound,
and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, 
and we shall be changed."
~ I Corinthians 15:52 ~

What a day that will be!

Rejoicing in the thought of it.

Praising our Great God for the Truth of it.
Life here is temporary.  Life there is permanent.

Many Blessings,

Camille

A Little Time Off

Just taking a little time off ~

a little time away from this space.

Perhaps for a week or two?

I do want to take this opportunity, however,

to thank each and every one of you for leaving kind words

of encouragement here and for praying for us.

You have blessed us abundantly.

We sense the LORD carrying us and giving us His grace

in the midst of these difficult days.

He is Good and Gracious and Merciful.

Where would we be without Him?

"The LORD is my strength and my shield;

my heart trusteth in Him, and I am helped:

therefore, my heart greatly rejoiceth;

and with my song will I praise Him."

~ Psalm 28:7 ~

May the LORD bless you all!

With Love,

Camille

**Photo courtesy of Calvin ~

Thank you my love!  XO

Overwhelmed and Sinking?

Trials and troubles in this life can weigh us down.

Our focus can become blurred when we find ourselves 

overwhelmed with sorrows and difficult circumstances.

This ought not to be.

If we belong to the LORD, we have no reason for despair.

We have every reason to hope and to rejoice.  In Him.

But, how is it possible?  How can this rejoicing be ours?

"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith;

who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross,

despising the shame, and is set down 

at the right hand of the throne of God.

For consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners

against Himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds."

~ Hebrews 12:2-3 ~

 Remember the time when Peter walked on the water to the Lord?

He was able to do it, as long as his eyes were fixed on his Saviour.

However, when he became distracted by the waves 

and his surroundings, he sank.

There are times when we find ourselves sinking, too.

How does it happen?

Most often, it's when we fail to look to our Saviour in all things.

We must battle to get our eyes off of self and circumstances,

and fill our minds with Truth ~ His Truth.

Fill our minds with our Lord Jesus Christ ~ Him alone.

We must remember where we are headed and remind ourselves

that this world, along with its sufferings, is only temporary.  

When things seem to be falling apart all around us, where do we turn?

How do we find peace in the midst of our trials?  

How is it possible to find peace at all?

Only by His strength and grace ~ 

Only in and through Him is any of it possible.

The God who calls provides.

The means are His provision.

What are those means?  Where do we begin?

We first must be sure that the Lord Jesus Christ is our Saviour.

When we are truly His, we are able to

fortify ourselves with the Word of God and Prayer ~ 

It's so simple, yet, so vitally important!

Simply reading Scripture and praying through it changes our outlook.

Our Precious Saviour meets us there and renews our vision.

Our perspective shifts from the temporal to the eternal.

Our minds fill with His greatness and all-sufficiency.

We become less.  He becomes more.

Listening to good sermons and attending services with other believers

is another means of grace that is a blessing in our Christian walk.

It's easy to neglect these most basic of practices,

but, if we do, we most surely will suffer in our souls.

It's the way we were made.  We need Him.

May God, by His grace, continually give eyes to see

and ears to hear.  May we follow Him and keep our eyes fixed.

Especially when the waves are high and the wind is fierce.

May we know without a doubt ~ He is in the storm.

May He cause us to worship Him in the midst of it all.

Much love,
Camille

**These thoughts are a result of the sermon our pastor preached this morning ~
Thank you Pastor B for faithfully expounding God's Word to us.
We are thankful to the Lord for you!  

**Photo courtesy of Emma ~ Thank you my little love!  XO

Yippee for Spring!

Here on the West Coast of Canada,

we are a little sun-starved by the time spring arrives.

It's wonderful to finally feel its warmth on our faces,

and to get out into the sunshine after many months indoors.

This past Saturday, we were able to get some work

done outside, and when we were finished, 

we ate supper at the picnic table in the yard ~

Yippee for Spring!

I had the camera handy to capture life 

as it happened, and these are the results.

Bits and pieces of our day...

~ Fraser's hat on the picnic table

~ Hockey sticks set in the corner, just inside the front gate,

waiting to be used by the boys in a street hockey game

~ Three of my men...working hard!

~ Calvin got in the way of Howie's shovel  :)

~ The finished drain in the back lane

~ Looks like a job well done

~ Emma...my gardener

~ She's a natural

~ Nourishment for our boy...what a blessing!
(Austin's missing in our photos these days due to the fact 
that he's not been feeling well at all ~ 
Consequently, he has not been *out and about*).

~ Clothes ready to pass along

~ The view from the sliding door on the deck

looking into our home toward the front room window

~ The view looking from inside the open sliding door

out the back ~ see the sheets on the line?

Mmmm...I *love* sheets fresh off the line.

~ My Sweetie at the front door

~ Calvin and Howie heading off on their bikes together ~

they were on their way to the airport to watch planes and cycle

~ Our ornamental cherry tree ready to burst out in colour

What a blessing it is to experience the seasons

and the changes they bring.

I *love* the freshness and smell of spring.

I *love* the long days, warmth and change of pace of summer.

I *love* the colours and coolness of Fall.

I *love* the cosiness that winter brings with its

dark nights and fires in the fireplace.

I *love* the seasons.

"To everything there is a season,

and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

A time to be born, and a time to die:

a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

A time to kill, and a time to heal;

a time to break down, and a time to build up;

A time to weep, and a time to laugh;

a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;

a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

 A time to get, and a time to lose;

a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

A time to rend, and a time to sew;

a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

A time to love, and a time to hate;

a time of war, and a time of peace."

~ Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 ~

May the LORD give us wisdom to know what

to do with the seasons HE gives.

For HIS glory alone.

Many Blessings,
Camille

HE is Risen!

The Lord Jesus Christ did not stay in the tomb.
He conquered death and sin ~ He is victorious!
HE is Risen!

He ascended up into Heaven where He now sits

at the right hand of the Throne of God.

One day, He will return to take His people to be with Him.

"And the angel answered and said unto the women,

Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus,

which was crucified.

He is not here: for he is risen, as he said.

Come, see the place where the Lord lay.

And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead;

and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee;

there ye shall see him: lo, I have told you.

And they departed quickly from the sepulchre 

with fear and great joy;

and did run to bring his disciples word."

~ Matthew 28:5-8 ~

"And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them,

and said unto them, Peace be unto you.

But they were terrified and affrighted,

and supposed that they had seen a spirit.

And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? 

and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?

Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: 

handle me and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones,

as ye see me have.

And when he had thus spoken, 

he shewed them his hands and his feet."

~ Luke 24:36-40 ~

"And he led them out as far as to Bethany,

and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them.

And it came to pass, while he blessed them,

he was parted from them,

and carried up into heaven.

And they worshipped him,

and returned to Jerusalem with great joy:

And were continually in the temple,

praising and blessing God.  Amen."

~ Luke 24:50-53 ~

Christ is Risen ~ He is Risen Indeed!

May we be found worshiping Him in spirit and in truth

on this Easter Sunday, and always.

Many Blessings,
Camille

By His Stripes

"He is despised and rejected of men;

a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief:

and we hid as it were our faces from him;

he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he hath borne our griefs,

and carried our sorrows;

yet we did esteem him stricken,

smitten of God, and afflicted.

But he was wounded for our transgressions,

he was bruised for our iniquities:

the chastisement of our peace was upon him;

and with his stripes we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray;

we have turned every one to his own way;

and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."

~ Isaiah 53:3-6 ~

This prophecy was written about our Lord Jesus Christ

approximately 700 years prior to His birth.

It describes perfectly what He did for His people

when He suffered and died on the Cross.

This Good Friday may we rejoice in HIM!

Many Blessings,
Camille

Deep Waters

A couple of precious friends are going

through deep waters right now. 

Where do we turn in times like these?

God's Word is such a comfort to the soul that trusts in Him.
The following verses have been a wonderful encouragement to my heart ~
May they be used to bless each one of you this day.

"Fear not: for I have redeemed thee,

I have called thee by 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.

For I am the LORD thy God,

the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour."

~ Isaiah 43:1b-3a ~

May the LORD truly have His way in the whirlwind.

He is always and forever Good.

With Love,
Camille

**Image in this post courtesy of Calvin ~
Thank you my love.  XO

This Quiet Life

It's easy to feel small and insignificant.

To feel like we have nothing to give.

Like there is no great potential in us.

Nothing special.

But, those are lies.
We cannot trust our feelings.
We must base our feelings on Truth.

Whatever the LORD calls us to is great.

Because He is Great.

We can live this quiet life for Him.

In His strength, by His grace, for His glory.

He receives it all as a gift.

The gift of us.  We.  Me.

"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God,
that yes present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service."
~ Romans 12:1 ~ 

That's it, isn't it?  Surrender is the gift we give Him.

We bring our brokenness and He makes beauty from the ashes.

He carries us, makes us strong in His strength, and lives through us.
Day after day.  Moment by moment.  One step at a time.

It's all about HIM. 

So, if the sink is calling, the children are fighting,

or the laundry is piling up ~

Just stop and pray and ask for His strength to do the next thing.
Perhaps the next thing is to slow down to collect our thoughts.
To pray for wisdom, and to engage our world.
To be present within the four walls in which we find ourselves.

We honour Him when we do.  

It's simple, really.  One day at a time.

Following Him wherever He leads.

No matter what.

Very often, it's to a quiet life of service.
A quiet life of the everyday and the mundane.
A life of doing the next thing.

Each day is a gift. Each moment is precious.
May we continually be found giving it all back to Him.

"And whatsoever ye do in word or in deed,
do all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God and the Father by Him."
~ Colossians 3:17 ~

With love,
Camille

**Image in this post courtesy of Calvin ~
Thank you my love.  XO

Fortified

"...Lead me to the Rock that is higher than I."
~ Psalm 61:2b ~

We are finite.  HE is infinite.  

We are fallible.  HE is infallible.

We need HIM.  Always.

Recently, we have sought to be a support to

friends who are grieving.

One friend lost her husband suddenly to cancer.

He was relatively young.  In his prime.  It's been a terrible loss.

One day he was fine.  The next he was seriously ill.

And, within three weeks he was taken.  Gone.

What a blessing to know that he knew the LORD.

He not only knew of HIM, he knew HIM in the only way that matters.

HE was his LORD.  His Saviour.  His Righteousness.

What a comfort these things are in times like these.

This precious widow, when asked, requests one thing ~

A verse.  Simply, a verse to reflect on.  A verse to cling to.

Lead me to the Rock!
 In HIM alone is all comfort to be found.
From HIM alone, strength may be gleaned. 

How we need fortification.

Help from on high.  Hope from His Word.
How we need HIM!

Really, her request is to be fortified.  

To be continually directed to the One from Whom all things flow.

Fortified in the Living and True God of Heaven and Earth,
and the Truth found in His Word.
So that her feet will be firm upon the Rock, Christ Jesus.

Aren't we all like this?

Do we not all need HIM?

We have been created this way.

With this need.  This void that needs filling.

He alone satisfies.  He alone gives all that is required.
He alone gives the peace that passes all understanding.

How precious it is that He promises to give all we need.
Moment by moment.  Day after day.

And, so much more!!

Many Blessings,
Camille

Slow Down

A theme for the New Year?

A word?  A thought?

Resolutions?

These are all popular notions ~ popular ideas.

I'm not much into making resolutions

of the material sort ~

lose weight, exercise more, etc.

Not that these things are wrong,

I'm just not in the habit of doing it.

But, thought ought to be given routinely

to the direction our lives are going in.

The path on which we tread.

Yes.  Often.  Not just on January first.

And, so, in light of this ~ a thought.

Quietly mulling around in my mind

is this one thought ~ Slow Down.

Slow Down and rest in HIM.

Slow Down to read and meditate in HIS Word.

And, hide it in my heart.
Slow Down in order to 

spend more time with HIM in prayer and quiet.

Slow Down and really live each moment for HIM.

Enter fully into the moments HE gives.

And, invest in the lives HE has given.
Every. Single. Day.

Is that not enough?

What else is there??

May the LORD help me to truly

slow down and live.

For HIS glory.  By HIS grace.

In HIS strength.

"So teach us to number our days,
that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom."
~ Psalm 90:12 ~

May the LORD bless each one of you
in this coming year!

With Love,
Camille

Being Partial

Something I've been thinking on lately.

Something that isn't right in the Christian Church at times.

Not right at all.

Being Partial.

There are times when I have struggled

to keep this one in check.

In balance.

Oh, it's easy to be exclusive.

To be partial.

To have favourites.

Too easy.

And, yet, it's wrong.

Very wrong.

We are not to be partial.

Not to have favourites.

Not to give ourselves exclusively to one person

or group of people within the church body.

We are to be a family.

And, we are to serve one another.

This is not to say that we are not to be discerning.

Not at all!

We ought not to embrace every *wind of doctrine*

in the name of peace and *unity*.

Unless we are united around the LORD and HIS Word,

we do not have unity at all!

There is no peace to be found outside of HIM.

I am speaking here of excluding people within

our local church fellowship who may not be *our kind of people*,

or those who we would perhaps not seek out as friends.

I am also speaking of those ones who we seek out

to the exclusion of others on a Sunday morning.

Perhaps there are those who are lonely,

or hurting, or new?

They are the ones we ought to seek out.

I chose this photo to go with this post because it

shows one *special* tree in it ~

Just like that one special friend.

Or, perhaps, it's like that one who is excluded.

It is often a temptation to exclude or to be exclusive.

How sad it is!

May it never be said of us!

May the LORD be glorified in all we do and say.

And, may we be instruments of HIS grace to

many along the way!

"My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.
For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring,
in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment;
And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing,
and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place;
and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool:

Are ye not then partial in yourselves,
and are become judges of evil thoughts?
Hearken, my beloved brethren,
Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith,
and heirs of the kingdom which he hath
promised to them that love him?

But ye have despised the poor.
Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?
Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called?
If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture,
Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:
But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin,
and are convinced of the law as transgressors."

~ James 2:1-9 ~

In HIS Love,

Camille

**Photo credit ~ Calvin...thank you my love! xo