Sing!

This was an early morning piece.  The house was quiet except for the birds chirping outside. "Sing" came to mind after I finished painting.  Guess I was more conscious of the birds than I realized.  Funny, people think of singing only when you're happy.  It's the times I need Jesus most that I sing.  It's like thanksgiving - a willful act, a choice to praise when things aren't going the way you've planned.  I think THAT is what singing is for - to lift us up and out of the "right now" of life, to make us stand firm, to remember in Whom our feet are firmly planted.  "The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives." Psalm 37:23

We sing when our "plan" isn't lining up with God's - when His way seems a hard way...but we're choosing trust, choosing faith, choosing to persevere and hold onto Him until the end, until He sees us through.  Then our songs become those of joy because we held on.  We trusted.  Today I'm thinking of my sister whose husband is serving overseas.  I've seen her stand firm in her faith and watched as the two of them maneuvered through the difficulties of military life with humor, determination, and a deep dedication to one another.  Today we sing as a nation - a song of remembrance and of thanks for the freedom to say what we feel, to live as we believe,  to serve God and live our lives enjoying our freedoms.  For those who have served, those overseas now, and those who died serving... thank you, and may God richly bless you and your families.  Happy Memorial Day.