Another first under my belt this weekend with a family wedding on Sat.  It was cold, wet and did I mention that is was cold???!!!  Despite the weather it was wonderful to witness the marriage of two young people who obviously have not only a great love for each other but also for their Lord and Saviour - may God be the center of your marriage Ray and Emma, may His Word be your guide throughout your life together and even when the hard times come - which they will - may you lean more and more on Him as your source of strength and comfort.  Blessing and much love to you both.

The weather today has been glorious with blue sky and sunshine - what a contrast to yesterday.

Today I notched up a second by going to church again - thanks for your company Ryan and Ineke.  And even more amazingly there were no tears at all during the whole service.  One of the songs we sang this morning spoke a lot to me and gave me great comfort and I'd just like to share the words with you.  It's entitled I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say by Horatius Bonar

1. I heard the voice of Jesus say,
   “Come unto Me and rest;
   Lay down, thou weary one, lay down
   Thy head upon My breast.”
   I came to Jesus as I was,
   Weary and worn and sad;
   I found in Him a resting place,
   And He has made me glad.
2. I heard the voice of Jesus say,
   “Behold, I freely give
   The living water; thirsty one,
   Stoop down, and drink, and live.”
   I came to Jesus, and I drank
   Of that life-giving stream;
   My thirst was quenched, my soul revived,
   And now I live in Him.
3. I heard the voice of Jesus say,
   “I am this dark world’s Light;
   Look unto Me, thy morn shall rise,
   And all thy day be bright.”
   I looked to Jesus, and I found
   In Him my Star, my Sun;
   And in that light of life I’ll walk,
   Till trav’ling days are done.

Late one evening this past week I had a total meltdown.  I was so overwhelmed by everything that has happened, everything that I have to face in the days, weeks, months and years to come, worry as to what the future may hold and this terrible loneliness. In desperation I cried out to the Lord and surrendered it all to Him - my cares, my worries, my sorrow, my loneliness and my future - because I knew that I could no longer carry that HUGE burden and survive and that I could trust Him with it all.  

Do I feel better? Yes. 

Do I still feel lonely?  Yes at times I do, not because the Lord isn't there because I do feel His presence and nearness but because there is no physical presence of someone in my life anymore.

Do and will I still have moments of deep despair and sorrow? Yes of course I am grieving a great loss, but, I also have many, many moments of happiness, laughter and joy and that's when as the words of the hymn above say I know I have found my resting place in Him, He has made me glad for He is my Star and my Sun and in His light I'll walk till my travelling days on this earth are done.

I want to say thank you for the feedback I've been getting about my blog and also for taking the time to read it.  My prayer is that each one of you who read this blog may come to trust the Lord with and in all aspects of your life and for those of you who haven't done so yet that you will accept the living water He so freely gives making Him the Lord of your life - for only in Him will you find true freedom and peace.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life."  John 3:16  

What an awesome and amazing gift.

Love and blessings

Jolanda