Journey On, Sweet Sisters...

Earlier this year, a dear sister and I hosted a women's book study in hopes to encourage and to fellowship amongst God's people in our community. By God's grace, our small group consisted of women from four different churches with varied backgrounds, experiences and trials. Our commonality you might wonder? It was that, as redeemed women of God, we are in constant need of His grace to trust in His covenental promises, to be guided and led by His Word, and to be comforted knowing it is God who works in us, "both to will and to work for his good pleasure" (Phil. 2:13 ESV). By the end of the study, we witnessed God doing a work in each of us. He softened our hearts to love and trust Him more and knitted our hearts together so we could love on and care for one another (Luke 10:27, Col. 2:1-2). Praise be to God!

I miss studying and fellowship-ing with my sisters. We each have been called to different ministries for a season, but for now and until we meet again, I pray the following prayer for them and for me to journey on.

"JOURNEYING ON"

LORD OF THE CLOUD AND FIRE,
I am a stranger, with a stranger's indifference;
My hands hold a pilgram's staff,
My march is Zionward,
My eyes are toward the coming of the Lord,
My heart is in thy hands without reserve.
Thou hast created it,
redeemed it,
renewed it,
captured it,
conquered it.

Keep from it every opposing foe,
crush in it every rebel lust,
mortify every treacherous passion,
annihilate every earthborn desire.

All faculties of my being vibrate to thy torch;
I love thee with soul, mind, body, strength,
might, spirit, affection, will,
desire, intellect, understanding.

Thou art the very perfection of all perfections;
All intellect is derived from thee;
My scanty rivulets flow from thy unfathomable fountain.
Compared with thee the sun is darkness,
all beauty deformity,
all wisdom folly,
the best goodness faulty.

Thou art worthy of an adoration greater than my dull heart can yield;
Invigorate my love that it may rise worthily to thee,
tightly entwine itself round thee,
be allured by thee.
Then shall my walk be endless praise [-- praise to thee!].

(The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions, 108 -- emphasis mine)


Soli Deo Gloria!

- Sonia