Sunday's Song

Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise

Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy great Name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might;
thy justice like mountains high soaring above
thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

To all life thou givest, to both great and small;
in all life thou livest, the true life of all;
we blossom and flourish, like leaves on the tree,
then wither and perish; but nought changeth thee.

Great Father of glory, pure Father of light,
thine angels adore thee, all veiling their sight;
all laud we would render: O help us to see
'tis only the splendor of light hideth thee.
--Walter Chalmers Smith

A Strange Summer, So Far...

This has been a really strange summer, to say the least. The locals agree. If it hasn't been wet and rainy, it's been cool and windy. Today's high was only 68 degrees!!! We haven't had to use the air conditioning at all, so far!

Trees bloomed and leafed out later than normal, this spring, but the melodious croaking of frogs seemed to be on time, in spite of the late April snowfalls. --Yes, that's plural!!!

It was also shocking not to see our lilacs swarming with several species of butterflies, especially the emigrating red admiral and American painted lady. Our sweet smelling mock orange bush, also a butterfly magnet, has surprisingly drawn very little outside of the various bees.

But, the flowers are blooming, the grass is once again green, and in spite of the drop in butterfly sitings, I'm finding eggs on their specific host plants. To see photos of butterflies, moths, and caterpillars, check out the posts on my leps blog at: http://lezasleps.blogspot.com/ --LKR

Sunday's Song

God of Our Fathers

God of our fathers, whose almighty hand
Leads forth in beauty all the starry band
Of shining worlds in splendor through the skies
Our grateful songs before Thy throne arise.

Thy love divine hath led us in the past,
In this free land by Thee our lot is cast,
Be Thou our Ruler, Guardian, Guide and Stay,
Thy Word our law, Thy paths our chosen way.

From war’s alarms, from deadly pestilence,
Be Thy strong arm our ever sure defense;
Thy true religion in our hearts increase,
Thy bounteous goodness nourish us in peace.

Refresh Thy people on their toilsome way,
Lead us from night to never ending day;
Fill all our lives with love and grace divine,
And glory, laud, and praise be ever Thine.

--Daniel C. Roberts, 1876

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En Español en el honor para nuestro estudiante español:

Señor Jehová

Señor Jehová, Omnipotente Dios,
Tú que los astros riges con poder,
Oye clemente nuestra humilde voz,
Nuestra canción hoy dígnate atender.

Eterno Padre, nuestro corazón,
A Ti profesa un inefable amor;
Hazte presente en tu pueblo hoy;
Tiéndenos pues, Tu brazo protector.

A nuestra patria da tu bendición;
Enséñanos Tus leyes a guardar;
Alumbra la conciencia y la razón;
Domina siempre Tú en todo hogar.

Defiéndenos del enemigo cruel;
Concede a nuestras faltas corrección;
Nuestro servicio sea siempre fiel;
Rodéanos de tu gran protección.

--Daniel C. Roberts, 1876

Empty Nest Syndrome

Isn't he sweet? Hannah found him hiding in tall grass by a small lilac bush in our yard. Elizabeth was still out mowing the lawn, so hopefully she didn't accidentally hurt any of its siblings!

We watched as the mother bird called this and another sibling to the safety of a nearby bush and hop up a few branches from the ground. I only hope it was high enough to keep them safe!
Hannah ran to notify one neighbor who has a sweet, huggable hunting cat about the babies. Later, another neighbor's adorable mini dachshund was found wandering around in our yard close to where the babies were hiding. Harley loves to eat baby birds and bird eggs! NOAA Weather Radio had also issued severe thunderstorm warnings for our area, this evening. To make matters worse, we also have a lot of hungry crows that frequent our yard. It's hazardous living in a sin-cursed world! --LKR

Sunday's Song

To God be the Glory

To God be the glory, great things He hath done,
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life our redemption to win,
And opened the life-gate that all may go in.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice;
Oh, come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory; great things He hath done.

Oh, perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.

Great things He hath taught us, great things He hath done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport when Jesus we see.
--Frances J. Crosby (1875)

Sunday's Song

Praise Him Praise Him

Praise Him praise Him Jesus our blessed Redeemer
Sing oh earth His wonderful love proclaim
Hail Him hail Him highest archangels in glory
Strength and honor give to his holy name

Like a shepherd Jesus will guard his children
In His arms He carries them all day long
Praise Him praise Him tell of His excellent greatness
Praise Him praise Him ever in joyful song

Praise Him praise Him Jesus our blessed Redeemer
For our sins He suffered and bled and died
He our rock our hope of eternal salvation
Hail Him hail Him Jesus the crucified

Sound His praises Jesus who bore our sorrows
Love unbounded wonderful deep and strong
Praise Him praise Him tell of His excellent greatness
Praise Him praise Him ever in joyful song.