We sang this on Sunday @staugustinesoc when shit was going down at home. Been in my heart and on my mind ever since: How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!
What more can He say than to you He hath said
Who unto the Savior for refuge have fled?
In every condition, -- in sickness, in health,
In poverty's vale, or abounding in wealth,
At home and abroad, on the land, on the sea, --
The Lord, the Almighty, they strength e'er shall be. "Fear not, I am with thee, oh, be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid;
I'll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand,
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand. "When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of sorrow shall not overflow;
For I will be with thee thy troubles to bless
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress. "When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,
My grace, all-sufficient, shall be thy supply.
The flames shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine. "E'en down to old age all My people shall prove
My sovereign, eternal, unchangeable love;
And when hoary hairs shall their temples adorn,
Like lambs they shall still in My bosom be borne. "The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose
I will not, I will not, desert to his foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I'll never, no never, no never, forsake!"
Ben is home. Still no diagnosis. Blood work inconclusive. A chance, still, that it is some kind of poison and he will improve as it leaves his system, but reading between the lines of the vet, I suspect it’s not, and that it is cancer.
He’s in good spirits and the bleeding is slower. We’re so grateful for him to be snuggling with us at home. ❤️
I feel totally lame for even posting this, but if you are the praying kind, or the sending-good-vibes kind, spare a thought for sweet old Ben. He’s got a laceration that won’t clot, and his blood work doesn’t look great. We’re at the dog ER for more tests, and I’m just loving on this sweet companion of mine. #mydogbenedict
Having spent all morning laboring over A Case of the Mondays, I gathered myself to head into the office about noon yesterday. Waiting for me in my inbox when I got to work was a request to trek out to a hospice facility to perform Last Rites for a dying parishioner.