Wrapping up 2013

Yes, a post from me is past due! Yet, I still have no real computer or keyboard to write at... so that's my excuse for not updating more often. ;) That and the nomadic moving around we had to do in October and November, and the fun busyness of moving HOME and the Christmas season. I have quite a lot to share but it will probably come in pieces over the next month or two. For now, I have the following New Years' reflection to share. God bless you and your reflecting on 2013!

Wrapping up 2013, there is perhaps no better collection of words I can find to express this last year, and my fresh hope for the year ahead. Cheers to all that You have in store in 2014, God! I'm here, I'm ready! 

Psalm 116:1-19 MSG:

I love God because he listened to me, listened as I begged for mercy. He listened so intently as I laid out my case before him. Death stared me in the face, hell was hard on my heels. Up against it, I didn’t know which way to turn; then I called out to God for help: “Please, God!” I cried out. “Save my life!” God is gracious—it is he who makes things right, our most compassionate God.
God takes the side of the helpless; when I was at the end of my rope, he saved me. I said to myself, “Relax and rest. God has showered you with blessings. Soul, you’ve been rescued from death; Eye, you’ve been rescued from tears; And you, Foot, were kept from stumbling.”
I’m striding in the presence of God, alive in the land of the living! I stayed faithful, though bedeviled, and despite a ton of bad luck, Despite giving up on the human race, saying, “They’re all liars and cheats.”
What can I give back to God for the blessings he’s poured out on me? I’ll lift high the cup of salvation—a toast to God! I’ll pray in the name of God; I’ll complete what I promised God I’d do, and I’ll do it together with his people. When they arrive at the gates of death, God welcomes those who love him.
Oh, God, here I am, your servant, your faithful servant: set me free for your service! I’m ready to offer the thanksgiving sacrifice and pray in the name of God. I’ll complete what I promised God I’d do, and I’ll do it in company with his people, In the place of worship, in God’s house, in Jerusalem, God’s city. Hallelujah!