Hymn of the Week

Each week on Sunday, Lord willing each week I will post a hymn from The Cyberhymnal with a link to hear the song.
This week's hymn is Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus which is one of my favorites.

http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/s/t/a/standufj.htm


Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross;


Lift high His royal banner, it must not suffer loss.

From victory unto victory His army shall He lead,

Till every foe is vanquished, and Christ is Lord indeed.



Stand up, stand up for Jesus, the solemn watchword hear;

If while ye sleep He suffers, away with shame and fear;

Where’er ye meet with evil, within you or without,

Charge for the God of battles, and put the foe to rout.



Stand up, stand up for Jesus, the trumpet call obey;

Forth to the mighty conflict, in this His glorious day.

Ye that are brave now serve Him against unnumbered foes;

Let courage rise with danger, and strength to strength oppose.



Stand up, stand up for Jesus, stand in His strength alone;

The arm of flesh will fail you, ye dare not trust your own.

Put on the Gospel armor, each piece put on with prayer;

Where duty calls or danger, be never wanting there.



Stand up, stand up for Jesus, each soldier to his post,

Close up the broken column, and shout through all the host:

Make good the loss so heavy, in those that still remain,

And prove to all around you that death itself is gain.



Stand up, stand up for Jesus, the strife will not be long;

This day the noise of battle, the next the victor’s song.

To him who overcometh a crown of life shall be;

They with the King of Glory shall reign eternally.

In Memory of the Esh Family

It's hard to believe it has been a year since the tragic accident that took so many members of the Esh and extended family members.Sometimes when I listen to their music I get teary eyed but I know they are rejoicing with the Lord.
They touched so many lives and they continue to be missed by so many people. If you never knew the Eshes you can learn about them here. You can't get the music from the website anymore but they have a number you can call to order CDs.
http://eshfamily.org/
I hope you are blessed by their music as I have been.

So Much Sadness

The earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan is just absolutely horrendous. The loss of so many souls to eternity. It just breaks my heart that so many people have lost their loved ones. Earlier this week a couple in PA lost seven of their eight children in a fire.
The only One who can comfort all these families is the Lord Jesus Christ.  The couple who lost their children are believers and I know that having their faith will get them  through this terrible tragedy as well as  the believers in Japan. My heart is so heavy right now.

More on Apostle Paul

As you might remember from my last post we are going through the book of Acts and the more I read Acts, the more intriguing I find Paul to be. He is one of the apostles it would have been great to meet because one could learn a lot from him. We finished up the end of chapter 20 where Paul is saying goodbye to his friends before he sails again who they knew they would never see him in this earthly life again. The emotions rain high that day I'm sure.

He was beheaded under Emperor Nero who was a very wicked man. I read a little about him in Martyrs Mirror and I just don't see how anyone could could be so evil but he was. Reminds me of some of the modern day rulers and dictators who are in the news nowadays.
One day, these men will have to answer to God for their actions and they won't have the legions of supporters to protest or protect them from God's judgement. They will face the Lord alone. Oh the thought just causes my heart to tremble.

Sorry It's Been Awhile

I can't beleive how lax I am when it comes to updating my blog. I really have no excuse so anyway, life here at the Shea Homestead has been good. We have had several colds go through our house but for the most part the Lord has been faithful.

I'm crocheting a shawl for a sister at church who lost her husband. It's taking me awhile to finish it but hopefully it will be done before the end of the month. I have two others I need to crochet or I might get brave and knit them.

I wish you all could join us on Sunday mornings for church. Our pastor is doing a wonderful teaching on the book of Acts. We get study guides to go with the sermon he will preach on for the Sunday.
In my studying of the book of Acts I'm thinking Paul must have been a very interesting person and probably a bit long winded. Oh but to have been there when he was preaching about Jesus Christ! Can you imagine being there when Paul was doing this? I can hear him now giving testimony of the Lord and people getting saved!  Oh that would have been glorious!

Eating Healthy

One of my goals this year which I don't think I wrote in my last post is to eat healthier and lose wait. I tried over the holidays but it proved to be the wrong time. I did however eat less over the holidays than I had in previous years.

I'm praying about having a membership at the YMCA. Our family is doing a there class called Healthy Family Home that our health insurance is paying for. It involves palying active games with the family and learning ways to eat healthier. It only goes for six weeks but I hope we to make some improvements in our lifestyle.

Our bodies are temples for the Holy Spirit and we need to treat it properly.
I plan on taking brisk walks with my family more often. There is an elderly lady about 70 or 80 who power walks in our neighborhood. I hope to join her some morning.

Happy New Year and 2011 Goals

I can't believe it's 2011 already! It seems like we were just celebrating 2010.
Each year I try to list goals for the year. I don't always succeed but I hope to accomplish what the Lord wants me to do. I don't make New Year's resolutions but I make goals instead.
So here are  at least 10 goals and they are not in any particular order.

1. Read my Bible and devotions each day.
2. Read few pages of Martyr's Mirror each week.
3. Pray daily for my family and extended family members.
4. Encourage my children to read their Bible more.
5. Sew at least two items for gifts.
6. Sew a dress for myself.
7. Not to get so shy when sharing about why I  wear a head covering in obedience to 1 Cor 11:3-15.(that is a hard one)
8. Have the study guide lesson for the Sunday sermon that Pastor teaches on completed each week
9. Share Christ with several people throughout the year.
10. Truly commit to prayer a particular desire of my heart that I just haven't spend as much in prayer about as I should.

I don't know how well I will do with these goals especially number 10 because I am being hit with resistance with some family members and I'm not sure what the Lord's will is for this particular desire. I will really need to seek the Lord in all these goals and be willing to accept His will and not my own.