Category: Scripture Memory

Cast Your Cares

Cast Your Cares

Carolyn

“Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you…” (Psalm 55:22).

I’m in the middle of a 3-part series that I’ll return to soon, but I ended my last post saying we left the high places (from our trip to Switzerland) and hit the ground hard back in the valley! In so doing, we’ve been talking about “casting” a lot – “casting” our cares on the Lord (1 Peter 5:7) and remembering His perfect love “casts” out fear (1 John 4:18), thinking where in Scripture we find the command to “cast”!

While there in Switzerland, we saw this cute church in Lauterbrunnen and visited. They had a bowl of business-size cards for guests to take. I debated whether we should take one, perhaps making sure to leave enough for others. My daughter handed me one, and I slid it into my purse pocket and forgot about it.

I was shopping yesterday and looking for my credit card in my purse pocket and found this stuffed in there. It was a sweet reminder from our time at that beautiful church and of our need to cast our burdens, cares, and anxieties on the Lord who cares for us!

I looked at the church website and saw this quote from Jochen Klepper, who I see online was a prominent German Christian writer, journalist, and one of the 20th century’s most significant Lutheran hymn writers:

“You who hold time in Your hands, Lord, take up the burden of this year as well and turn it into blessing. Now that the center has been firmly established by You in Jesus Christ, lead us toward the goal. You alone are called the Eternal One, knowing beginning, end, and center amidst the fleeting passage of our times: remain graciously turned toward us and lead us by Your hand, that we may walk securely.”

Whatever you are carrying today, remember the Lord cares for you, and you have the perfect place to cast your cares!

While I was shopping yesterday, I also heard this song twice, back-to-back on one radio station and then another. What a great reminder that “What You said on the mountain is still true in the valley”!

Don’t Give Up: May and June Reflections

Don’t Give Up: May and June Reflections

Carolyn

Looking back at the first half of 2020, I can see how my goals are starting to drift. Earlier this year, I shared about my “growth book” which was intended to record my reading, Bible memory, prayer requests, journal, and more. And I set a goal to recap each month both there and here as a means of accountability. Read more →

March and April Reflections

March and April Reflections

Carolyn

One of the commitments I made this year was to try to learn a few Bible verses each month. My January verses I say almost every day to remember who God is, to thank and praise Him, to entrust the cares of my life to the Sovereign One, strong and mighty, who rules over all.

With that commitment to memorize Scripture, I’ve tried to record at the end of each month how things went, as a means of both accountability and of encouragement to keep going. And in so doing, I’ve reviewed the preceding month as a whole, as well.

Yet, how do you begin to review months like March and April 2020, where all of life was changed or impacted in some way by the coronavirus that continues to disrupt the world? Read more →

February Recap

February Recap

Carolyn

For Christmas I was given a “Growth Book,” something I had heard about online and asked for. It’s a way to follow your growth for the year, allowing you to track your goals, reading, prayer requests, God’s faithfulness, and reflect each month where you’ve done well or where you need change. There are many blank pages for journaling or taking notes from sermons or podcasts — or however else you want to use them. It has been a help to me to record these things and visualize progress. Read more →

January Scripture Memorization

January Scripture Memorization

Carolyn

“Yours, O LORD, is the greatness,
The power and the glory,
The victory and the majesty,
For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours;
Yours is the kingdom, O LORD,
And You are exalted as head over all.
Both riches and honor come from You,
And You reign over all.
In your hand is power and might;
In your hand it is to make great,
And to give strength to all.
Now, therefore, our God, we thank You and praise Your glorious name.”
1 Chronicles 29:11-13 (NKJV)

Around Christmastime, my mom texted me and my sister to see if we could learn these Bible verses together. I agreed, and it took me the whole month of January to learn them completely. (I find memorizing harder the older I get!) Read more →