Rattle, Clang

O. T. #1474  "Rattle, Clang"
July 1,2019
Proverbs 17-Part 4
A merry heart doeth good like medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. Proverbs 17:22

LET IT GLOW

Yesterday, my sweet granddaughter was here. She helped me make fruit tarts. I put the ingredients for the crust in a bowl and she took over  mixing, rolling and cutting the circles out, plus the stars for the top. Then I placed the crust inside the cupcake holder and we filled them with apple, cherry, and blueberry filling. The tarts are ready for my daughter's family visiting (6 grandchildren). We had a time doing it. A memory was made.

Don't we all like being around a cheerful person? When joy invades the heart of a person, it refreshes the whole person. And this aging body can use all the refreshing it can get. It seems like the joy is catchy, jumps on us as well, when we are around joyful folks. I lifts us up above those problems.
The best medicine for our body and soul is a merry heart. That comes from confessing our sins and asking forgiveness. Mercy is available. Our heart is to rejoice in God. Give thanks to Him for all the things He has provided as we go throughout our daily life. What has He been doing in our lives lately? Then, as we serve Him in a way that pleases God, we have that assurance deep down that we are doing good.
It is the fountain of life that pours on us the joy we need for endurance to complete the little things in life. Are we singing as we do chores? I had flour on the floor, sticky dough on counter, blueberry stains on my shirt, and a sink full of dirty dishes, but it was worth all the scrubbing required for a few moments together with her.

LET IT GROW

A broken spirit dries the bones. So many people around us are heart sick, not physically, but they lack joy.
The sorrows of the mind often contribute very much to the sickliness of the body. Dry bones are in need of marrow, blood, skin, to support a body's skeleton.

Ezekiel has a vision of the Valley of Dry Bones, found in chapter 37 of his book. Rattle, rattle, clang, clang. There he saw the Lord cover the bones with tendons, flesh, and skin. Then He breathed life into them. This illustrated the restoration of Israel and Judah being united again as one nation under one God, Jehovah, which was to come. Ezekiel and 10,000 exiles were living in Babylon (2 Kings 24:14).
God asked Ezekiel, "Can these bones live?"  He replied, "Thou knowest." Then the two sticks becoming one showed this.

Dear ones, let us continue to pray for our loved ones, for God can cause them to be restored spiritually and physically. Nothing is too difficult for the Lord Jesus.

LET IT GO

Revive the joy of thy salvation in my heart with joy.
There ain't nothing going to steal my joy, as the song says.
I have a sweet salvation in Jesus Christ.