I have calmed and quieted my soul

Sometimes I have a tendency to obsess over things and over-think things. I have to remind myself to keep my mind on the Lord and let Him take care of things for me.

Psalm 131

A Song of^(A) Ascents. Of David.

¹O LORD, my heart is not^(B) lifted up;
my eyes are not^(C) raised too high;
I do not^(D) occupy myself with things
too great and^(E) too marvelous for me.
²But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a weaned^(F) child with its mother;
like a weaned child is my soul within me. ^3(G) O Israel, hope in the LORD
from this time forth and forevermore.

He Will Not Forsake His Saints

One of my favorite passages :)  From the ESV, copied from Bible Gateway

Psalm 37

He Will Not Forsake His Saints

^[a] Of David.

^1(A) Fret not yourself because of evildoers;

be not^(B) envious of wrongdoers!

²For they will soon^(C) fade like^(D) the grass

and wither^(E) like the green herb. ^3(F) Trust in the LORD, and do good;

^(G) dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.^[b]

^4(H) Delight yourself in the LORD,

and he will^(I) give you the desires of your heart.

^5(J) Commit your way to the LORD;

^(K) trust in him, and he will act.

^6(L) He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,

and your justice as^(M) the noonday.

^7(N) Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;

^(O) fret not yourself over the one who^(P) prospers in his way,

over the man who carries out evil devices!

^8(Q) Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!

^(R) Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.

^9(S) For the evildoers shall be cut off,

but those who wait for the LORD shall^(T) inherit the land.

¹⁰In^(U) just a little while, the wicked will be no more;

though you look carefully at^(V) his place, he will not be there.

¹¹But^(W) the meek shall inherit the land

and delight themselves in^(X) abundant peace.

¹²The wicked^(Y) plots against the righteous

and^(Z) gnashes his teeth at him,

¹³but the Lord^(AA) laughs at the wicked,

for he sees that his^(AB) day is coming.

¹⁴The wicked draw the sword and^(AC) bend their bows

to bring down the poor and needy,

to slay those whose^(AD) way is upright;

¹⁵their sword shall enter their own heart,

and their^(AE) bows shall be broken.

^16(AF) Better is the little that the righteous has

than the abundance of many wicked.

¹⁷For^(AG) the arms of the wicked shall be broken,

but the LORD^(AH) upholds the righteous.

¹⁸The LORD^(AI) knows the days of the blameless,

and their^(AJ) heritage will remain forever;

¹⁹they are not put to shame in evil times;

in^(AK) the days of famine they have abundance.

²⁰But the wicked will perish;

the enemies of the LORD are like^(AL) the glory of the pastures;

they vanish—like^(AM) smoke they vanish away.

²¹The wicked borrows but does not pay back,

but the righteous^(AN) is generous and gives;

²²for those blessed by the LORD^[c] shall^(AO) inherit the land,

but those cursed by him^(AP) shall be cut off.

²³The^(AQ) steps of a man are^(AR) established by the LORD,

when he delights in his way;

^24(AS) though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,

for the LORD^(AT) upholds his hand.

²⁵I have been young, and now am old,

yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken

or his children^(AU) begging for bread.

²⁶He is ever^(AV) lending generously,

and his children become a blessing.

^27(AW) Turn away from evil and do good;

so shall you^(AX) dwell forever.

²⁸For the LORD^(AY) loves justice;

he will not forsake his^(AZ) saints.

They are preserved forever,

but the children of the wicked shall be^(BA) cut off.

²⁹The righteous shall inherit the land

and^(BB) dwell upon it forever.

³⁰The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,

and his tongue speaks justice.

^31(BC) The law of his God is in his heart;

his^(BD) steps do not slip.

³²The wicked^(BE) watches for the righteous

and seeks to put him to death.

³³The LORD will not^(BF) abandon him to his power

or let him^(BG) be condemned when he is brought to trial.

^34(BH) Wait for the LORD and keep his way,

and he will exalt you to inherit the land;

you will look on^(BI) when the wicked are cut off.

^35(BJ) I have seen a wicked, ruthless man,

spreading himself like^(BK) a green laurel tree.^[d]

³⁶But he passed away,^[e] and behold,^(BL) he was no more;

though I sought him, he could not be found.

³⁷Mark the blameless and behold the upright,

for there is a future for the man of^(BM) peace.

³⁸But^(BN) transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;

the future of the wicked^(BO) shall be cut off.

^39(BP) The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;

he is their stronghold in^(BQ) the time of trouble.

⁴⁰The LORD helps them and^(BR) delivers them;

^(BS) he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,

because they^(BT) take refuge in him.

Heaven

Last night a friend of mine passed away after a long battle with cancer. It's always hard to know what to say at times like this. For all of us left behind there's always questions of why, and oftentimes no answers. I'm glad to know he's finally whole and gets to bask in the glory of God forever, completely uninhibited by mortal flesh. I'm a bit jealous, too. Not that I so dislike life on earth, but oh to be free from this body and its limitations, to see the most glorious thing--far beyond anything I can begin to comprehend.
When I was younger I often marveled at the apostle Paul's words when he described the battle within between wanting to depart and be with God or to stay on earth and minister to people. I understood the sentiment but it was something my mind couldn't grasp. The thought of dying was scary, as the unknown generally is. I think now I understand. Earth is beautiful like crazy. I love people and I love the smells of spring and the warm sunshine and the gentle snow or a mighty storm. Yet for all Earth's incredible beauty, it is marred with the curse of sin and the pain it brings. Selfishness and pride hang over it like an ugly black stain right in the most obvious place of an otherwise stunning painting.
Heaven, on the other hand, is filled with the glory of God! That may seem a bit of a trite catch-phrase on the surface. But when I think of it... The wonderful feeling of knowing God here on earth-- to the ten-billionth power, and so much more than we can imagine! I daresay we won't even think of silly little things like a sweet summer breeze or the fiery leaves of autumn when all around is awesomeness to end all awesomeness. We'll never tire of singing, "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY!" What a choir that will be! We will finally be where we were meant to be: in the presence of our Maker, Redeemer, Sustainer, Fortress, Strength... there are not enough words to describe it!
So yes, there are a lot of lives Greg touched that will be missing him and I know how hard it is on his family and closest loved-ones. But I can't help but think of him in that glorious place with all the saints that have gone before, and I smile through tears of joy when I think of the moment he finally got to hear those words, "Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into my joy."
Congrats, Greg, on a life well-lived and a victorious crossing of the finish line!

And whenever you think of it, friend, do pray God's special blessing and comfort over the Wallace and Hemmer families and all the lives Greg touched.