God, Who Made the Earth and Heaven

Words: Reginald Heber, verse 1; Frederick Hosmer, verse 2; William Mercer, verse 3.


1. God, who made the earth and heaven,
darkness and light;
Who the day for toil hast given,
for rest the night;
May Your angel guards defend us,
slumber sweet Your mercy send us;
Holy dreams and hopes attend us,
all through the night.

2. When the constant sun returning
unseals our eyes,
May we, born anew like morning,
to labor rise;
Fit us for the task that calls us;
let not ease and self enthrall us,
Strong through You what'er befall us,
O God most wise!

3. And when morn again shall call us
To run life's way,
May we still, what'er befall us,
Thy will obey.
From the power of evil hide us,
In the narrow pathway guide us,
Nor Thy smile be e'er denied us
The live-long day.

At the end of a busy day, it is good to pause and reflect on God's Sovereignty and mercy in allowing us to be productive this day.

Let's see: The laundry is caught up. I think we did about 8 loads of laundry today. Rick's sock drawer is absolutely full! YEAH!

We enjoyed home-made tomato rice soup for lunch, and had a chicken dinner for supper.

The van is gassed up and ready to go for church in the morning.

Joel came and laid the rest of the floor in the laundry room.

My bedroom is almost clean. I don't have much left to do.

I figured out how to use my new labelling machine, and I am starting to label EVERYTHING: Christmas Wrap. Regular Wrapping paper. Please Remove Boots or Shoes. That sort of thing.

Yes, we had a good day. I am thankful that God will watch over us this night, and that tomorrow, Lord willing, we will have another day that has its joys and its sorrows. Knowing that God is smiling upon us gives meaning and contentment to each and every activity.

Happy Birthday, Joanna! You are the precious mother to Kaleb and Kaitlyn, and a beloved wife to our son, Matt. May you have many, many more birthdays!