Devotional

A Personal Christian Addition

      Just as I am without one plea
      But that thy blood was shed for me
      And that thou biddest me come to thee
      Oh Lamb of God I come, I come

Often we need special help when we have a child with an intellectual disability:

God created the world out of nothing but now we are all something.

We are all individuals before God

Herein is love not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son
to be the the Saviour of the world

I believe and have experienced that a child with Down syndrome is able,
like the rest of us, to come to an understanding of spiritual values and a
saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Here we can be quiet before God and think about his benefits to us.

The Peace of God is beyond human understanding

Amy Carmichael said ‘In acceptance lies peace’.

Psalm 23

1 The Lord is my shepherd: therefore can I lack nothing.
2. He will make me lie down in green pastures: and lead me beside still waters.
3 He will refresh my soul: and guide me in right pathways for his name’s sake.
4. Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil:
    for you are with me, your rod and your staff comfort me.
5 You spread a table before me in the face of those who trouble me: you have
   anointed my head with oil, and my cup will be full.
6 Surely your goodness and loving-kindness will follow me all the days of my life:
   and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

The Touch of the Master's Hand by Myra Brooks Welch

'Twas battered and scarred, and the old auctioneer
Thought it scarcely worth his while
To waste much time on the old violin,
But held it up with a smile:
"What am I bidden, good folks," he cried,
"Who'll start the bidding for me?"
"A dollar, a dollar"; then, "Two!" "Only two?
Two dollars, and who'll make it three?
Three dollars, once; three dollars, twice;
Going for three ..." but no.
From the room far back, a gray-haired man
Came forward and picked up the bow;
Then, wiping the dust from the old violin,
And tightening the loose strings,
He played a melody pure and sweet
As a caroling angel sings.

The music ceased, and the auctioneer,
With a voice that was quiet and low,
Said; "What am I bidden for the old violin?"
And he held it up with the bow.
"A thousand! And who'll make it two?
Two thousand! And who'll make it three?
Three thousand, once, three thousand, twice,
And going, and gone," said he.
The people cheered, but some of them cried,
"We do not quite understand
What changed it's worth." Swift came the reply:
"The touch of the master's hand."

And many a man with life out of tune,
And battered and scarred with sun,
Is auctioned cheep to the thoughtless crowd,
Much like this old violin.
A "mess of pottage," a glass of wine;
A game; and he travels on.
He is "going" once, "going" twice,
He's "going" and almost "gone."
But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd
Never can quite understand
The worth of a soul and the change that's wrought
By the touch of the Master's hand.

Serenity Prayer by Reihold Neibuhr

God, grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change
Courage to change the things I can
and the Wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardship as the
pathway to peace.

Taking, as He did, this
sinful world as it is,
not as I would have it.

Trusting that He will make
all things right if I
surrender to His Will;

That I may be reasonably happy
in this life, and supremely
happy with Him forever in
the next.

Amen

Footprints By Mary Stevenson

One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach
with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene,
he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one belonging to him, and the
other to the Lord.

When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the
footprints in the sand. He noticed that at many times along the path of his life
there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the
very lowest and saddest times in his life.

This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it. " Lord... you
said that once I decided to follow You, You'd walk with me all the way.
But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there
is only one set of footprints. I do not understand why You'd leave me when
I needed You the most."

The Lord replied, "My precious, precious child, I love and I would never
leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set
of footprints, it was then that I carried you.

The Prayer of St Francis (1181-1226)

Lord, make us instruments of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let us sow love,
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
Where there is sadness, joy.
O divine Master, Grant that we may not so much seek
To be consoled, as to console,
To be understood, as to understand,
To be loved, as to love,
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
It is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen

Learn to make the most of life,
Loose no happy day.
Time can never bring thee back,
Chances swept away.

Leave no tender word unsaid,
Love while life shall last.
The mill will never turn again,
With water that has past.
~unknown~

                              I am a Rose of Sharon
                              I am a Lily of the Valley
                              (Song of Songs 2:1)

                  I am the root and the offspring of David,
                          and The Bright Morning Star
                              (Revelation 22 : 16)