The Spirit of the LORD God is upon Me,
Because the LORD has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD,
And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn,
To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.
- Isaiah 61:1-3
Today my dear grandson Forerunner turns eight months old.
Forerunner is the first born son of my first born son, and he is my first and only grandson at this point. So this little boy really has a special place in this grandmother's heart!
But I have been in Manila for more than two months now, and I really miss him!
Anyway, it won't be long before I see him and the rest of my family again. God did have a different timetable for me these past months. And I'm really grateful for the many things that my heavenly Father allowed me to experience while I was here.
Finally...there is a clear go signal for me to return to my Bacolod City home by the end of this month!
Hopefully I can share more about my time in Manila in another post.
But on this special day, I want to write the prayer that is on my heart as Forerunner turns eight months old.
Before I do so, I let me share a special memory about my eldest son.
When First Born Son was a baby, he was the happiest little boy. As soon as he awoke, there would be a big smile on his face. He was such a happy little baby, always had a ready smile for anyone... and when he discovered how to make sounds at two and half months, he would chuckle, and giggle, and laugh out loud at just about anything.
Whenever he would wake up and no one was in the room with him, he would simply climb off the bed (we never used cribs for our babies), come to where I was, and as soon as he saw me, there would be that smile for his Mama! How First Born would warm our hearts with his cheerful heart.
When he was two years old, I taught him a song that still rings in my heart up to this day. He loved this song, and would sing it to just anyone who cared to listen!
That song was:
I've got a river of life, flowing out of me,
Makes the lame to walk and the blind to see;
Opens prison doors, sets the captives free,
I've got a river of life, flowing out of me.
Spring up, O well, within my soul;
Spring up, O well, and make me whole;
Spring up, O well, and give to me
That life abundantly.
The funny thing was that First Born at two years pronounced r and l as y... and so he would sing this song from start to finish this way:
Makes the yame to walk and the byind to see
Opens pyison doys, sets the captives fyee
I've got a yivey of yife, fyowing out of me
Sp-ying up, O way, within my soy
Sp-ying up, O way, and make me hoy
Sp-ying up, O way, and give to me
That yife abundant-yee
Ernie and I would laugh so hard tears would actually flow out of our eyes, just listening to First Born sing this song!
As I was thinking of the special character trait I wanted for Forerunner today, this song suddenly came up in my heart, and it was First Born's voice that I heard, singing it the way he did when he was just a little happy two year old boy!
What a heart warming memory! It's been rainy here the past week. Today however, the sun is out, and hearing this song just really filled my heart with so much joy!
Here's my special prayer of blessing for my grandson:
As you turn eight months old today, my dear Forerunner, I bless you with a heart of joy.
May you always have a song of joy, just like your own father as he was growing up!
May you learn to be joyful in all circumstances.
May you never depend on external favorable circumstances to bring you happiness, but instead, always drink from that inner river of life that fills your heart with joy.
Joy that lasts.
Joy that never runs dry.
A cheerful heart that spreads cheer to anyone who comes close to you.
May you develop a cheerful disposition as you grow up, and be an encouragement first of all to your parents, and to the rest of your family and loved ones.
I pray dear grandson that you will not have a demanding attitude, but rather a self-less, giving outlook as you grow up.
May you have a heart of thanksgiving, and a perceptive spirit, a heart that sees beneath the surface.
I declare and decree that you will not be burdened by the difficulties and disappointments that you will be encountering. I impart to you a joyful spirit that will carry you all throughout your life!
Today dear Matthew I bless you with an appreciative heart, having simple joys and simple wants, and being able to see God's touch and feel His presence in whatever circumstances you may find yourself in!
Indeed the verses quoted above will be true of you... you will grow up to
...console those who mourn in Zion,
... give them beauty for ashes,
Instead of mourning you will have the oil of joy, and you will put on the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness!
Truly you, together with others like you, will be called
"trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified."
15 comments:
Truly a treasured post! Thanks for sharing some heartfelt moments as a mom with your first born.
Love and Hugs ~ Kat
What a wonderful prayer for Forerunner! Wonderful memories of First Born too!
A beautiful prayer from a beautiful heart.
Blessings ~ Lisa
I wish that you would teach Forerunner the same song when he is old enough to learn it. Then it can be a family tradition. ^_^
Another beautiful prayer and blessing for me to copy!
His words consistently flow through you and I thank Him for you.
Love, Sita
Rev. 22:1 ...rive of life...
eternally flowing...i had just posted about this song on another site just a few mins ago...
the spirit continually flows along that river!!
Dear Lidj, this post is most precious! Our grandchildren are so very close to our hearts, aren't they?
Matthew sounds so sweet, and what joy he is bringing you each day, even as you remember him.
I know you look forward to seeing him again with great anticipation. And I will be eager to hear more of your visit in Manila after you return home.
Oh, God is so good! He abides with us!!! That one thought amazes me!
God bless you and anoint you this weekend for His purposes in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior.
In His Love,
Andrea
Lidj, I loved this! What a story!
My son used to say his "r's" as "w"s. He would turn to his little baby sister and say, "Wydia, I wuv you!".... I LOVED it!
Beautiful post. Thank you for sharing your heart with each of us.
May GOD bless this little one with a special touch from heaven.
Blessings and prayers, andrea
Thanks for this beautiful and heartwarming post.
Oh, I loved this so much Lidj. As a grandmother, myself, the prayer was absolutely precious. The song had me singing right along with it, as for a time God had us in a small house church. We sang this song often in that group of Christ followers.
Thank you for such a JOY-filled post.
Lovingly,
Yolanda
Lidia, I am not ashamed of the tears this story brought to me as I read about your love for your family. What a beautiful and thoughtful prayer!
We still sing that song quite often here in our little church; our people love what it says. Thank God for the river of life. It still flows to all who want it.
your writing is so thoughtful and heartfelt ...
blessings on you today ...
Dear Lidj,
I found my self reading your blessings and prayers for your grandson..for my daughter.
Your words were so deep and pure. Your wishes are the same I'd like to see come true for my daughter of 21.
Eternal blessings are what you have given Forerunner. I'd like to pass them on to my beloved.
I also thank you for the kind award.
I can see that even though your stay in Manilla has been challenging and demanding you have gotten things worked out for the better.
A woman though in pain also at peace.
God bless your on all your ways in the future.
From Felisol
Beautiful! How blessed are you! And how blessed is your family! Makes me want to be adopted. :)
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