Spiritual Multiplication

It is a joy to raise the blinds in the morning and peek out of the window, to see beautiful birds enjoying a black oil sunflower seed breakfast on one of our bird feeders. It is a wonderfully peaceful past time to watch the bird traffic in the yard. The bird activity is a direct result of us trying to be diligent to keep the feeders filled for our feathered friends.

The hindrance to having full bird feeders, is due to the exploding population of fox squirrels residing in our oak trees. These antagonists also love dining on sunflower seeds and through their concerted efforts, can empty a feeder in an afternoon.

Squirrels will also heist the seeds and hide them or bury them in various locations throughout the yard. Thankfully, the squirrels are forgetful and fortunately for us, some of those hidden seeds become sources of great surprise and truly delight us.

If the soil the seed is buried in for the squirrel’s epicurean delight at a later date, is rich and fertile, we may be blessed with a beautiful sunflower that sprouts and blooms in Spring.

It is impossible to look at this beautiful flower without recalling Matthew 13:23, where the Lord Jesus says, “But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown.”

That one little sunflower seed, dropped into that fertile soil produces a lovely flower, filled with innumerable seeds, each of which is also filled with its own potential for beauty.

We, as God’s children, who have heard His truth, believed it and understood it, will in turn live a life that prayerfully, speaks to others of the the love and goodness of God. By His mercy and grace, we will see others come to trust Him because of our loving witness. Then, as with the sunflower, the multiplication begins.

May we tend to the garden soil of our lives and prepare it with the reading of His Word, with prayer and worship and fellowship and bear much fruit for the sake of the Kingdom.

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11 NIV)

Nelda – copyrighted 2024

The Tallow Tree

There were three tallow trees planted in a row outside the fence around our yard. My dad must have planted them when he had our little house built, before I was born. When I was old enough to play alone outside, the first tree, which was the largest and tallest tree, was my favorite place to be, in the yard.

I would play with my dolls for hours under the shade of that tallow tree. If I wanted a place of refuge, the tree’s limbs were always ready to receive me and offer shelter from whatever was going on in life. I would snuggle into the branch where it attached to the tree and sway with the tree in the summer breeze, as I watched the sun sparkle on the leaves that danced in the wind, all around me. I was safe, above it all, and felt so sheltered and so peaceful.

My heart breaks for those who have no place of refuge, waiting and ready to welcome them in.

Psalm 32:6-8 says, “Therefore let all the faithful pray to You while You may be found; surely the rising of the mighty waters will not reach them. You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.. I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.”

Psalm 46:1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

He is the greatest of refuges; far greater than my old tallow tree. He not only offers refuge and safety, but a future and a hope. He offers peace, joy and salvation, through faith in His dear son, Jesus.

Find your place of refuge in Him. He will never fail you or leave you. My old tallow tree is gone now but Jesus is faithful forevermore; for all eternity. He will always be there for you.

He is my refuge and my strength, for all time.

Nelda – copyrighted 2024

He Is Able

In long years passed,

Because of deep hurt,

My downcast soul was so dark.

But You are my redeemer Lord,

You granted true repentance

And sweetly restored my heart.

You and only You, Lord,

Can turn a person’s heart,

Like rivers of water in Your hand.

You healed all the sorrow,

Took all pain away,

You abolished all shame from my land.

You turned mourning into dancing,

Turned old sackcloth into joy.

The enemy’s fodder You destroyed!

Your glorious might,

Your unfailing love,

Your faithfulness were all You employed.

I’m grateful, Lord, for Your mercy so dear,

For Your Word,

For Your power divine.

I’ll walk in humility,

Thanksgiving and love,

Because You, Beloved Savior, are mine.

Do you have sin in your past

That is causing you pain?

Or a hurt that has never truly healed?

Give it all to the King

Who crushed satan underfoot,

That evil one who destroys,

Kills and steals.

Jesus is able to make all things new,

He can refresh you by His Spirit, like a dove.

He can heal you, forgive you,

Wash you whiter than snow,

Embrace you in His all-consuming love.

From My Heart to His

Your heart, dear Lord,
Is my very old friend.
You have loved me completely,
From the beginning
And you will love me to my very end.

Faithful and True
Is Your lovely name, evermore,
As constant and trustworthy
As the waves that kiss the shore.

The joy of Your salvation
Burns like a furnace in my soul.
Giving power to my weakness,
Giving strength that makes me whole.

What a joy to walk this earth
With knowledge of Your love,
With your forgiveness of my sin,
With the covering of Your blood.

My heart owes You a debt
That I could scarce begin to pay,
For all that you have 
Blessed me with,
For all that Your love conveys.

For now, may it suffice to say,
I love You with all of my heart.
I rejoice in your goodness
Forevermore
And long never from Your presence, to depart.

Nelda Johnson 
August 17, 2022

Lord of the Summer Night

I love the hour or so that evening takes
To pull back the covers for day,
And gently tuck it in to rest
So the fireflies can come out to play.

It’s a lovely miracle the Lord provides,
A wonder for all to see,
When heaven unfurls its starry light
And declares His majesty!

A sweet serenade fills the scented air,
When insects, great and small,
Take their cue from the night, to begin their song,
For the One who created them all.

It’s then that I rest and breathe in the peace,
From the sights and the sounds of the night
And give thanks to the Lord, for the wonders He’s made,
As evening overtakes the light.

Nelda Johnson
Copyright 2020

OUR SAVIOR


 Thank you, Lord Jesus,
 For your unfailing love, 
 As you looked through
 The corridors of time,

 And saw Calvary’s Cross
 And the pain You’d endure,
 And the suffering 
 That should have been mine.

 Your love bound you securely 
 To God’s plan for mankind.
 Your pure Blood,
 Shed for one and for all.

 Your innocent eyes
 Beheld the horrors of that day.
 In your obedience,
 You answered God’s Call.

 Your life for our pardon,
 Your Blood for our sin,
 Your will to die,
 That our will could be free.

 You thought of us,
 As the joy set before You.
 You are the Justifier 
 Of those who would believe.

 Your resurrection from the dead,
 Stands out in Your Word,
 As the event that changed history, 
 For all time.

 You were born. You preached truth,
 You were killed.  You were raised.
 You live on,
 Our intercessor, Divine.  

 Nelda Johnson
 6/11/21
 If you don’t know Jesus as Lord and Savior, would you consider all He has done for mankind?  Would you believe that God raised Him from the dead and ask Him to save you?  You will never regret it, for all eternity.

For Our Children, So Dear

As I sit on my swing,
Swaying to the rhythm of the nearby clock,
Pondering the passage of time,
I think back to our babies
Still dependent and so small,
The joy of raising them
Now saturates my mind.

They are grown and now gone
With babes of their own,
Busy lives, making memories, so fair.
But the short time we had them
Still lingers in my heart
As I find myself 
Holding them there.

Back in those days I wondered,
What will they be like when they’re older?
What will they be like on their own?
I longed to see what God
Would do with their lives.
What paths would they take?
Would they walk out 
What they had been shown?

Now I’m older
And I see what my heart
Longed to know,
So long ago and so far away.
Each child now walks
In the ways of the Lord.
Each one loves
And serves others, today.

My heart is made glad.
My joy is made full.
My soul rejoices in the Lord.
My babies are all
That my heart hoped to see.
They are that, and praise God,
So much more.

I hold fast to the beautiful memories
That are mine.
The sweet days of loving them so.
I cherish the rough and the smooth times alike.
I dearly loved watching them grow.
And now I observe
Their sweet babies from afar
And delightfully wonder
Deep down in my heart,
What will their blessed futures hold?

Nelda Johnson

Our Mother

The wind is slicing through
The tree tops today,
On its way to some far away place.

Causing a flurry of leaves 
To come showering down,
To cover the earth’s autumn face.

As the blustery wind 
Passes through on this day,
Swirling round like some heavenly grace,

My mind wanders back 
To the days long gone by,
To the sweetness of Mom’s loving face.

Like the wind, 
She too, passed this way
And all too soon, she was gone.

Leaving three lives behind,
To treasure her love,
Leaving three lives, so sad and alone

One day we will meet her again in God’s heaven,
We’ll worship together
With hearts bursting with love. 

We’ll sing and we’ll dance
And we’ll worship the King,
With angels rejoicing around and above. 

What a day that will be!
I look forward with joy,
Until then, her memory’s held dear.

And I’m thankful to God
For every minute, every day, every month
That my dear mom was here.  

Nelda Johnson

For my Mother, Mary Katherine Saintes, Kitty for short.

Bandera

The golden moon has risen
Over the Hill Country’s 
deep dark green.

The silhouette of the mountains
Is the artwork 
Of the night scape serene.

How beautifully clear 
Is the ebony sky,
That’s studded with such brilliant light.

How purely fragrant is the late summer breeze,
That blows ‘neath the twinkling stars,
And kisses the twisted oak trees.

Your glory, O Lord, is seen all about,
Great beauty for all to behold.
The wonders of your creation, Lord,
Are a feast for the eyes and the soul.

Nelda Johnson

Pocosin Mission Trail

You fill up my heart
Like the wind fills the trees,
With joyful excitement,
From it’s all embracing breeze.

Your kiss in the forest 
Is as sweet as the spring,
That spills from the mountain
And makes my soul sing.

To hike by your side
‘Neath the canopy of Fall,
Makes the steep uphill climb
Seem so easy and the hillside so small.

At the end of the trail
As the sun’s hanging low,
I smile remembering this day,

How you walked by my side,
Filled my heart with a smile,
On this beautiful Shenandoah day. 

Nelda Johnson