A Friend of Mine

I have been remembering a song I heard a few times my sophomore year in college when my roommate would play it (hi Catherwood!). I don't really know why this song has returned to me after many years but I share it here: 

Here are the lyrics if you'd rather read than listen, though the music is gentle and loving:

A friend of mine is going blind
But through the dimness
He sees so much better than me
And how he cherishes each new thing that he sees
They are locked in his head he will save them for when
He's in darkness again

He can't read books
And he can't paint pretty pictures
But he understands so much clearer than I
For he knows that all he's missing with his eyes
Is more vivid in the mind of the man who's going blind
And that's why he doesn't mind.

Won't you sing Tommy Davidson of
Things that you have seen
Sing of winter's bite and summer nights
And places you have been
Of dew drops and forget-me-nots and
Silver silky sheen
Lain across the morning meadow on the hillside

And this friend of mine, he plays guitar
And he sings so much better than I
He can sing you any pictures in your mind
He will sketch them out in rhyme draw the details in the lines
And he'll color it in time

And oh how he loves his guitar
And it loves him
And they play much sweeter than I
As if to say that come the day that he can't see
He will have at his command so much beauty in his hands
That the loss won't come so hard

Won't you sing Tommy Davidson of
Things that you have done
Sing of silver seagulls sailing into evening's golden sun
Sing of city streets and villages and people on the run
Tell the people how you know it
Tommy Davidson

In any case, I've been thinking about this song and Job and wondering why Job didn't have friends who loved him like this and were able to see at least a glimpse of what God was doing in his life. I have been blessed the last few years to watch several friends walk faithfully through cancer and all the Valley of the Shadow and suffering that entails, and come out with their faith intact, a beautiful walk. 

I once heard a sermon about Job and the pastor talked about the way Satan came to God and God said, "Have you considered my servant Job?," then went on to talk about perhaps sometimes God asks if Satan has considered others of His servants. If that still goes on, I may know some who Satan has been asked to consider -- and by God's grace, they have stood the test.  

Here and There

Sometimes life is all over the place. For me, today, it ties together in the Romans 12 passage: ⁹  Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. ¹⁰  Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. ¹¹ Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. ¹²  Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. ¹³  Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

¹⁴  Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. ¹⁵  Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. ¹⁶  Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. ¹⁷  Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. ¹⁸ If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. ¹⁹ Beloved,never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” ²⁰ To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” ²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Basically, it seems to me, marching orders for the Christian in every day life. And a relentless, long, joyful march it is.


So. First. We started the day by delivering Miss Language to the airport for the first of her four flights that will land her in Beijing for her year teaching English there. This is a mix of verse 15 (rejoicing and weeping).


And then I spent time working on organizing my thoughts to participate in a fundraiser for a Dear Friend who has been battling much illness, including leukemia. I want to be able to contribute to the needs of others and to be able to show a bit of Christ's love in the process. I have a button on the side to my fundraising page, or you can click here if you want to help. The observant reader will notice I am wearing the lovely scarf sent to me by Comfy Denim in the wonderful care package she sent me, all about Project Wear Yellow, or HOPE! It seems appropriate for an anti-cancer program.  :)

Perfectly Legal

I have been thinking about kindness and have decided that it is underrated. Love gets all the good press in popular songs and greeting cards, but kindness oils a lot of wheels and makes life better.


Today I was at a kickoff for a leukemia fundraiser with my Dear Friend who is walking through this disease. My Dear Friend spoke and I noticed how often she mentioned the kindness of others ~ medical staff, support workers, friends, and neighbors. It just struck me that even at the roughest life gets, kindness touches our hearts. 


And then I started wondering about the fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5 ~ the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness,self-control; against such things there is no law. I have never figured out if I think those go in any sort of order or not. I always seem to feel that love should come as the capstone but maybe it really is the foundation. If so, I guess it kind of goes: foundation of love; layer of joy in God's goodness; then drawing peace from His goodness and faithfulness; being patient as a result of that peace; and THEN we get to kindness, which looks so simple and childish on the surface. And even kindness is only halfway up the list. God is so good in making us like His Son.


There is no law against kindness. That is very good news in a hurting world.