Tag: dream

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FOOTPRINTS POEM: HOPE IN FOOTPRINTS

You may know the  poem entitled  “FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND.” It is beloved by many and has offered hope during past decades.  It likely inspired the song, “FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND.”

Whether I hear the poem, sing the song, or read Scriptures that remind me that I have a comforting Presence with me always, I find that His footprints fill me with hope. May they do the same for you.

FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND (the poem):

“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 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 don’t understand why when I needed You most You would leave me.’

The LORD replied: ‘My son, My precious child, I love you, 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.'”

(Author Unknown)

Even if His footprints are unseen, His presence is felt, and it gives me hope to trust in the Omnipresence of One Who never leaves nor forsakes me. He is also omnipotent (all-powerful) and omniscient (all-knowing), so I can totally rest in Him and trust His unfailing grace to carry me through life’s greatest difficulties.

I think the FOOTPRINTS poet understood this truth well and expressed it beautifully. Because of my own experiences I can add a sincere “Amen.”

“Your path led through the sea, your way through the mighty waters, though your footprints were not seen.” (Psalm 77:19)

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PRECIOUS MOMENTS CHAPEL: MESSAGE of LOVE, HOPE, & INSPIRATION

The Precious Moments Chapel near Carthage, Missouri, is a unique place. It offers visitors an opportunity to experience a moving message from the heart of an artist.  It is a message of love, hope, and inspiration. The results of Sam Butcher’s dream that originated almost 40 years ago has blessed many lives since the Precious Moments Chapel opened almost 30 years ago.

I hope you will visit online at preciousmomentschapel.org to see photos, to learn about the artist, and to understand the history of this special place.  Even better, visit in person to experience firsthand the chapel, the museum, and the beautiful grounds. Enjoy the figurines, murals, fountains, statues, and more. Go, and allow your heart to feel loved, hopeful, and inspired.

Sharing more than his dream and artwork, Sam Butcher shared his faith and this prayer: “It is my prayer that through my work in the Chapel, I might share my faith with others and that the Spirit of God might touch the visitors’ hearts and bring them to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, our Lord.”

I am thankful for Sam’s beautiful testament that is a place where precious moments truly abound.

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ASTRONAUT JIM IRWIN: HOPE to KNOW OUR CREATOR

I watched 1971 TV to see Colonel James Irwin, fourth man on the moon and first to explore by Lunar Rover.  It was history-in-the-making to us earthlings and especially meaningful to Jim. His experiences totally changed his life and future direction.

“When I looked out and saw the earth about as big as a little marble, I thought, ‘How big am I?’

I am just a speck of dust — if that big — compared to the universe. Yet this little speck has the capacity to know God! To know the One Who holds the universe, to know His love and have His direction.

For the first time I saw, felt God’s love for the earth…. I realized then that God loved that little blue marble, that little blue planet.

He loved all the billions of people on it, and He loved me! I realized at that moment that my relationship with Jesus Christ was the most precious thing I had.” (Jim Irwin)

The following year Jim resigned from a career he loved to follow his higher calling and to fulfill his purpose. He founded High Flight Foundation and devoted the rest of his life to spread a message of  God’s love and to share his own relationship with Jesus Christ. By faith Jim understood, “God walking on the earth is more important than man walking on the moon.”

Jim had followed his dream since he was a kid and had prepared for years for his lunar experience. He may not have anticipated his personal encounter with the Creator as he viewed planet earth from such a vantage point, but it was planned before either that planet called Earth or a baby named James Irwin was formed.

Jim Irwin had enough hope in His Creator to trust God’s guidance to change his own life’s direction and to enjoy God’s great love that he knew he was meant to share. The same hope is available for us. We may never view the earth from the moon, but we can see God’s glory as we look up at the night sky when we open our eyes and hearts for hope to know our Creator.

“The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.”   (Psalm 19:1)

For more of Jim’s hopeful story, please read MORE THAN EARTHLINGS: AN ASTRONAUT’S THOUGHTS FOR CHRIST-CENTERED LIVING and other books by Jim Irwin.