"Two Are Better Than One"

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I just couldn't let this last day of November pass me by without creating one more fall-themed piece.  And what better way to wrap it up than to think about the value of all my online Bible journaling friends, and others, who I join with each day.  I am strengthened and encouraged as we share the inspirational and the word of God through our creations and continue to grow in Christ.  Two (or more) are better than one! Looking forward to the next season!

"A Declaration of Faith & Thanksgiving"

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Father, I enter Your gates with thanksgiving this morning and into Your courts with a heart full of praise for who You are and all You have done.  I bless the name of the One who is King of kings and Lord of lords.  There is none like You – gentle, loving and kind; full of all wisdom and grace.  You are the merciful One who takes notice of each one of us, extending Your hand to lead us as a faithful Shepherd.  When we feel uncertain or falter or fall, there You are, reaching out to lift us up and bring us near to You.  I cast all my care upon You, for You care for me.  Your yoke is easy and Your burden is light.  You are the One who has set me free!  I am never alone for You are with me; a very present help in time of need and a friend who sticks closer than a brother.  When I am discouraged or overwhelmed, You remind me to hope in God.  For You are a shield for me, my glory and the lifter of my head; Your Holy Spirit leads me to the Rock that is higher than I.  You are my shelter and high tower from every enemy.  You are my refuge and strength, my protector and defender; the One who hides me under the shadow of His wings.  No weapon formed against me will prosper and every tongue which rises up against me in judgment, You have already condemned.  This is my heritage as a servant of the Most High God.  You calm my anxious thoughts.  You speak peace to the raging storm.  When I am fearful, Your embrace of perfect love comes reassuring, dissolving all fear and dread.  When the days seem dark and unpredictable, I look up to see a sovereign and omnipotent God who holds the world in His hands, to Him who is the creator of all things, who has numbered each one of my days in His Book, and whose truth tells me that the work He has begun He will complete until the day of the Lord Jesus Christ.  I look to the One who establishes my thoughts and directs my steps.  No one and nothing can snatch me from Your hands.  When my spirit is heavy You clothe me with garments of praise.  You give me beauty for ashes.  You settle my soul.  You encourage my heart.  Where I am lacking, You speak to me again that I lack no good thing in Christ Jesus.  You fill me up, even to overflowing, for You are a God of abundance and supply all my need.  When I feel worthless and unlovable, You tell me that I am fearfully and wonderfully made, altogether lovely and loved with an everlasting love.  I thank You that I have such great value in Your sight, so much so that You gave Your only Son to die for me, rescuing me from sin and death and the grave.  You make me whole in every way.  In Your presence I find fullness of joy.  I thank You that my life has meaning and purpose as I dwell here on the earth.  You have given me uniquely good gifts and make room for them, finding me favor that I may bear much fruit for the glory of God.  You provide me with all that pertains to life and godliness, making me a partaker of Your divine nature.  And so, I do not despair for I am confident that You have prepared for me good things, here, in the land of the living.  You are the One who perfects that which concerns me.  You revive and restore my soul.  Not one of Your words will fall to the ground for You have magnified Your word above all Your name.  All of my hope and satisfaction is found in You, and in You, alone.  And so, I sing to You from a grateful heart today, for I delight in You and love You, Lord, for You first loved me.  I thank You for all of Your precious promises, too numerous to mention; all that are yes and amen in Christ Jesus.  It is, indeed, a day to be so very thankful!

Wishing everyone a very 
HAPPY THANKSGIVING
and many blessings!
 

"Be Brave"

Rise up!  Take your authority in Christ, fully clothed in your battle fatigues.  Wield the sword of the Spirit – the Word of God.  Stand on His promises.  Proclaim them over your life and the lives of those around you. Open your mouth and He will fill it with good things.  

Do not be stifled, silenced, rendered powerless, or buckle under the pressure by the empty threats of any enemy, but stand strong and steady in the righteousness of God, believing, prepared with feet of forward momentum that walk in the peace of God.

For we know who we are in Christ.  The God of all power dwells within you, the Sovereign Lord, and He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.

The Lord said, ask and you will receive.  He is our Defender.  He is our High Tower.  He is our Strength, our Source and Supply.  In Him is our victory.  And at the name of Jesus every knee must bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord of all, to the glory of God the Father.

In Him we take refuge, in the One who preserves our soul, in the One who trains our hands for battle.  We are confident in the One who upholds us and calls us, “more than conquerors” through Christ Jesus who loves us and gave Himself for us.

Be brave, courageous and built up in your most holy faith as you live in the presence of Almighty God, continually feeding upon His truth, allowing Him to shape your every thought and desire.  For He will fill you up and give you a fresh vision born of His heart and seen from His perspective. 

  

And so, do not be paralyzed in any way by what your opponents are doing.  Your steadfast faith in the face of opposition is a sign that they are doomed and that you have been graced with God’s salvation.  (Phi. 1:28)
Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong.
(1 Corinthians 16:13)

Scripture Meditation:
Ephesians 6:10-18 - Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.  Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.  Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints...
Psalm 37
Philippians 2:10-11 -  that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Psalm 144:1-2 - Blessed be the Lord my Rock, Who trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle—  my lovingkindness and my fortress, my high tower and my deliverer, my shield and the One in whom I take refuge, Who subdues my people under me. 

Romans 8:31-39 -  What then shall we say to these things?   If God is for us, who can be against us?   He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?   Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect?   It is God who justifies.  Who is he who condemns?   It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?   As it is written:  “For Your sake we are killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”   Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.   For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Jude 1:20-21 - But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

"Restoration"

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Restoration - a word that the Lord has been speaking to me since the beginning of the year, and to the church.

As I've continued to seek the Lord regarding this, I envisioned a caterpillar.  I then saw the great struggle the caterpillar must go through to emerge from its cocoon so that a beautiful butterfly may come forth in its time.

God is not angry or disappointed with the caterpillar for being just who he is throughout the transformative process.  Nor is He in a hurry, but He watches over him through every stage of this incredible and intricate metamorphosis, never rushing it to its completion.  For if rushed or forced, the butterfly would never come into being, but would be aborted.

So it is with us.  The Father takes great delight as we continue to seek and abide in Him, allowing the very nature of Christ to be continually formed in us as we yield to the Holy Spirit's redemptive work.  All the while, we are wrapped up in His protective covering, safe and secure, and loved by Him.

In another vision I saw thick smoke rising up into the trees.  It was the presence of the Lord.  As the smoke hung in the trees locusts began to fall from those trees to the ground - dead!

The Lord then reminded me of something I saw recently as I went for a walk.  As I rounded the corner towards home, I happened to look down where I saw a locust dead at my feet.  As promised in Joel 2:25-27, the Lord is restoring to His people the years the locusts seemed to have destroyed.  We shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord! 

The Lord then pointed me to Isaiah 6:1-8.  I saw His people in holy worship.  Smoke surrounded them.  Smoke filled the temple.  They were washed, they were cleansed, and they were changed.  Bondages were broken, and bodies, minds and spirits were healed; families and relationships were being restored.  His anointing was poured out as His people were being readied for the great and mighty things He has prepared and the revival being released.

The Father will not leave His people limping and crippled, but by the water's edge commands, "Rise, take up your mat and walk."  

The Lord is our Redeemer, redeeming what we thought perhaps was gone forever.  He is a God of the impossible, a God of the return, and a God of restoration; making whole the broken and shattered parts of our lives, restoring and enlarging us in ways that may seem unfathomable.  

But He is the Resurrection and the Life, removing the stones that have stood in the way, raising His people up, even from the ashes, and clothing us with His joy.  He is commanding, 'Loose My people and let them go.'  He is breathing new life.  He is releasing great blessing that we may be a blessing; more than we could hope or imagine.

He is here to restore the hope that has been deferred and that has made the heart bitter and sick.  But He is the healer and faithful One who satisfies our souls, filling us with all our heart's desire and the ability to fulfill His purposes upon the earth.  He is the One who turns our mourning into dancing that we may sing His praise.

Don't give up!  Persevere!  Keep moving forward in Christ!  He has not forgotten you, but in fact would enlarge the place of your dwelling that all of the nations would see and know the glory of God.

Remember His promises, even those of old.  Meditate on and declare His decrees, for they are the same, unchangeable and life-giving.  Those empty and barren places in our lives, He fills, bringing forth to birth the things He has conceived.  Our "Isaacs" will be born!  God is visiting His people.  At His appointed time, and just as He has said, He will deliver precisely what He has promised.  No, He has not forgotten, but I hear laughter upon the lips of a people who believe.   

Nothing can stop the purposes and plans the Lord has for you.  The enemy will not prevail, for our heritage is His righteousness and freedom in Christ, to take back the stolen, to walk in His truth and His peace, and to establish His Kingdom throughout the earth.

This is a new day, a new season where the Lord is restoring our losses and where He declares the latter to be better than the first.  There is an overflow in the river, even in the desert places you have found yourself in, bubbling up from depths that cannot be seen except in the secret place.  He is turning the bitter to sweet.

Come aside, come away, be set apart.  He is calling for Himself, a holy people, servants and worshipers of the Most High God.  

You are known by a new name in Christ and you are abundantly blessed!

Scripture Meditation:
Genesis 32:24-29 - Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.  Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him.  And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.”  But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”  So He said to him, “What is your name?”  He said, “Jacob.”  And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.”  Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I pray.”  And He said, “Why is it that you ask about My name?”  And He blessed him there.
John 5:8-9 - Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.”  And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked.
1 Chronicles 4:10 - And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested.
Isaiah 54
Genesis 17:1-8 - When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless.  And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly.”  Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying:   “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations.   No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.  I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you.  And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.  Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”
Genesis 17:15-19 -   Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.  And I will bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be from her.”  Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Shall a child be born to a man who is one hundred years old?  And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?”  And Abraham said to God, “Oh, that Ishmael might live before You!”  Then God said: “No, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his descendants after him. 
Genesis 21:1-3 -  And the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as He had spoken.  For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.  And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him—whom Sarah bore to him—Isaac.  
Joel 2:25-27 -  So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the crawling locust, the consuming locust, and the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you.  You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; and My people shall never be put to shame.  Then you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel: I am the Lord your God and there is no other.  My people shall never be put to shame.

Isaiah 6:1-8 - In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple.  Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.  And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!”  And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.  So I said: “Woe is me, for I am undone!  Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.”  Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar.  And he touched my mouth with it, and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged.”  Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?”  Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

Job 19:25-26 - For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God...
Job 42:10 - And the Lord restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends.  Indeed the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.
Job 42:12 - Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning...
John 11:40-44 -  Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?”  Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying.  And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.  And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.”   Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!”  And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth.  Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.”
Ruth 1:19-21 - Now the two of them went until they came to Bethlehem.  And it happened, when they had come to Bethlehem, that all the city was excited because of them; and the women said, “Is this Naomi?”  But she said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.  I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty.  Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?”
Ruth 3:9-11 -  “Who are you?” he asked.  “I am your servant Ruth,” she replied.  “Spread the corner of your covering over me, for you are my family redeemer.”   “The Lord bless you, my daughter!”  Boaz exclaimed. “You are showing even more family loyalty now than you did before, for you have not gone after a younger man, whether rich or poor.  Now don’t worry about a thing, my daughter.  I will do what is necessary, for everyone in town knows you are a virtuous woman."
Ruth 4:13-17 - So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife; and when he went in to her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son.  Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a close relative; and may his name be famous in Israel!  And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has borne him.”   Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom, and became a nurse to him.  Also the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “There is a son born to Naomi.”   And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.  (NOTE: Obed = SERVANT/WORSHIPER)
Psalm 30:11-12 -  You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, to the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent.  O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

Habakkuk 2:2-3 -  Then the Lord answered me and said: “Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it.  For the vision is yet for an appointed time; but at the end it will speak, and it will not lie.  Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.
Proverbs 13:12 -  Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.
Ephesians 3:20-21 -  Now to the God who can do so many awe-inspiring things, immeasurable things, things greater than we ever could ask or imagine through the power at work in us, to Him be all glory in the church and in Jesus the Anointed from this generation to the next, forever and ever. Amen.

"Amazing Grace"

He saw me in my struggle, dead, in my blood

He said to me, "Live", it was the time of His love.

He clothed me in robes, royal, spreading his wings

He washed me and cleansed me, redemption to bring.

For He called me and chose me, adopted, a son

Saved through the faith Jesus Christ for me won.

I cast down my crowns, these, no longer my gain

But grace upon grace as I trust in the Name

In the name of Christ Jesus, no longer my own

Purchased, salvation, His blood has atoned

For all of my sin, it was nothing I earned

But the gift of my Father through His sent, living Word.

Joy unspeakable I know for He's my living hope

through the resurrection of Jesus, in Him alone I boast.

My inheritance is incorruptible, it will not fade away

It is reserved for me in Heaven, I am kept until that Day.
I once was lost but now I'm found
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
And so again I lift my praise
My songs to rise unto the Name
To Him who gave His life, to save
To dwell with Him for all my days.

Ezekiel 16:6-14 -  “And when I passed by you and saw you struggling in your own blood, I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’  Yes, I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’  I made you thrive like a plant in the field; and you grew, matured, and became very beautiful.  Your breasts were formed, your hair grew, but you were naked and bare.  “When I passed by you again and looked upon you, indeed your time was the time of love; so I spread My wing over you and covered your nakedness.  Yes, I swore an oath to you and entered into a covenant with you, and you became Mine,” says the Lord God.   “Then I washed you in water; yes, I thoroughly washed off your blood, and I anointed you with oil.  I clothed you in embroidered cloth and gave you sandals of badger skin; I clothed you with fine linen and covered you with silk.  I adorned you with ornaments, put bracelets on your wrists, and a chain on your neck.  And I put a jewel in your nose, earrings in your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head.  Thus you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was of fine linen, silk, and embroidered cloth.  You ate pastry of fine flour, honey, and oil.  You were exceedingly beautiful, and succeeded to royalty.  Your fame went out among the nations because of your beauty, for it was perfect through My splendor which I had bestowed on you,” says the Lord God.
Ephesians 1:4-6 -  He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
Philippians 3:3-9 - For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh, though I also might have confidence in the flesh.  If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so:  circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.  But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.  Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.
Ephesians 2:8-9 - For it’s by God’s grace that you have been saved.  You receive it through faith.  It was not our plan or our effort.  It is God’s gift, pure and simple.  You didn’t earn it, not one of us did, so don’t go around bragging that you must have done something amazing. 
1 Peter 1:3-5 - Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

"One Way"

Jesus, You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  You alone hold the keys to eternal life.  I yield to You and the work You do in and through me.  I am committed to You.  You are the One I have chosen to travel with throughout all of my days, for you first chose and loved me.  When the roads are smooth, when the roads are bumpy, upon hills and in valleys, I will make no U-Turn, but keep my hope and trust in You, who so perfectly and safely navigate my path.  Keep me close and going in the direction of forward momentum, with Your Word, my map, and Your Holy Spirit, my compass.   

You have traveled the ancient paths.  You know every turn along the new roads we will take together, and all that is up ahead.  I thank You for the years I have known You and for every adventure yet to come, and all that we will discover together. 

May the very fragrance of Christ be left behind, along each street and every heart we encounter, Lord.  I praise the name of the Lord for pointing the way that I should go through every season of my life, my faithful God.

"Can You Hear His Heartbeat?"

Though there are many Scriptures included in this study on prayer, I call it, "a short study", because for me, this particular topic seems endless, but I mean that in a good way!

Since the very moment I came to the Lord many years ago, and began to know the joy of His salvation, I was drawn to seek His face and pray.  I wanted to know Him.  I still want to know Him - to hear His voice, to see what He's doing, and to be a part of God's activity here on the earth.

Just as His dearly beloved disciple, John, who leaned against His breast to hear the very heartbeat of God, so too do I long to hear that same rhythm, to be in tune with Him and echo the sounds from Heaven.

The Father calls us to join with Him in concert to proclaim the truths and goodness of God, to take the authority He has given, to speak what He speaks, and to be "the more than conquerors" He's called us to be.  In Him, we are the victorious ones, displaying His glory, establishing His Kingdom, even for such a time as this. 

We are, indeed, a chosen generation, His kings and priests, a holy nation, that we may proclaim the praises of Him Who has delivered us from darkness and brought us into His most marvelous light.

Those situations before us that seem insurmountable, Christ has overcome.  And those things that appear to be in shambles, our God would rebuild as we stand arm in arm with Him and with each other.  We are the, "Repairers of the Breach", and the, "The Restorers of Streets to Dwell In."  Through the cross, Christ has defeated every foe!

We are those who enter boldly into the throne room of grace in our time of need, confident that our God hears and answers.  For our prayers and intercessions, He has birthed within our hearts, and they rise as incense to the Lord our God, fragrant and pleasing to Him.  

We reach out to touch the scepter extended to us, where we find our King's favor, where it is given to us, the things we have asked, for He is faithful, and His righteousness is upon us, and His word is true and sealed.  It is a place where the heavens open wide, where the rains fall down as we fall at His feet, and the earth yields her fruit.