Tag: Jesus

God Time with Children #1

Help for parents, grandparents, elementary school teachers, and more to talk to kids about God, His Word, and the Gospel message.

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14.

What Does God Say About Children?

A small team of ours at present goes into the public schools for an Afterschool Good News Club.

A little kindergartener came into the room and the first words out of her mouth were, “I love God!”

Spending time with children is healthy and good for us all. We watch their joy, confidence, and curiosity. It makes us happy. It’s as if they sense God loves them before anyone tells them. The Bible tells us,

We all need to become like children and believe in God’s love. If you’re a child, be thankful to God! All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace on your children Isaiah 54:13.

Young children and old alike learn and know well one particular song by the time they’re 2. Can you guess what that song might be?

Yes, “Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so.”

Take a minute and sing this favorite song. Think of these words. Do you believe this is true?

To believe takes faith. Children have faith from an early age.

Jesus spoke of children and their faith in the Bible,

Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them.  Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven.  So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven Matthew 18:1-3.

I want to enter the kingdom of heaven, do you? We must be as a child. Why does Jesus say this? And what does this mean?

Because children believe Jesus loves them. This they know. The Bible tells them so! Children have faith. They believe in God. And they love to sing, Jesus loves me! These elementary things are the foundation that keeps our “house” steady and secure.

Here is something God wants us to know about children:

“Children are a gift from the Lord;
    they are a reward from him.
Children born to a young man
    are like arrows in a warrior’s hands.
 How joyful is the man whose quiver is full of them!
    He will not be put to shame when he confronts his accusers at the city gates” Psalm 127: 3-5.

This is God’s Word. Parents and children are encouraged by it. Children are important. To God, especially!

It’s good to look in the Bible to find out what God says about something. God’s Word might be quite different from the attitudes and opinions of others.

Let’s continue to sing the old favorite song:  “Little ones to Him belong. They are weak but He is strong. Yes, Jesus loves me.”

Do you and I believe this? We know we are weak at times, but do we believe God is strong?

This makes me think about another foundational favorite “little kids” song: “My God is so big, so strong and so mighty, there’s nothing my God cannot do. For you!”

We should never outgrow needing to think about how great and strong our God is. As adults, our troubles and trials become so large we forget God.

God is strong and mighty, He is God the Creator of the world and everything in it. He is Spirit. He’s everywhere at every minute of the day.

 Faith is believing in God. He is and can do impossible things, the Bible tells us so.  

I faced a very scary and life-threatening sickness, and God reminded me, that Abraham was counted as righteous by God because of his faith.

Yes, to believe God is faith. I asked everyone I knew to pray. We asked the mighty and powerful God to heal me completely, in Jesus’ name. It wasn’t overnight, but He did impossible things. He guided me in His word, He directed me, and He healed me!

Jesus loves us, and this we must know. The Bible will help us grow. It’s God’s love letter of hope and rescue for all His children, young and old.

Ella sang this for me. I think it’s a great way to end our 1st God talk. And I added Created to praise Him as well.

It reminds us, we are His special creation. Knit in our mother’s womb, created to praise Him. We are fearfully and wonderfully made.

Happiness and joy are being like a child to know that very well!

See you next time.

SONG: My God is so Big.

My God is So Big Toni & Kids Acoustic Bible Songs
Created to Praise Him: Toni & Kids Sing Bible

Can We Simply Let 9/11 Pass By?

As on 9/11—We are in a war. Can we not see the urgency?

Can we simply let 9/11 pass by? And live life back to normal?

We are not “back to normal” today. We must open our eyes and acknowledge, we are in a war. Do we need more evidence of heat, flame, and fires in families, public schools, city streets, and lands?

I share my 9/11 hero story.

Alfred J. Braca went to work on September 11, 2001, in the North Tower of the World Trade Center, on the 100th floor, as any other workday.

I knew Al Braca, from our church in New Jersey. Our sons enjoyed Boy Scouts together back then.

His life stirs in me the courage to make a difference this day. With all the confusion about what love is, Al Braca exemplified true love on the dreadful day of 9/11.

Do I, you, have the courage to love as he did?

A dedicated dad, husband, granddaddy, and loyal bond trader at Cantor Fitzgerald, Al set out to live a “Godly lifestyle” as a faithful follower of Jesus Christ. He turned down invites to go out for drinks and carousing and often shared how Jesus changed his life. Consistently, a target of jeers by his colleagues, they referred to him as the “Rev.”

Aware of the marriage troubles, affairs, addictions, brokenness, and pain in his colleagues’ lives, Al often prayed with his wife, Jeanie, that they would come to faith in Jesus.

This day, in a moment, at 8:46 a.m., great confusion exploded all around them as a Boeing 767 flew into the building between floors 93-99.

No warning. Just bang!

Everyone ran to the windows to see what happened. Fire, smoke, chaos, confusion.

Heat rose from below them.

No information. No exit. Then, another explosion. The second tower was hit and caught fire. No one understood what happened.

Men and women on those upper floors discovered there was no way down. Desperation. Fear. Panic ensued.

The story is told, Al went up to one of the big conference rooms on the 104th top floor and told everyone to come to the room.

“I’m going to heaven. Who’s going with me?”

Approximately fifty of his co-workers came into the conference room.

Al wasn’t worried about offending anyone. He had hope.

Al stood up on a conference table and gave them the invitation for life—eternal life.

He was going to heaven. Al shared the Way with those who knew no way.

Al laid it all out as he stood on the table. They had to know. Without receiving Jesus in their lives, there was no hope for heaven. Only death and an eternity separated from God.

 Perhaps he shared,

 For God so loves you, He gave His Son Jesus to die that you might live.

He suffered and bled on the cross to cleanse all your sins.

Believe in Him right now. Accept Jesus in your life and you will be saved.” (John 3:16, John 6:35.)

Al was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. He knew it was the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes (Acts 16:31).

There wasn’t time to trust in bank accounts, jobs—nothing.

Al shared Jesus. He knew He was their only hope.

He loved them enough to give them the truth.

“Who wants to receive Jesus and live?” he probably asked. We don’t know his exact words, but we know he prayed for them, right then.

How do we know?

Many of the men and women that met in that conference room that morning, made phone calls to their families.

They said, “Goodbye, I love you,” but they also said, “I will see you again. I just received Jesus. The “Rev” prayed with me to receive Jesus in my life.”

Others said, “Al stood on the conference table and told us how to be saved. I’m going to heaven. I have Jesus now. I’ll be waiting for you there. I love you. ”

These were Al’s comrades. They made fun of him in the past, but no one was jeering now.  He gave them an invitation to receive the Lord and He had prayed for them.

Al laid out the truth. The only way to heaven. Jesus. They received the invitation and were saved from death. They had eternal life.

Maybe Al comforted himself and the others in those desperate moments with scriptures he had hidden in his heart:

Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you (John 14:1,2). Fear not; for I am with you, (Isaiah 41:10).

 Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28).

Al Braca lives today in my life. I hope in yours as well. He didn’t want his colleagues to be separated from God for all eternity.

He had faith and courage to witness to them. The Holy Spirit moved him to tell the people the truth about Jesus, so they might receive His amazing grace, forgiveness, love, and eternal life.

Thank you Alfred J. Braca.

At the World Trade Center Memorial, look for this name: Alfred J. Braca.

Take notice of the names surrounding his name. These were his colleagues. Many joined him on that day to go to heaven.

Tragedy came unexpected: “I’m Going to Heaven. Who’s Going with Me?”

 Will we live our day, ready to love others into the kingdom of heaven?

People in this day need hope. They need truth. They need to know the way.

There is no time for debate. Time is short. Will we tell others what Jesus said:

 “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6) —before it’s too late?

-tonirypkema.com

(To read Jean Braca’s story, look for Christmas Beeler’s book, Beauty from Ashes. Walking in New Life with God After Loss. The Journey of 9/11 Widow Jean Braca.)

Picture: Courtesy of Calvary Chapel Magazine. (Leading Souls to Christ as the Towers Burned.)

Praise + Prayer = Faith to Conquer Any Foe

Hebrews 11:6 & Isaiah 55:6-9.

Most days, I wake up with praise to God on my lips, but as the evening comes, I often am tempted to grow weary and discouraged.

When I say, “praise on my lips,” this means a “thank You” song or a psalm, hymn, or God’s Word on my mind, instead of situations, lack, or loss.

But when my body grows fatigued, my mind begins to dwell on the happenings of this world and life circumstances, faith flies away like a bird disrupted by a loud noise.

How we need reminders of good things and words of direction and help. God’s Word is our safe place to run. I often have kid’s voices in the back of my mind, singing the Bible songs God gave me, to help me throughout my day:

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him Hebrews 11:6, NIV.

In the Book of 2 Chronicles 20, Jehoshaphat, king of Judah became informed of a huge army coming against them. Circumstances hit us like this.

Jehoshaphat . . . prayed to the Lord. He sought the Lord for His instruction, just as in Isaiah 55:6: 8&9:

Seek the Lord while he may be found;
    call on him while he is near Isaiah 55:6.

Jehoshaphat gathered the people. Then, he proclaimed a fast for all of Judah (2 Chronicles 20:3).  

Then Jehoshaphat stood up . . . at the temple of the Lord . . . and he prayed with all the people:

“Lord, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations.

Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you . . .

If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us” (2 Chronicles 20: 6-9).

We must, I must do the same. I must remind myself of who God is and cry out to Him in faith. The time is now.

 Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel . . . as he stood in the assembly.

 He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you:

‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. 

God’s Word reminds us of truth, when we often believe we must work it out with our own thoughts, as the kids sing the verses:

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,
declares the Lord.
 As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts Isaiah 55:6,8-9.

 Tomorrow march down against them . . .

You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, Judah and Jerusalem.

Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’”

 Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the Lord” (2 Chronicles 20: 17-19).

 Early in the morning . . . Jehoshaphat stood and said,

“Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem!

Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.” 

 After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying:

“Give thanks to the Lord,
    for his love endures forever.”

 As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated” (2 Chronicles 20:20-22).

The battle you and I face today is not our battle. It’s the Lord’s battle.

Let’s continue to infuse our minds and spirit with God’s truth. May kids from Toni & Kids Sing Bible restore faith, bring joy, and help us keep a song of truth in our hearts and minds today:

Thank you Irelyn and Noel for singing!

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him Hebrews 11:6, NIV.

Seek the Lord while he may be found;
    call on him while he is near.

 For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,
declares the Lord.
 As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts Isaiah 55:6,8-9.

Has a “fiery trial come on you?”

“Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed” 1 Peter 4:12,13.

I’m surprised. Perhaps you’re experiencing a great trial as well. Our minds are in a battle to focus on faith in God, our physical bodies are taxed beyond understanding. But God is greater than anything we can face.

“My God is so big, so strong and so mighty, there’s nothing our God cannot do!” I pray God enables us to stand in faith and not enter fear.

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and of a sound mind” 2nd Timothy 1:7.

Join me to fight this battle on our knees.

What is our comfort in this time? Psalm 119:50 tells us, “Your Word has given me life.”

I share an hour’s worth of prayer to meditate on so we can think on “things above, not on things of the earth,” and because we have believed in Jesus, and have “died” to this world, “our life is now hidden with Christ in God” Colossians 3:3. 

Together, today, all who are in great trial, we choose to:

“Therefore humble (y)ourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,

casting all (y)our care upon Him, for He cares for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” 1 Peter 5:7-8.

But God is greter. We will seek His presence and choose to think on His truth.

“This is the voctory that overcomes the world, even our faith” 1 John 5″4.

Jesus alone is our peace. Our hope. Our everything.

Let’s keep our minds in a safe place, “rejoiocing in hope, praying without ceasing, and giving thanks in everything, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for us” 1 Thessalonians 5: 16 & 17.

Prayers for our souls to take comfort when our heart is overwhelmed

Need joy? God Knows What we Need. Put yourself in God’s presence with Psalm 95:

It was a day, years ago, touched by the ever-living power of the Word of God, Psalm 95 had me pick up a pen and my slightly twangy guitar to put down a song.

The Lord put the gospel message on my heart as I meditated on His exhortation, “Come let us worship and bow down.

“Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker” Psalm 95:6.

We all are created by God. And His greatest gift to us, He lets us decide whether to believe or not.

He desires we all “talk to Him,” seek His Word and spend time with Him. His love is so great. He is love.

Love came down.

Joy? It’s a gift of His Holy Spirit. When we turn our hearts to Him and call on Him (for who He is, the Savior of the world), we receive (His) love. His Spirit comes and washes our sins. He makes us a new creation, today, in Him.

God the Father gives us His love through His Son who paid our debt in full and gave us His Spirit as a guarantee.

We bow down, He turns the “light on” in our souls. He breathes in us His breath of life. We become whole, filled with joy.

And we must not forget, peace. Jesus takes all our garbage and sin and gives us new birth.

“In Christ,” we become new creations. Born a second time into life, here and now, and for all eternity.

His Spirit calls . . .

“Come, let us worship.”

Talk to the Lord, not half-hearted but with all your heart.

Is it time to make Him your God, who lives and dwells with you?

Let us worship and bow down before the Lord our Maker: Psalm 95

A Call to Worship and Obedience

Psalm 95 Oh come, let us sing to the Lord!
Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.
2 Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving;
Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.
3 For the Lord is the great God,
And the great King above all gods.
4 In His hand are the deep places of the earth;
The heights of the hills are His also.
5 The sea is His, for He made it;
And His hands formed the dry land.

6 Oh come, let us worship and bow down;
Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
7 For He is our God,
And we are the people of His pasture,
And the sheep of His hand.

Today, if you will hear His voice:
8 “Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion,
As in the day of trial in the wilderness,
9 When your fathers tested Me;
They tried Me, though they saw My work.
10 For forty years I was grieved with that generation,
And said, ‘It is a people who go astray in their hearts,
And they do not know My ways.’
11 So I swore in My wrath,
‘They shall not enter My rest.’ ”

Make today, your day of salvation. Enter into the “joy” of the Lord!

And make sure you tell someone about your new-birth in Christ.

Mysterious Trials? Let’s Praise Through the Battle with Psalm 139:

When the kids were young, we set out to memorize Psalm 139. Many years have passed and this Psalm is a continual “present help” to me in times of trial.

So, I wrote a song to sing in my heart when life seemed cloudy and dark. It’s called for now, “My Psalm 139 Song.” My in the title was to imply a personal connection for anyone who “sings” this song in heart and mind, or aloud with voice.

Do you have a mysterious trial you are walking through? Are you suffering from a physical ailment? Are you suffering loss and pain?

If I say, “Surely, the darkness shall fall on me, even the night will shine as day around me. The darkness and the light are both alike to You.

On You, I wait and pray. Your Word I hear and Praise . . . “

The Kanagy kids challenged themselves to learn My Psalm 139 Song, (and what a great job they did. Thank you, girls!)

If you need a song of comfort and hope from the Lord, pray this in your heart and mind. And better yet, play it so much you can sing it through your day!

My Psalm 139 Song, by Toni Rypkema

Let me know if the truths from God’s Word ministered to you today:

Psalm 139, NKJV:

God’s Perfect Knowledge of Man

For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

139 O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
2 You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You understand my thought afar off.
3 You [a]comprehend my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways.
4 For there is not a word on my tongue,
But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.
5 You have hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it.

7 Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
8 If I ascend into heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
10 Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me,”
Even the night shall be light about me;
12 Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You,
But the night shines as the day;
The darkness and the light are both alike to You.

13 For You formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book, they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.

17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;
When I awake, I am still with You.

19 Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God!
Depart from me, therefore, you [i]bloodthirsty men.
20 For they speak against You wickedly;
Your enemies take Your name in vain.
21 Do I not hate them, O Lord, who hate You?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?
22 I hate them with perfect hatred;
I count them my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me, and know my anxieties;
24 And see if there is any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting.

Who needs a moment of music therapy today? This is for you:

Before Covid, to help my own healing, I would walk into the nursing home and on occasion, the infusion room with the guitar and simply start to sing and recite scripture. There was nothing amazing about any of it, except the Lord would show up and His Spirit would revive us all.

This is for you, in need of comfort through the pain: (Cover The Joy of the Lord is my Strength by Twila Paris).

Music Therapy cover: The Joy of the Lord by Twila Paris

There is someone crying out to the Lord for mercy today.

Someone is hurting physically, feeling alone, and not sure about what to do next.

Someone has been harmed by others and is left in pain, isolated, and presently feels abandoned.

Are you far from home and feel displaced?

I share music therapy today with you in hopes the vibration of strings lifts your heart and mind to praise God and draw near to Him, as He then promises to be near to you (James 4:8).

Jesus came to reconcile us to the Father and has “put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, a guarantee” when we open our hearts to Him (2 Corinthian 1:22).

In this world of perfect sound and production, we don’t have the opportunity to experience the simplicity of six strings and a moment of therapy with raw vocals with the sole purpose to comfort and refresh.

May you experience the “joy of the Lord” as your strength today.

– Toni

If you have received comfort from the Lord today, let me or someone know. If today is the day you opened your heart to receive the love of Jesus and accept His free gift of salvation that He gave on the cross, tell your whole world. Tell everyone, the angels in heaven are celebrating today your new-birth-day!

The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing” Zephaniah 3:17.

Satan Trembles Before the Spirit’s Might!

“Lo Satan trembles and gives place

Before the Spirit’s might!

The power of reconcilable grace

Puts all his demons to flight.

His kingdom falls, and his spells and charms

By Jesus are o’erthrown,

The Spirit wields victorious arms,

And holds the field alone.

– Author Unknown

God is on the throne. Yesterday, today, and forever:

“Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven.  Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”

And he said, “Who are You, Lord?”

Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”

 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?”

Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.  And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank” Acts 9: 1-9, emphasis mine.

GOD is on the throne.

This Saul, who breathed out threats and set out to destroy “believer’s in Christ” was met by none other than Jesus Himself.

“O Spirit of the Lord, prepare
All the round earth her God to meet;
Breathe thou abroad like morning air,
Till hearts of stone begin to beat.

Baptize the nations; far and nigh
The triumphs of the cross record;
The Name of Jesus glorify,
Till every kindred call him Lord” (Original Trinity Hymnal, #253, Mendon).

“Dear Lord, give us more and more grace to “trust You more.” You alone are worthy. You alone are able. We believe. Help our unbelief! In Jesus’ name, amen.”

A New Attitude as a Tuned-up Instrument to Sing a New Song to the LORD

My heartstrings become “out of tune,” immediately when they’re hit with news of the world today.

So, I fight to think of something good. This hymn always rescues me:

Come, thou Fount of every blessing,
tune my heart to sing thy grace;
streams of mercy, never ceasing,
call for songs of loudest praise, (Come Thou Fount, Robert Robinson, 1758).

This is the prayer I can’t find to pray when I’m hit with sudden heaviness. I need a heart tune-up.

“Come thou Fount of every blessing!”

So, I talk to the Lord,

“Jesus, Your greatest work is You died on the cross, for me. For the “sins of the world, You are the Lamb of God.”

I think of the two guilty men on either side of You, each on a cross. You were innocent, without guilt, shame, or sin.

Yet, one of the guilty men was changed in an instant. He watched You, listened to You, and he believed. And he rebuked the other criminal.”

So, I opened God’s Word to read the account.

Everything became crystal clear to him:

 One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” 

 But the other responded, and rebuking him, said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?  And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our crimes; but this man has done nothing wrong.” 

And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise”

(Luke 23: 39-43).

This thief and liar was instantly changed. In the presence of the Lord, He watched. he heard. He believed. That’s what the Lord is showing me I must do. Everyday.

My heaviness and attitude are lifted and softened. I look at Jesus in His Word and hear what He says.

The hymn reminds me: I need continual reminders of the power of God, whom I believe.

I’ve got to fight the fight of faith all day long with praise and prayer:


Teach me some melodious sonnet,
sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount I’m fixed upon it
mount of God’s redeeming love (Come Thou Fount, Robinson).

I went to a “melodious sonnet,” in Psalm 98. I discover again, my heavy heart becomes hopeful, with faith, to believe God is great again. I have thankfulness again.

God’s Word is living:

“Sing to the Lord a new song,
    for he has done marvelous things;
his right hand and his holy arm
    have worked salvation for him.


The Lord has made his salvation known
    and revealed his righteousness to the nations.


He has remembered his love
    and his faithfulness to Israel;
all the ends of the earth have seen
    the salvation of our God” Psalm 98: 1-3.

God’s reminding me, “Keep your eyes on My marvelous works and pray to Me. Ask of Me!

“Do you love My ocean? The sound of My rivers? My sunrises, My sunsets?

 Let the sea resound, and everything in it,
    the world, and all who live in it.
Let the rivers clap their hands,
    let the mountains sing together for joy;
let them sing before the Lord,
    for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
    and the peoples with equity. Psalm 98:7-9.

God is Big. There’s nothing our God can’t do!

There is power in the name of Jesus. There’s life in His Word. This is my safe place.

Today, will you join me to lift our eyes, and, yes, even our hands in faith and praise the Lord, together? Today,

Here I raise my Ebenezer
Here by Thy great help, I’ve come
And I hope by Thy good pleasure
Safely to arrive at home.

Jesus sought me when a stranger
Wandering from the fold of God
He to rescue me from danger
Interposed His precious blood.

Prone to wander, Lord I feel it
Prone to leave the God I love
Here’s my heart, oh take and seal it
Seal it for Thy courts above (Come Thou Fount, Robinson).

As an orchestra, with eyes up, yes, and even arms raised, let’s be changed in an instant in faith of God through Jesus, His Son:

Here’s my heart
Oh take and seal it
Seal it for Thy courts above.

Tell someone of your heart change, your new attitude. And let a child keep our faith on track with this:

Ella/My God is so Big!

A 1737 Hymn turns me around every time. “Give to the winds thy fears;”

1. Give to the winds thy fears;
hope and be undismayed.
God hears thy sighs and counts thy tears,
God shall lift up thy head.

2. Through waves and clouds and storms,
God gently clears the way;
wait thou God’s time; so shall this night
soon end in joyous day.

3. Leave to God’s sovereign sway
to choose and to command;
so shalt thou, wondering, own that way,
how wise, how strong this hand.

4. Let us in life, in death,
thy steadfast truth declare,
and publish with our latest breath
thy love and guardian care.
Paul Gerbhardt, translated by John Wesley, 1737).

“Hope and be undismayed . . . ”

These are times of great trouble. Persecuted Christians are imprisoned, there are economic struggles, deceptive governments, struggles in the church, physical illnesses, and losses of great magnitude, etc.

I wrote this first paragraph many years ago. But, it fits today.

What great comfort to know, God is the same. God’s Word never changes.

I feel as if, in life, I play a one-stringed guitar.

God’s Word tells us, “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:19).

This is my one-stringed theme in life. So, when my heart is out of tune, most likely there is no song around. A good-themed melody is a therapy for the heart and mind.

I share this old hymn from long ago, and want to encourage you to join me to put some voice on the words and speak these faith sounds to revive worn-out souls:

“Give to the winds thy fears; hope and be undismayed; God hears thy sighs and counts thy tears, God shall lift up thy head.”
“Through waves and clouds and storms, He gently clears thy way; Wait thou His time; So shall this night soon end in joyous day.”

The second stanza reminds me God is big when trials seem to build. Nothing is impossible with Him. I can trust Him. You can trust Him. We can trust God.

When we choose to believe and follow the Lord, He will faithfully lead us:

Leave to God’s sovereign sway
to choose and to command;
so shalt thou, wondering, own that way,
how wise, how strong this hand.

Have you given your life to the One who gave His own? Jesus paid it all. All our debt in full. Is today your day to rest in His strong, sovereign hand?

There is no death in Christ! To rest in His love is eternal love and life forever with Him.

Let us in life, in death,
thy steadfast truth declare,
and publish with our latest breath
thy love and guardian care.

We must rest in His Word and truth:

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27.

If you feel the Lord tugging on your heart to pray, then talk to Him now. Salvation in Jesus is only a prayer away. Ask Him in your life.

He comes in and cleanses and makes new all the garbage and junk and debt of sin. We all have sin. We all need a Savior. Is today the day?

If you have the Lord and feel burdened and heavy on this day, talk to the Lord,

Through waves and clouds and storms,
God gently clears the way;
wait thou God’s time; so shall this night
soon end in joyous day.

“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.

They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor” Isaiah 61:1-3.

Are you changed today? For salvation or revived hope to persevere? Talk to someone about it!

God bless each of us today. How we need Jesus. In His name, we pray. Amen.

A Paragraph of Praise:

In Need of Healing:

When I take a moment to worship the Lord, where I am, in my state of imperfection, the Lord’s presence infuses me with immediate peace and inner joy. His light shines on me and brings relief in a (slow) process of healing me from pains from this world.

The hard part—is to choose praise in pain.

But the just shall live by faith, (Habakkuk 2:4).

“Dear Lord, It’s true, ‘faith comes in the hearing of the word of God,’ so keep my ears open to hear what You have to say, . . . “

Psalm 34:18
The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.

Isaiah 30:20-21
And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself anymore, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.

1 Peter 5:10
And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.

” . . . I believe Lord and praise You now. In Jesus’ name, amen.”

Just One Light Then Two, then Gloriously New!

What the world needs now . . .

Have you ever been to a “Candlelight Service?” The darkened room is changed by one lit candle. The light is then shared with another, then another.

Within a minute, the darkness is overcome by the light that continues to expand to transform the atmosphere into glorious!

Any description is shallow and flat, as a picture’s view of the ocean’s edge or a two-dimensional firework display.

To be present and witness the absence of light then the growing glow of illumination is like “seeing” Love with the eyes and all the senses.

Immediately, the heart is touched by the solution. “Yes, what the world needs now is Love.”

Child-like faith is ignited. Hearts melt. Eyes witness darkness to light. Hope shines in the atmosphere.

The true and living God is our only hope.

“Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light” Genesis 1:2,3.

God’s Word sparks faith. Faith is sight to God’s grace poured out in the light.

The voice of Jesus is heard in each open heart. Without a sound, only expanding light.

“Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God” Mark 10:27, NLT.

First, the darkness.

But one lit candle speaks: “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord,” Luke 2:11.

And the reminder:

But, “He was despised and rejected by mankind,
    a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces
    he was despised, and we held him in low esteem” Isaiah 53:3.

Jesus suffered and died.

For me. He took all my sin, failure, and guilt on the cross and suffered my punishment.

But as light fills the room, the nature of God sings: “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness” Psalm 103:8.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” John 3:16.

The expanding light is as a voice we can hear, “I am the light of the world” John 8:12.

God’s Word is illuminated to all who are open to His Spirit, “He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen” Matthew 28:6.

The dark atmosphere transformed to light gives the opportunity and choice to respond,

“Yes, Lord, God. I receive Your light, Your love, Your grace, Your life. Your kingdom come into my life today. Take my hard, selfish heart and give me a new soft and tender heart. Transform me. I desperately need You!”

In Jesus’ name, our hope and light of the world.

Tonirypkema Bible Songs 1. Thanks, Irelyn and Graham!

When in doubt, pray. When you can’t, praise. Wings as eagles will lift your weary soul to faith, hope, and love.

“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up” Luke 18:1.

Billy Graham. PRAY.

Perhaps, this is one of the greatest teachings of Billy Graham for this dark hour we live. This old picture speaks to me to “be still.” To hear God’s voice immediately changes me from fret and fear to faith.

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
    I will be exalted among the nations,
    I will be exalted in the earth” Psalm 46:10.

The surrender to agree, at such a time as this, yields hope in me. This picture speaks the glory of surrender in me.

tonirypkema.com

Yes, I will be still. I will pray and cry aloud. I will hope in God who is able, I will seek His face. Join me to read aloud the transforming hope and light of God’s Word:

One thing I ask from the Lord,
    this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the Lord
    and to seek him in his temple.
 For in the day of trouble
    he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent
    and set me high upon a rock.

Then my head will be exalted
    above the enemies who surround me;
at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy;
    I will sing and make music to the Lord.

 Hear my voice when I call, Lord;
    be merciful to me and answer me.
My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”
    Your face, Lord, I will seek.
Do not hide your face from me,
    do not turn your servant away in anger;
    you have been my helper.
Do not reject me or forsake me,
    God my Savior.


Though my father and mother forsake me,
    the Lord will receive me.


Teach me your way, Lord;
    lead me in a straight path
    because of my oppressors.
 Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,
    for false witnesses rise up against me,
    spouting malicious accusations.

 I remain confident of this:
    I will see the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living.
 Wait for the Lord;
    be strong and take heart
    and wait for the Lord Psalm 27:4-14.

Our eyes look up, our ears are eager to HEAR Your voice.

Speak Lord, your servants hear. As Habakkuk in his day with questions, “Where are You, Lord,” we will pray and hear:

“I will stand my watch
And set myself on the rampart,
And watch to see what He will say to me,
And what I will answer when I am corrected” Habakkuk 2:1, NKJV.

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.

 “Behold the proud,
His soul is not upright in him;
But the just shall live by his faith Habakkuk 2:2-4.

“Of what value is an idol carved by a craftsman?
    Or an image that teaches lies?
For the one who makes it trusts in his own creation;
    he makes idols that cannot speak.
 Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Come to life!’
    Or to lifeless stone, ‘Wake up!’
Can it give guidance?
    It is covered with gold and silver;
    there is no breath in it.”

 The Lord is in his holy temple;
    let all the earth be silent before him” Habakkuk 2:18-20.

picture by Pete Fierro


“But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint” Isaiah 40:31.

Dear God, help us walk in a manner that fully pleases You. Keep us praising You in the spirit. This is where we find You close by, in a heart of praise.

This is my Bible song of encouragement today, as I ask the Lord to fill me with His great love and grace in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation:

“Being confident of this very thing that He who has begun a good work in you will perform it . . . Philippians 1:6. For He who is in you is greater than he that is in the world 1 John 4:4.

Watercolor by G of Legacy Studio & Co.

Just keep praying and singing. God’s in control.

If you are encouraged today, let me know!

Rain Down on us Good Words for some Son-shine!

Art by G of Legacy Studio & Co

Art by G of Legacy Studio & Co

“Anxiety in a person’s heart weighs it down, But a good word makes it glad” Proverbs 12:25.

Oh yeah, good words make a person’s heart glad.

God knows best. His Word is a rock. His Word is a rose. His Word to those who believe and receive Him is as a Coach, coming alongside,

to give a high-five. To say, “Come on, you can do this with Me. Let’s go!”

And God’s Word to a kid’s song is “just” plain fun and can move us forward when we feel stuck!

I wrote this song with a special needs child I had the privilege to teach and work with for many years. A few strums of the ukulele and a few Bible verses to focus on would be our delight for many days together.

For this combination of Philippians 1:6 and 1 John 4:4 we were “changed.”

God’s Word is powerful and can be loads of fun with a ukulele or a guitar. And God gave every human being alive a set of “strings.” So, even if you’re not a kid, find one and start singing some Bible, to increase in faith,

or come to faith for the first time. “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” Romans 10:17.

There is only one answer to the dark day we live in, Jesus.

He alone is able to change a heart. His Word is powerful and opens a door of faith in us to hear and receive.

An open, soft heart, is suddenly changed to belief. There is hope as the sun shines through the clouds.

Because faith chases away fear. God loves you. God loves me.

He is there for any who calls on His name. God is able to accomplish all that concerns you today. He is God Almighty.

And, He is love, (1 John 4:7-21*)

He paid your debt in full on the cross. And mine, and the debt of sin of the entire human race.

We can’t save ourselves. (We all need saving.) (Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23. )

Jesus came to save us and to finish the work He has for us. He gives us His Holy Spirit when we receive Him. He is our help. We can be confident in this.

I share this today with anyone who needs a song of truth and hope in Jesus to help chase the dark clouds away and bring a ray of Son-shine, (no matter what is going on!)

If you haven’t opened your heart to Jesus, do it today:

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.  Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.  

In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.  

Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.
 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 

 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.  Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.  So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. 

God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.  By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. 

There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 
 
We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother 1 John 4: 7-21.

(My song words are slightly paraphrased,) “Being confident of this very thing that he who has begun a good work in you will perform it ’till the day of Jesus Christ” Philippians 1:6.

Being confident in this.

“For He who is in you is greater than he that is in the world.”

“For He who is in you is greater than he that is in the world” 1 John 4:4. (I’m just waiting to record some happy kids with this song.)

Let me know if you are blessed. And “like” the SoundCloud too if you do!

-Toni

News Alert: IT’s NOT Love to Applaud God’s Beloved Creation Who Walks on a Failed Bridge!

It is NOT love when a believer in the LORD applauds God’s beloved creation who walks on a failed bridge.

Love is to proclaim, “TURN AROUND!”

In a day where words are re-invented, God’s Word tells us what love is:

“This is LOVE. Not that we love God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to take away our sins” 1 John 4:10, (emphasis mine).

Noah, in his day, proclaimed “A storm is coming. You need to come in through this Door or destruction will come!”

NO ONE listened.

The Bible tells us, in the last days, it will be like Noah’s day.

Aren’t you glad Noah had faith in God and obeyed His Word?

The Book of Proverbs gives a warning: “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end, it leads to death” Proverbs 14:12.

We should not be offended by warnings of danger. We receive them daily about germs, safety, and caution during a storm. It’s time we all turn around and agree with God. 

Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 
All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. 
I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. 
They will come in and go out, and find pasture. 
 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; 
I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full"John 10: 7-10.

This is love: Jesus.

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” John 10:11. 

"As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man" Matthew 24: 37-39.

Do you need to turn around?

The time is now. Jesus is coming soon!”

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