Bill MacDonald
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow. Praise him, all creatures here below. Praise him above, ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
Good night, friends. I return to work tomorrow, Lord willing. Your prayers for that are appreciated. I’ve been out since the end of January and while I look forward to getting back into the routine, it’s going to take a little getting used to. I’m also, by necessity of my workplace, going to be separated from my cell phone during the day, and I’ve become very accustomed to having it with me everywhere and all the time since Laurel entered the hospital. But God doesn’t need me to have my phone in order for Him to take care of her. ❤ To Him be the glory for that!
Sing them over again to me,
Wonderful words of life;
Let me more of their beauty see,
Wonderful words of life;
Words of life and beauty,
Teach me faith and duty:
Beautiful words, wonderful words,
Wonderful words of life.
Beautiful words, wonderful words,
Wonderful words of life.
Christ, the blessed One, gives to all,
Wonderful words of life;
Sinner, list to the loving call,
Wonderful words of life.
All so freely given,
Wooing us to heaven:
Sweetly echo the gospel call,
Wonderful words of life,
Offer pardon and peace to all,
Wonderful words of life.
Jesus, only Saviour,
Sanctify for ever.
The boys face-timed with me a little while ago. C announced he’d taken his medicine. M announced he ate vegetables! (green beans). Then he warned me, “Don’t make them, Dad.”
Way to go, Auntie Kelly and Uncle Karl Boettger for getting Michael to eat veggies!! Woot! Woot!
Bill MacDonald
The Lord’s our Rock, in him we hide,
A shelter in the time of storm;
Secure whatever ill betide,
A shelter in the time of storm.
Oh, Jesus is a Rock in a weary land,
A weary land, a weary land,
Oh, Jesus is a Rock in a weary land,
A shelter in the time of storm.
A shade by day, defense by night,
A shelter in the time of storm;
No fears alarm, no foes affright,
A shelter in the time of storm.
The raging storms may round us beat,
A shelter in the time of storm;
We’ll never leave our safe retreat,
A shelter in the time of storm.
O Rock Divine, O Refuge dear,
A shelter in the time of storm;
Be thou our helper ever near,
A shelter in the time of storm.
Bill MacDonald
I enjoyed lunch with Mary & Logan and their three sons today. The boys are all getting over colds, so they weren’t feeling great, but they put on a good face and did their best to be good company. When I thanked them for it, they told me,”You’re welcome,” and I was glad to hug each nephew before they left to return to Freeport.
Ann Hyatt was our server–on a day she doesn’t normally work at that particular restaurant, so it was a blessing to see a friend from church. As it turns out, Mary’s oldest son and Ann’s youngest son have spent time at Deerwander Bible Conference together, so that was a cool connection to make.
A couple of hours over a meal with loved ones was very refreshing, just as I’d hoped. Now, I’m at home relaxing. I was going to go back to the hospital after lunch, but there are some things I need to do around the house to make myself ready for the remainder of the week as I resume work tomorrow. Laurel is in the hands of the only One in the universe that can do anything about her situation, and He is using the compassion and skills of her nurses and doctors to meet her needs, so I trust her to God and those men and women at Northern Light EMMC.
Dear Lord, grant Laurel a good night. Help her lungs to continue to improve their functioning, and help her kidneys to begin to function as they are supposed to. Help Laurel to know that you are with her; encourage her by your Holy Spirit. Bring the power of God into her room in such a way that the medical personnel cannot help but give glory to you for how she is healing and recovering from this devastating hospitalization. Thank you for the many Christians working with her and interacting with her. Thank you for the friends from church and the community that are taking the time to visit with her, especially given that I cannot be there as much as I’d like. Thank you for the testimony to your love that you are producing in this situation. Give us all hope in you–not hope as the world gives that disappears when adversity comes, but hope that is certain because Jesus is our Rock, our Fortress, our Strong Tower, who loves us and gave himself up for us that we might be reconciled to you by his own blood. We give all honor and glory to you for what you are doing, Lord Jesus. We love you! We pray this in your name. Amen.
Bill MacDonald
Laurel is making a little more progress today. The prayer need is for her kidneys to start producing. Please pray for that. Otherwise, she is making incremental but steady improvement, including that the dialysis is getting ahead of the fluids, which is good. She’s able to be on her back all the time now, too, which is good. 😁
The dialysis technician spoke highly of the number of visitors that have come to see Laurel. He’s impressed by the support system in place. I told him that I’m not happy that Laurel is sick, but I’m thankful for the lessons that God is teaching me about trusting Him and being more aware of the needs of others. He was interested in knowing more about our church, so I gave him a church business card with our names on the back. To God be the glory.
Bill MacDonald
Dear Friends, I’m heading out to see Laurel in a few minutes. Lord willing, I’ll be having lunch with my sister Mary and her husband, which will be a much-needed time of emotional refreshment for me. While Mary is closest in age of all my siblings and we fought like cats and dogs when we were young, we’ve grown close as we’ve matured, and I treasure the time I get to spend with her and her husband (as I do with all my siblings and their spouses).
I’ll post an update about my dear wife later today. I love you all and thank God for you. Your prayers and support sustain me, by the grace and mercy of God. To Him be the glory!
Wonderful grace of Jesus,
Greater than all my sin;
How shall my tongue describe it,
Where shall its praise begin?
Taking away my burden,
Setting my spirit free;
For the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.
Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus,
Deeper than the mighty rolling sea;
Higher than the mountain, sparkling like a fountain,
All sufficient grace for even me,
Broader than the scope of my transgressions,
Greater far than all my sin and shame,
O magnify the precious name of Jesus,
Praise his name!
Wonderful grace of Jesus,
Reaching a mighty host,
By it I have been pardoned,
Saved to the uttermost,
Chains have been torn asunder,
Giving me liberty;
For the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.
Wonderful grace of Jesus,
Reaching the most defiled,
By its transforming power,
Making him God’s dear child,
Purchasing peace and heaven,
For all eternity;
And the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.
Mack Ames Books and Maine Moose Patrol 