Our vacation was a gift from God. His hand, His voice, and His presence were evident every step of the way.

We left on Monday, May 5th and returned on Friday, May 23rd. The first part of our journey consisted of a couple of days in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, and a few days in Freeport, Grand Bahamas. The beauty of God’s creation in that part of the world is absolutely mind-blowing.

I couldn’t get enough of the ocean, sun and soft, white sand of the beach by our resort in Freeport. One of my favorite things to do was to go out into the ocean, by myself, looking out over the water and just meditating on how grand and glorious God is, asking Him to draw me nearer to Himself, and worshipping Him with thoughts and prayers based on the beautiful truths of a few of my favorite hymns and songs. (I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of the hymn “Be Thou My Vision.”)

On Saturday, May 17th, we went to a wonderful theme park called “The Holy Land Experience.” Anyone who watches TBN will probably be familiar with it. It was one of my favorite parts of the whole trip. In a world and culture of selfish pleasure-seeking, this enlightening experience was an oasis of truth and light and crystal-clear, ice-cold, refreshing, rejuvenating Living Water.

On Sunday, May 18th, we went to the church of and spent some time with some very dear friends of ours. It was at their church that God spoke so clearly and profoundly to my heart to let me know that yes, we are exactly where He wants us to be, and yes, we are listening to His voice and direction.

First of all, the name of the church was “New Hope Presbyterian.” Secondly, the message printed on a leaf of the bulletin was “God’s presence our Joy” and contained one of my very favorite C.S. Lewis quotes. Next, the message was preached on a portion of Isaiah that one of my husband’s current favorite songs is based on. Finally, it was such a blessing to be able to sing an actual hymn with a whole room of people instead of all by myself.

After church our friends blessed us with a delicious meal, warm hospitality and a conversation that left us spiritually full and alive, and hungry for more of God. May they continue to be blessed with the riches of His grace and the satisfaction of His manifest presence, and may His matchless name be glorified forever.