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This title comes from a beautiful hymn sung by many of God's faithful who give praise and honour to their Creator and Father. Here are the words to read or sing as you choose...
"Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father
There is no shadow of turning with Thee
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not
As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be
Great is Thy faithfulness, great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me
Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love
Great is Thy faithfulness, great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me
Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside
Great is Thy faithfulness, great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me
Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father".
The inspiration for this piece of music with such meaningful and heartfelt lyrics came from our Bible in Lamentations 3:22-24 which contains the prophet Jeremiah's unwavering hope in God. Do you have this unwavering and steadfast hope? Last Friday night when I went to bed tears were shed because of a trial affecting me and my mind was far from everything else such as these powerful and uplifting words, let alone being able to sing with any semblance of decorum to God before sleep eventually overtook me. On the Sabbath morning waking up for a fresh start the news came to me that this hymn was a personal favourite of Carl Nachtrieb, a dear brother in the faith living far away in Texas, USA. He had this hope before he took his last breath at 1730 hours on September 2, 2021 while holding the hand of his beloved wife Mimi. Life and death. Relationships and pain. Tests and trials. Big picture stuff. Love conquers all and our awesome God is certainly great in his faithfulness to us ensuring we will all live again.
Moving forward I know my trial has eased and come to its conclusion. The blessing is in knowing that each time this hymn is played and sung it will undoubtedly bring tears to my eyes with a connection in inexpressible joy while thinking about Carl and Mimi who had almost two years together united by God as one in a most precious and loving marriage. Despite not meeting physically there were plenty of occasions where joyous things were spoken of around high holy days and Sabbath greetings, cards of love from these lovebirds, and news between USA and Australia. We almost made it to Canada where Mimi was living back in 2017 when we attended the Feast of Tabernacles in Montana, however time was not on our side plus my dear husband Jim, also known as Jimbeaux, became very ill with scarlet fever. It was just not the right time. However, we do look forward to a time when we will all be able to join supernaturally as one after our resurrection.
This man Carl lived for God and Mimi with a deep, profound love that spoke volumes with a quiet and gentle character much like a familiar and comfortable armchair in which Sapphire the cutest tabby kitty cat enjoyed snuggle time in his lap. They were pals even though Sapphire belonged to another -- it's just that she took to him like a duck takes to water. Animals sense and know who their friends are and they certainly felt at home spending time with Carl. Sapphire enjoyed playing games with Carl and if there was a cardboard box around she would be in it in a flash only to be found by Carl and then they would cuddle again. The Nachtrieb home was a peaceful sanctuary where Mimi would bake batches of homemade cookies and this was when Carl was in his element enjoying the process so much just like a young boy gets all excited and eager for kitchen treats wanting them baked as fast as they can be, while the hot buttery fragrance permeated their dwelling. He also enjoyed pizza as his favourite savoury meal, but most vegetables and fruits were not high on his go to list. Despite this Mimi was able to share a banana with Carl each morning for breakfast. Carl would drink his hot chocolate in a mug that said "I love you" from Mimi and she would join him with her beverage in a mug that declared "Wifey" -- you guessed it, a gift from Carl to his beloved. Carl was a morning person and woke early when he spent time in prayer to God. Those of us who are morning people relish this quiet time before the rest of the world starts their day. Being up with the birds having sweet music sung to us is one of the joys in life that some look forward to as we deeply appreciate God's creation.
Carl's heritage was Scottish/German -- Nachtrieb from the German language means aftergrowth when looking up the meaning online from at least one source. Aftergrowth has connotations of flourishing or production whether thinking about mowed grass or shaved beard, but perhaps there is a story here with a fascinating origin that we are yet to learn of. His favourite colour was navy -- navy blue. He loved bears and in the accompanying collage you can see the bear which Mimi named Carl. This teddy bear was sent to his bride-in-waiting so she could "bear" the time patiently before their union. To Carl, Mimi was his sunshine, while he was her breath of fresh air as well as her big teddy bear to hug, and to have and to hold till death do them part. If we were to give Carl a gift from Australia it would most likely have been a Koala even though I tend to think he would like kangaroos and platypus -- however not so sure on the other stuff we are famous for like sharks, snakes and spiders. Vegemite is something I would enjoy seeing both Carl and Mimi sample by making them a Vegemite sandwich by skilfully smearing Vege on liberally buttered bread (there is an art to it). Many an American and Canadian cannot understand why the Aussies consider Vegemite a breakfast staple including my dear husband -- and that's ok as we Aussies love it.
How Great Thou Art is another hymn that was a personal favourite of Carl's. This will be a further hymn to sing with heartfelt praise to God and I am secretly, now not so secretly, hoping we will get to sing this one during The Feast of Tabernacles and/or on The Last Great Day. Mimi and Carl sang both of these beautiful hymns together on many occasions thoroughly enjoying their short time together as husband and wife as well as best friends. This time was packed full of loving moments supporting one another in sickness and health as a God blessed marriage ought to be. Sapphire cannot understand why Carl's chair now sits empty as she stays close to Mimi. We understand that Carl is peacefully asleep until God wakes him for his resurrection and until then we exhibit the patience of the saints and pray for Mimi's comfort and strengthening by God and also for her safety as she prepares to return to Canada by Thanksgiving. Carl wanted this for Mimi in order to have the best access to healthcare that she needs. So while we pray for healing God knows that Mimi and Carl would do the planning, travelling and paperwork all over again in a heartbeat just to experience their special love and companionship and yet they will have an even greater reunion in the future to experience. Godspeed that day.