"Rank Stranger"

" And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."
Revelation 21:4

One of the many bluegrass songs that impacted my childhood was the song "Rank Stranger," written by Albert E. Brumley and made famous by the Stanley Brothers. It would be impossible for me to say when I first heard it. All I know is that it has been there, in my memory bank, for as long as I can remember. I absolutely love this song. So did Mom and Dad.

"More Than Ever"

 "From the end of the earth will I cry unto Thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher
than I."
Psalm 61:2

When I am going through hard trials, my dear Mom often comes to mind, along with the things she used to say and do to encourage me. She always had a way of snapping me out of discouragement and coaxing me to pull myself up by the bootstraps and keep pressing on. One of the main ways she did that was by quoting Scripture to me. If I had a dollar for every time Mom reminded me of the following three passages, among many others, I would have quite a nest egg.