Surely goodness and mercy will follow me.........

Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. (Psalm 23:6 NIV)

This verse really brings back some great boyhood memories. I used to be a pretty good singer and I still enjoy praising God in song. This particular verse was put to song. Here it is:

Ok, I know this is an oldie. But, it is a goodie. I remember singing this as a very young boy at my grandparents small country church. I just love the old hymns. My memories of this song and songs like "How great thou art" or "He touched me" or "The Old Rugged Cross" were such big parts of my growth as a young boy. I can still smell the old churches. I can hear the reverberating sound of my grandfathers preaching. I can hear the pianos and the wonderful voices praising God. I love my new modern church and it's glorious performances, but nothing touches my heart like the memories of the boyhood churches I attended growing up. It's a time lost to the world but still alive in my heart.

I praise God for my wonderful Christian upbringing. I am so blessed to have been raised in the church. I've heard friends say their parents dragged them to church. As a boy, I counted it a privilege to go to church. That's probably why I love it so much now. My kids might tell you different, but I never heard them complain about going to church either. They also grew up in the church and made so many friends and memories there. I think that's why they are all so involved at their own churches. I'm glad that tradition lives on. I'm glad their kids will have that same experience.

 Praise God for our freedom to worship!