I don’t know about tomorrow;
I just live from day to day.
I don’t borrow from its sunshine
For its skies may all be grey.
I don’t worry o’er the future,
For I know what Jesus said.
And today I’ll walk beside Him,
For He knows what lies ahead.
Many things about tomorrow
I don’t seem to understand
But I know who holds tomorrow
And I know who holds my hand.
Every step is getting lighter
As the golden stairs I climb;
Every day the sun shines brighter,
Every cloud is silver-lined.
There the sun is always shining,
And no tear will dim my eye;
At the ending of the rainbow
Where the mountains reach the sky.
—Music and Lyrics by Ira Stanphill
As I’ve prayed for and worried about the people suffering from the storm this week I’ve had Pap’s voice singing “I Know Who Holds Tomorrow” going round and round in my head.
There’s another verse of the song that Pap didn’t sing.
I don’t know about tomorrow;
It may bring me poverty.
But the one who feeds the sparrow,
Is the one who stands by me.
And the path that is my portion
May be through the flame or flood;
But His presence goes before me
And I’m covered with His blood.
Helene has certainly showed us all we don’t know what tomorrow will bring. Please continue to pray for all those in need and for those giving aid to them.
Tipper
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GREAT SONG. I AM 83 YEARS OLD AND I THANK GOD FOR EVERY DAY. WHEN I GET UP IN THE MORNING I THANK HIM FOR ANOTHER NIGHT. WHEN I GO TO BED AT NIGHT I THANK GOD FOR ANOTHER DAY. IF I AM DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY I THANK HIM THAT I CAN STILL DRIVE MY CAR. MY MIND IS CLEAR AS MOONSHINE I AM WRITING MY LIFE’S STORY FROM AGE FOUR TO EIGHTY THREE. I ACCEPTED JESUS AS MY SAVIOR WHEN I WAS TWELVE AND I WAS BAPTISED WHEN I WAS THIRTEEN. I LOST MY WIFE TO BC NOVEMBER 7 2012, WE WERE MARRIED 49 YEARS AND FIFTY WEEKS, AND A SON TO SUICIDE AT FIFTY FIVE, HIS TWIN BROTHER LIVES IN FLORIDA AND IS 57 YEARS OLD. I GREW UP IN ASHEVILLE N.C. SO FAR I HAVE ALMOST 500 HUNDRED THOUSAND WORDS IN MY LIFE’S STORY. I DID A FEW BAD THINGS THAT I HAVE ASKED GOD TO FORGIVE FOR. AND I HAVE VERY LITTLE MONEY AS GOD TOLD ME TO DO A GOOD DEED EVERY DAY. BUT ONE DAY I DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO PAY FOR MY MEDS AND A LADY STEPPED UP AND PAID $50.00 I DIDN’T KNOW HER BUT HER NAME WAS MARIA. ANOTHER TIME I DIDN’T KNOW IF I HAD ENOUGH GROCERIES AND ANOTHER LADY PAID $60.00 FOR MY GROCERIES.I GO TO MICKEY D’S EVERY MORNING BUT CANT FORD TO EAT I JUST DRINK WATER AND SOME ONE BOUGHT ME A $150 DOLLAR GIFT CARD SO I COULD HAVE A BREAKFAST SANDWICH. I STILL DO A GOOD DEED EVERY DAY BUT NOT WITH MONEY I UNLOAD FOLKS GROCERIES INTO THEIR CAR OR IF ITS A YOUNGER WOMAN WITH CHILDREN I TELL HER TO TAKE HER PURSE AND STRAP HER LITTLE ONES IN THE BABY SEATS WHILE I PUT HER GROCERIES IN HER VEHICLE. I ALWAYS LET LADIES, GO THROUGH THE GROCERY LINE FIRST. MY DAD TAUGHT ME THAT. THERE IS MANY WAYS WE HUMANS CAN HELP EACH OTHER AND WE SHOULD DO IT. AS LONG AS I CAN WALK I NEVER PARK IN A HANDY CAP PARKING SPACE. I TRY TO READ MY DAD’S BIG PRINT BIBLE. GOD PUT EACH ONE OF US ON THIS EARTH FOR A REASON. I HAVEN’T HAD A WATERRMELON OR CANTELOPE IN TWO YEARS AS THEY COST TWO MUCH, A LADY TRIED TO BUY ME A LITTLE BIT OF WATERMELON BUT I REFUSED BUT THANKED HER, NOW I WISH I HAD TAKEN THE LITTLE CONTAINER OF WATERMELON . IN CLOSING I HOPE ALL OF YOU WHO READ THIS STAY WELL AND ALWAYS REMEMBER LADYS ARE ALWAYS FIRST. AND GOD TAKES CARE OF EACH ONE OF US . SOME WHERE I REMEMBER IT IS BETTER TO GIVE THAN RECEIOVE BUT I SURE WOULD LOVE TO TASTE WATERMELON ONE MORE TIME BEFORE I DIE. . THANK YOU TIPPER FOR PROVIDING THIS WES SITE AS I ALWAYS ENJOY THE STORIES AND MUSIC YOUR GIRLS MAKE WITH THEIR FIDDLE AND GUITAR. AND I ASK EVERYONE TO PRAY FOR ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA THIS LAST HURRICANE KILLED A LOT OF PEOPLE NOW THEY ARE FINDING PEOPLE BY SMELL WHO WERE BURIED UNDER THE MUD.
Sweet Tipper, Perfect timing and perfect choice. I have always loved this song, and your dear daddy did it justice! What a musical legacy you lived growing up and are still living with your girls. I hope those sweet grandsons will continue pleasing the ears of their listeners. TY I am praying for Florida now.
Beautiful.
This has special meaning to me right now. While Helene destroyed so much of my past places, I’ve been blessed that none of my people were hurt or died. I spent all my summers in North Carolina or eastern Tennessee growing up. The main part of the year, I grew up and did all my schooling in Florida – the part Hurricane Milton is taking dead aim at. My family home and my grandmother’s home are there. Helene destroyed so much, but they and all my family and friends there made it through. The beaches are all already gone from Helene. Whole neighborhoods are already done. I don’t know what “tomorrow’s” storm is gonna bring, but I can only pray that all those I love stay safe and sound.
Amen.
God is an able help in times of trouble.
I love how Your dad (pap) sang the song, his voice is so pleasant. I had to listen to it twice and sang along with him on the song, words are so beautiful. Thank you, Tipper, for sharing the song with us on this wonderful Sunday. I pray for all who were in the path of Hurricane Helene. God bless us all. AMEN
It is late to post this comment and it is not meant to be offensive to anyone. My son saw this online and my older grandson just came by and said one of his friends that has one of these
left today to go join these people and help in NC. I know there is nothing funny about what is going on in NC, it is too serious to joke about. The video shows off road clubs driving their jacked up off road vehicles carrying supplies in to the people that have not been reached by other means. Someone commented “right now one redneck is worth 10 PHD’s.”
A wonderful reminder. Amen!!
Beautiful. Thank you Tipper. This helps my soul. My wife Keri would have loved this also.❤️ Songs like this keep my head above water in these troubled times.
We got electricity back on Friday evening and internet late last night. I’m catching up on your posts today. Like Randy, we had water and some food we could eat without cooking. A couple of churches near us served one meal each day for about 3 – 4 days this past week. We have been very well blessed in our 60 years together. This is only the second time to be without the comforts we’re accustomed to. The other time was in 1974 in Kentucky when a tornado ripped through our city. We were without electricity and water for 9 days then but the Red Cross kept us supplied. I’ve worked with Disaster relief many times in helping others. I’ve worked on chain saw crews and mud out crews many times and a few times on dry out and repairs. Our home was spared but I need to replace the alternator on my generator. It died after 3 and a half days.
Thank you, Tipper. This song brings such truth, encouragement and hope for everyday life, but especially for times like these in the aftermath of the hurricane damage. I love hear Pap’s voice singing sweet reminds of who holds tomorrow, and who holds our hands. Prayers continue for all the families affected by all the damage and loss caused by the recent hurricane.
I want to thank all of the members that prayed for me during the last 8 days, I came out real good and only lost a small amount of my cold or frozen food. I throwed some away that might have been ok but I did not want to take a chance.
Some have mentioned Milton. We have a member, Gene, and probably some more that are going to be pretty close to the path Milton if it stays on the forecasted path when it crosses Florida. I have became email friends with Gene and he told me he has sandbags to put around his doors and gas for his generator. He has told me before he cooks on his grill and has Coleman fuel lantern and stove. Let’s keep these people along with the ones in NC and the other areas in our prayers.
What a beautiful song. Thank you for sharing. I am continuing to pray for everyone affected by Helene. I reqch3d out yesterday to my 2 cousins who live in Black Mountain and they said their families are good where they are, just got electricity back a couple of days ago after being out for 4 days, I think. And I heard that the Cajun Navy is out there helping where they can. That makes me feel good knowing that one’s from my region are helping those in yours. Stay strong and keep the faith.
I enjoyed your dad singing “I don’t know about tomorrow” I haven’t heard that song in a long time. Our church sings a lot of modern-day songs and occasionally sings hymns. I really miss hearing them. The song is very appropriate for today. North Carolina and the other states affected by the storm have been in my prayers often. One woman in our Sunday School class who is from TN said some of her family there lost their homes. Our church took up a love offering this morning for Samaritan’s Purse. I have some family in South Carolina, but they were not affected by the storm. They live in Camden. My family (great-great-great grandfathers originally settled in western North Carolina and eventually moved to eastern Ky. I have so many relatives in Ky, I can’t count them. People around here continue to head up crews and those who can go to NC and other states to help. Also, we have many funds to donate to and people are gathering up supplies and money. I am so thankful for them and everyone who is helping any way they can, including prayers. God bless you all and have a blessed day.
Thank you . I have always loved this song!
Good words to start my Sunday. I have friends in Boone and they received power yesterday, an answered blessing for sure. Still praying for all the other souls in need. Always praying for granny and her continued better health, the girls had mentioned she wasn’t feeling quite as good so I hope she is better.
I love this song and hear it’s truth in my mind and heart often. So glad we can depend on God all the time. Thanks for the reminder! much love from SC, Jane
Amen!
Good morning Tipper…I am sharing a reading…maybe you’ve also seen it…
Life in the Holler…When the Sparrow Falls.
I take up the pen to write. I have a few stories written & several started. But the night is heavy, I find it very difficult to tell stories about enjoying the mundane of life when so many of my fellow man are hurting. My heart is sick. My prayers are worn bare from laborious use & my fervor far spent, but I can’t crease my human cry & bewildering grief.
What words can I say to the soul who has lost their home, the ground their home set on is gone, their family is gone, they have no clothes, no food, & no money, only despair. I can’t write of sun kissed meadows & watching squirrels gather nuts. What words do I say to ease their pain & find comfort in the dark. I want to tell them He knows when the sparrow falls, & there is hope & strength in Him, but the hungry, cold, & grieving heart is numb & can’t hear my pleading & words of compassion.
.
What can I do. I am old, life has taken my strength, my pockets are empty because of the decline of our society. We live in a fallen world. But I can mourn with whose who are mourning. I can pray & pray & pray again, knock & seek. That there will be a time when once again there will be found joy in the dawning & there will be a night of untroubled sleep.
Our Father spared not His only begotten Son from pain & suffering. Jesus said drink of my cup & He was a man of sorrows, But He also said there is a day coming when I will wipe away your tears, there will be no more sorrow, & no suffering.
For now I know He holds the fallen sparrow in His hands & He will heal its broken wing & one day it will wing on high once again.
In the holler…Lame Turtle. by Dennis DeSpain
Miss Tipper, What a beautiful rendition of this wonderful hymn. With words that I’ve always been moved to a higher place by. God is the strength we all need at this time and in Jesus we can all achieve this place. He will raise us up and get us through no matter the challenges. Our loss is his gain and in that I find a peace beyond understanding. I continue to pray for everyone who was touched by Helene, that they can find this comfort in Him. We are strong in what makes us weak, we do this through Jesus and His strength , guidance and love. Thank you, Miss Tipper, for helping all those who were touched by this horrible event, in anyway, by getting the word out on Facebook and YouTube as where to find help. To all the people giving their time, labor, sweat, tears, prayers and support we pray for them and the victims of this storm. God bless each and everyone today, tomorrow and always.
No truer words ever spoken or sung. My heart breaks for everyone affected and will continue to pray because there is power in prayer.
This was a bad bad storm. I’m so very thankful we didn’t get hit by it. I feel so sorry for those that did. We cooked over 200 hot dogs and took them to Limestone Tn just above and over from where we live and we fed 200 people. it wasn’t much but a little something. My oldest daughter and some her friends went and took supplies to NC yesterday. we do know who holds tomorrow.
My first thought when I got up this morning was, what a beautiful bright sunny Lord’s day. We are so blessed. Thank you for all of your prayers. I live on a mountain in Fairview, NC, which is about 5 miles from downtown Asheville. We are on our 9th day without power but we have a generator that powers everything that we need. We were not prepared like we should have been with diesel for the generator but we siphoned diesel out of my husbands truck and my daughter’s boyfriend’s truck until we could find more. My husband, son, and future son-in-law spent 6 hours cutting their way out of the development to the main road 74A, which is only 2 miles.
We had to get to my father-in-law, who is 93, to make sure he was ok and start his generator.
Praise the Lord, he had a lot of trees down but none hit his house. So the first days were trying to find gas and diesel for the generators. Cell towers are down, so texting has been better than cell call service.
We were born and raised in these mountains so we know how to be self- sufficient and help others who aren’t as fortunate as we are. We have checked on our friends and neighbors to make sure they were ok.
The flooding has just been the worst, I think the French Broad River crested at 27 feet, which is 8 feet higher than the last flood at 19 feet. The Swannanoa River collected houses, buildings, cars, shipping containers, bridges, and totally wiped out most of Biltmore Village, and the Swannanoa area. To get an idea of how deep the water was, it was up to the top of the Wendy’s in Biltmore.
With the flooding, it damaged the North Fork Reservoir, which is Asheville’s water supply. The customers that Asheville supplies with water cannot drink the water. Even when the power is restored, schools will be closed until the water system is repaired, which could take weeks. Mission Hospital has about 16 tankers of water brought in a day to supply the hospital.
So, again, thank you all so much for the prayers that have gone up for our area. GOD hears and answers.
Brenda Jo-so glad your family is okay!! We are praying for you all and your neighbors!!
The beautiful message of this song is what we all need to hear right now.
My community is taking semi loads of goods to those in need. If I were physically able I would be going to help in any way possible. Since I can’t be in the thick of things I am on my knees for those in this mess and those sent to help. May God bless and keep each and every one. Blessings to all of y’all now and always.
Thank you Tipper. I love that song. Puts me in mind for worship. Blessings and prayers to all. ☺️
Amen. To satisfy my natural mind I would need to know what, when, why, where and how. But knowing who, I do not need to know the others. I trust what I know of His nature. That does not free me totally from confusion or tension or fear even but it still gives me rest. And I am taught that the faith of others opens a channel of blessing to those who do not believe.
I love his voice–a perfect voice for those lyrics.
A very much needed reminder this morning and I am sure I am not the only one who needed to hear it. Thank you Tipper.
Proverbs 3: 5, 6, &7.
Psalm 121: 1, 2.
Habakkuk 3: 17, 18, 19.
Have a beautiful day everyone.
In that first stanza, Pap’s “I don’t worry o’er the future” sounds like “I don’t weary o’er the future.” He may or may not have meant to make the change or my ears may well be all gummed up, but worrying about the future and other things that we’re not in control of is wearying indeed. I have to remind myself of that regularly:
“Don, there are a few small things with which you’ve been charged, which are your responsibility, and for which you’ll be held accountable. But for all those other things, all that you need to do is to pray, just as you’ve been told, ”Thy will be done, on earth, as it is in Heaven.'”
Don, In my youth I often heard, especially from older people, worry and weary pronounced close to the same. You might be right and Pap is just changing the wording to fit his own mood, which singers often do, but I think he is using his language as he learned it.
Of one thing I am certain, the words tomorrow and borrow in the same verse, if sung in Pap’s own natural Appalachian language would have come out sounding closer to t’marr and barrie respectively. There is something about that “orr” sound that gives pause to us proud Western North Carolina hillbillies.
You may be right I may be crazy……….. Oh! No! that is a different song!
Ed
Ed-you are right that is how Pap said worry 🙂
All I can do is pray, but sometimes that is all that is needed.
I can’t imagine what they are going through. I’ve seen videos of people stranded, people finding bodies, and people helping. it’s hard to imagine exactly how they feel, but my heart breaks for them all.
Thank you for keeping us posted and sharing information with us.
I just love that song. I think it may have been your girls who I first heard singing it, But the Petersen’s also have a beautiful version of it. We listen to both often. My 8 year old daughter always requests The Pressley girls when she gets alone time in the car with me and sings along to this song. Makes my mama heart melt.
What a perfect song choice this morning. It always makes me think of my late son-in-law. He always quoted from this song—especially during his battle with cancer. I don’t pretend to know why he had to leave my daughter and his beautiful children at such a young age, but I know God has a purpose and a plan for each of us. It always reminds me to live each day to the fullest and know that God will get us through whatever tomorrow holds. I am praying for all the lives cut short during this storm and for the ones they left behind.
Amen
Tipper,
In our family we have a saying, “we don’t know what the day may hold, but we know who holds the day”. I’ve heard it all my life and maybe it started from that song.
We live in Indiana and this has grieved my heart so.
My friend’s daughter is leaving out today and is on a team to find bodies. I pray the Lord guide them to bring loved ones home and to protect them from all harm that might come their way mentally and physically. They will see many difficult things.
My friend who lives in Tampa Florida is in the path of Milton. They still have damage and flood waters standing from Helene. When I asked her if I could send her money she said to send it to the others in North Carolina and Tennessee. I’m so grateful we can still think to help others in our own time of need.
To all:
May the Lord bless you and keep you, May the Lord make His face to shine upon and be gracious to you, May the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace. Numbers 6: 24-26
May Yeshua Hamashiach (Jesus the Messiah) bring great comfort to the hearts of His people in Israel and America. May His Holy Spirit dwell in us during these difficult times. May we also remember to love our neighbors as ourselves and be servants to others during these times so that YHWH gets all of the glory! May the ones who do not know Him and call Him Savior find Him during these times and have a peace that passes all understanding.
Amen
Bless all y’all
Of all things, last night before going to bed I was listening to The Whites singing this song and another favorite song of mine “Where The Roses Never Fade” on You Tube before going to bed. I have listened to Pap sing this song before. I often listen to Pap, Paul and the Girls singing the good old time gospel hymns on You Tube. Doing this helps me when I am feeling down.
I am happy to say things seem to be back to normal for me, I got my power back late Friday but it went off again early Saturday morning and was off most of the day before getting it back on in the late afternoon. I am thankful for many things during the last week of dealing with life after the Hurricane but I believe outside of God keeping all of us safe in my neck of the woods, I would have to say having water would be at the top of the list. My Greenville City water never had any problems. If you have ever had a well, you also know you have no water during power outages. For me dealing with no power is not nearly as bad as having no water. I continue to pray for the ones in NC and other places and what they are going through.
Randy, I spent the week without a generator thus, no electricity and water. I use distilled water for drinking and cooking and try to keep a few gallons (seven I think) stashed away. I couldn’t cook with it, so I had plenty to drink. If I had had “city” water like you did, I would have had to boil it.
In anticipation of the loss of power I put a big trash can under the eave of the house because I knew the gutter couldn’t handle what was coming. That provided enough water to flush the toilet when it was absolutely necessary. Nobody, unless they are hiding in the woods, can see the back of my house so I returned the water that the earth had provided me back to it.
I relied on God, His wisdom and not my own, to get me through this and he did! He took me back seventy years to when we have no electricity, water came from a spring and wood was our only fuel. He instilled that wisdom in me then so that I could use it now. Praise God!
Ed, I too am 70 years old, and did grow up with electricity and having running well water. In times of extended power outages, I suspect Daddy would go to my grandparents home and draw up water out of their well to have for drinking and cooking. They lived beside of us and never had inside plumbing. This was back before we had bottled water like we do today. I do know we didn’t have water to flush the toilet. I do remember mother filling up the bathtub with water if she thought there was a chance of losing our power. I did this in my adult life before getting city water. The city water was a Greenville County concession to us for putting their large county landfill and giving rock quarry company permits to open a rock quarry near me. The tap on and 100 feet of waterline was free. My bill runs about $15 a month. I live far enough away, the landfill does not bother me and the rock quarry has never been opened. These last 8 days is longest I ever went without power in my lifetime.