Through The Storms

Though the winds may blow,
you must always know,
there is one who walks beside you.

Though the earth may shake,
with a crumbling quake,
hold on to the one inside you.

When the fire is cast,
as a withering blast,
the angel host surrounds you.

For the Father of love,
lifts you over the flood,
So that peace and joy may find you.


copyright 12/25/2015

When I Need A Friend

Where do you turn when you need a friend, but no friend can be found?  Macaroni and cheese? Pot pie with peas?  A little - or a lot - of Rocky Road ice cream?  potato chips?

Where do you go when you need a friend, but no friend can be found?  A late night chick flick that makes you cry?  A place that's loud and raucous so you can escape? TV? 

Today I need a friend who understands; who will listen with me to rustling trees: walk with me through rays of glittering sun; tell me of the silent voice of living things.

Today I need a friend who speaks to me of hidden treasures deep within the heart. A friend that comforts me with their quiet presence, enduring even til morning light.

I have such a friend. To those who willingly open the door to the avenue of the soul He willingly shares His delicacies of wonder with every exchange along the way.


copyright 12/24/2015

My All To Give

Sing for joy to God our strength.

Shout out loud to the Lord of glory.

Clap your hands and praise His name,

for the Lord Almighty is with us.

Giving homage to the King of Kings;

A humble sacrifice I bring.

My all to give one life to live,

for the glory of His name.

copyright 11/11/2015

Experiencing His Presence

To experience the presence of God is to believe Him when He says He is with us and will never leave us or forsake us even when we cannot feel it; when everything we see and hear seems to shout "you are alone!"

copyright 12/18/2015

Where's The Rain?

 The Noah story has always fascinated me. There are so many aspects of this story that are relevant to me, as well to a great many others. 

I'm very curious about those 120 years of preaching. How did he vary a sermon about a doomsday flood that God told him was sure to come for 120 years? 

How did he explain a flood of rain when it had never rained? 

What kind of awesome connection with God did Noah have that even prompted him to believe God’s words in the first place? 

Did it really take Noah and his boys 120 years to build the ark or was a lot of that time spent talking to the people?

I could go on with the questions I have in regard to this epic story, but I would like to focus on the possible thoughts of the people who were watching this insanity unfold.

I can imagine them being very curious at the beginning, even to the point of concern for Noah’s mental well-being. But as time went by, the logic of such a devastating destruction might have seemed totally beyond comprehension. The longer it went on, the more bold they became in their opinion that Noah and his poor deluded family were nothing more than a joke. People might have come from far and near just to see the monstrosity they were building. “Where’s the water to float your boat Noah?”  This may have even turned into a great vacation destination; a superb entertainment as greater crowds gathered. Some of the locals might have even erected booths where trinkets were sold to commemorate their visit.  

As people were born and laid to rest and generations of time slipped by, Noah and his family finally finished the ark. "Now what?" the people asked. Do you suppose that most on-lookers reasoned that if Noah was right, they could just sit back and wait till it was certain?  Some may have thought, I’ll just wait long enough to see the clouds in the sky and feel a few drops of rain before I decide if this is legitimate or not.

What puzzles me most is the lack of response when the beasts of the fields, as well as an array of every species known to man, made their march, all in order, two by two, without man’s manipulation, into the ark. What?!! Come on, that’s got to stir something in the hearts of the observers.  Maybe fear?  Awe?  Wonder?  A deeper curiosity, perhaps?  Were they really going to just wait for the rain before they believed him?  

But Noah and his family entered the ark upon God’s command and the door was shut.  For the onlookers, there must have been a sigh of relief when a day went by with no rain. You can hear the crowd calling out to Noah, “Come on out Noah, the weather is fine!” Others taunting, “It smells lovely out here Noah, probably a lot sweeter than in there!”  Days passed and still no rain.  The crowds were sure to have considered themselves the wiser…

…until the rain came.

One might consider this story and apply it to our own current period in history and yet…. here we are again.

copyright 12/11/2015

In Or Out Of Line

There was a farmer who decided to test his sheep to see if they really were as dumb as people said they were. In order to accomplish this experiment he found a pole the length of the opening to the pen where they were kept at night.

That evening at feeding time he and his farmhand held the pole low enough for them to jump over but high enough to obstruct their way. When the pole was across the front of the gate, his son herded the sheep toward the pen.  The first sheep jumped over the pole, the second sheep jumped the pole, the third and so on until the farmer withdrew the pole.

Then the rest of the sheep… even without the obstruction, kept jumping where there had been a pole, only because they were following the lead of the sheep in front of them. 

So I have to ask myself, am I a follower?  Or am I willing to allow God to direct me on a different path, other than the one the world would deem to be the acceptable choice? 

I think most people would agree that it’s so much easier to follow the beaten path than the road less traveled.  But Jesus promised that if we choose to follow in His footsteps we will be in the minority; some may even oppose us.  The kind of opposition that will test the very fabric of our beliefs; especially when ridicule comes from the very people we love most. 

 

But in spite of that, today I choose the road against the expected flow, because I don’t want to fall into line with what the world is offering; wealth, lust, earthly treasure, prestige, etc.  Today I choose the road less traveled because on it I will find my God.  And my God is a personal God.  My God speaks.  My God laughs with me; never at me.  My God cries with me and for me.  My God loves me and accepts me right where I am standing.  

 

If you have never experienced what it means to know Jesus, if you are standing in line as a follower of worldly values, are you willing to be out of line in order to know what it means to really live?

12/6/2015

Songs We Sing

I love to hear the songs we sing,

of paying homage to our King.

We sing of blessing that He gives,

of hope and peace; good lives to live.

But what of those who’ve lost their way?

Do we sing for these throughout our day?

I hear the world sing songs of loss,

of broken hearts and bitter costs.

I wonder what the song would be,

if Jesus were to sing of me?