Christianity

Not so fast

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Wait,
when you’re tired and you just want it over.
Wait,
when the words will be harsh.
Wait,
when your mind screams how unfair it is,
and you want a re-counting or re-slicing or
re-whatever.
It’s not about
whether
someone
has it
worse,
better,
or even the same.
This is between
God and you
whether you ever
get the sun or the rain.
Well done good and faithful servant
are the words you’re waiting to hear,
and then you won’t remember the pain.

This you know, my beloved brethren. But let everyone be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. James 1:19-20

“Come to Me…”

 

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28 “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30

The rest we obtained through you,

salvation, your life for ours and to

be redeemed,  take on a yoke that’s new

and feels

like it belongs.

And we belong

to You.

 

“Peace I leave with you…”

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“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you;
not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not
let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.”
John 14:27

Not as the world gives,
short-lived.
Not as the world gives,
ephemeral.
Not as the world gives,
fleeting & unsure.
A vision floating on the desert horizon,
cruel and deadly.

Instead Lord, your peace is the gift you left with us
and that which we share.
It’s a cup that cannot be emptied,
but instead grows if we give it away.
Peace everlasting,
our inheritance by virtue of adoption.

A Little Bit Lower

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When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have ordained; What is man that
You care for him? Yet You have made him a little lower than
God, and You crown him with glory and majesty! Psalm 8:3-5

A little bit lower,
my Lord.
Some days I feel
more than just a little.

Quite a bit lower,
and yet
You deign
to walk with us
and remain our God.

We allow circumstance
and the vagaries
of human nature
to overwhelm
our peace in you.

Help us return
to that peaceful place
that is all of you
and only your influence.
Let the noise of our
minds fall back before
your light, which chases
shadows of fear away.

The Puzzle

There is an appointed time for everything.
And there is a time for every event under heaven.
Ecclesiastes 3:1

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It seems too much to take in. When we
consider all that God has made, the complexity
of the systems that guide everything from the
smallest organism to the largest planet, I find
it unreasonable to presume it all came about by
accident.

But there is a rhythm to life, isn’t there?
From the time we are born to the time we die,
however long or short that may be, the curtain
goes up and comes down in a seemingly never
ending cycle, guided by an unseen hand.

Christians live a life of faith, that is we
trust that God has a plan for each of us that fits
into His infinitely bigger picture, our unique
puzzle piece, along with the rest of His creation.
A worthy goal is discovering just how we do fit in.
I pray that you ask God to reveal this to you. Begin
by searching His word.

Just thinkin’

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Early on in our relationship, I found out that my wife could read my mind.
Okay, you’re thinking, that’s just a wife thing. I mean, guys are pretty obvious, right?
The thing is, she really has a knack for it. I don’t begin to understand how it works, but
when I figured out it was happening, we had to come to an agreement. The agreement was
that if I thought something that wouldn’t exactly be conducive to marital bliss, but didn’t
say it out loud, she had to give me credit for not vocalizing what was on my mind. That’s fair,
don’t you think? Thank the Lord, she’s held up to her end of the bargain. At the same time,
my thought life is better than it was when I was younger. I thank God for that too.

O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, and are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O Lord, You know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is too high, I cannot attain to it. Psalm 139:1-6

Entreaty

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Lord, I have heard the report about You and I
fear.
O Lord, revive your
work in the midst of the
years,
In the midst of the years
make it known;
In wrath remember
mercy.
Habakkuk 3:1-2

Lord, I pray to remember
not only your sweet love and grace
but your strong hand
and your judgement.

Let every corner of my being be laid
bare before you.
At the end of my life here on earth
let my life scroll be a worthy document.

This is not defeat

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This is not defeat,
it’s a bridge,
over the raging river
in which you might have drowned.

This is not defeat,
it’s a landslide,
which fell to create a pass
where none existed through the mountains.

This is not defeat,
this is an earthquake,
a jagged arrow pointing the way
toward solid ground.

Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid. Do I act for God? Don’t you see, you planned evil against me but God used those same plans for my good, as you see all around you right now—life for many people. Easy now, you have nothing to fear; I’ll take care of you and your children.” He reassured them, speaking with them heart-to-heart. Genesis 50:19-21 The Message

In the Shadow of Your Wings.

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6 When I remember You
on my bed,
I meditate on You in the
night watches,
7 For you have been my
help,
And in the shadow of
Your wings I sing for
joy.
Psalm 63:6-7

In the shadow of your wings, Lord
I am strengthened.
In the shadow of your wings
dread runs away.

In the shadow of your wings
the enemy’s arrows cannot harm me.

In the shadow of your wings
my foe’s
force of onslaught
matters not.
Let your angels’ army
seize the day.

More than we can bear

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Fear not, for I am with you;
be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10

God you did not promise this life would be easy,
but you promise strength
in the midst of the storm.
No matter how ugly the news we hear,
in a cold world you are there
for life sustaining warmth.

The false comfort and ease of a life
ignoring your truth
can push our craft toward an inevitable cliff,
but if we believe and act upon
the message of salvation
You will make of our detritus and debris
a lighthouse and life saving ship.