heart

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

Stake your claim

Life’s too short
to save it
for the fourth.
Don’t wait till July
to let your rockets fly.
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Declare independence
from the rut you’re in
and stake your claim,
the time to begin…
is now.
Once in your life
you have to stake your claim
take stock
of the junk
that is holding you down.
God doesn’t doesn’t bring anyone
into this world
without a purpose
so ask Him,
expect an answer,
He won’t let you down.

Follow your heart?

panzies 002You have heard,

“Just be happy and follow your heart.”

and it was doubtless

said with good intention.

A thousand self-help books

more or less

make that mention.

But our hearts must be surrendered daily

if we hope to be happy

and free,

and the choice

to follow Jesus

is the wisest of

elections.

And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.  Hebrews 11:6

That’s how you play

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Life’s full of little bumps in the road
but perspective paves the way
and the shocks seem less shocking
as you learn to catch them.

Remember when you were learning to catch
and you learned to meet the ball.
Instead of throwing your hand out there,
you met it in space. In the same way, big challenges,
and the little ones that feel big,
can be met in a fluid motion
and held
or tossed away.

Don’t get me wrong,
the bad hop will occur,
but everyone has to deal with those.
Handling bad hops is just one of those
expected unexpected things.

Hone your dignity and grace,
but don’t over-worry about saving face.
Someone needs to see you be human
and use wisdom to rely on God to finish
the game.

New Energy

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There’s no night so dark
His name can’t illuminate,
no depression so deep
He can’t lift it.
No heart so weary
and grown tired of beating
He can’t recharge
like the sun coming up.

The meaningless
find new meaning.
Those wondering why
find new hope.
Those finding themselves
short of the summit
suddenly spy
a new length of rope.

He’ll breath into you compassion
when maybe you thought
you didn’t care.
He’ll be the force
lifting your wings
with angels into ebullient air.

Ministered to

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Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain
and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and
all their glory; and he said to Him, “All these
things I will give to You, if You fall down and
worship me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go Satan!
For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord
your God, and serve him only'” Then the devil left
Him; and behold, angels came and began to minister
to Him. Matthew 4:8-11

Lord, I pray that we have the strength, and steadfastness
of faith to honor you as your Son did on that difficult
day. There are many days when we don’t. But sometimes we
rise to the occasion. On those days, we feel your pleasure,
and sometimes, we are ministered to by angels.

Content

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Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer
and thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
Phil. 4:6
I know how to get along with humble means, and I also
know how to live in prosperity; in any and every
circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled
and going hungry, both of having abundance and
suffering need.
Phil. 4:12

Lord in all my days
in my times of lean
and well fed
the times I look forward to
and yes those that I dread
build within me a structure
of peace
like a tree
long used to storms
let me not rely on happenstance
but rather look to You
Your steady hand
and guiding voice
will always hold me fast

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

Your “Work”

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Do you love what you do?
Do you do what you love?
Do you find inspiration,
motivation,
fulfillment?
Remember that though you need to
“get paid,” your needs go beyond
just paying the rent.

If your sparks don’t fly
from just getting by,
induce some magic
and escape the tragic
by creating in time
and finding your why
and why not.
What the child loved
and the adult
forgot.

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.