Fanciful brush strokes of pink
and purple trail across the dawn,
Looking flat against the backlit sky that they are painted on.
What faroff reality is
illuminated by that light?
And leaves but a suggestion
of what will be, to my sight?
What undiscovered country
exists just beyond my vision?
What bright future are we
gathered to, in His mission?
The night before black storm
clouds obscure the evening skys.
The heart's imprisioned in the
cold of Satan's whispered lies.
All is dark yet in the sky
a neon rainbow brightly glows.
A sign from God of His sure love,
so faith and courage grow.
But what bright day is this that
reveals joyous faces once full of tears?
When finally comes the Sonbreak
after times of doubt and fear?
Exuberance takes flight
on an azure crystal day.
Over pure white mountain peaks,
You lift up my heart to play!
Friday, February 12, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
It's Night
What wisdom have I gained from the long, dark night?
Have I turned from despair yet, to profound insight?
I must pay the price of soul desolation,
before I enter His courts, where there are no more questions.
All my distractions no longer comfort me,
Crushed by a sorrow so tangible I can see,
Commiseration in the rain that pours from the sky,
Evidence of sympathy from God on high.
Giving up my life expectations of enjoyment.
In humbleness praying to counter evil's deployment.
Open eyes see God's heartwork being done!
My passionate longing is to give one more to the Son!
Have I turned from despair yet, to profound insight?
I must pay the price of soul desolation,
before I enter His courts, where there are no more questions.
All my distractions no longer comfort me,
Crushed by a sorrow so tangible I can see,
Commiseration in the rain that pours from the sky,
Evidence of sympathy from God on high.
Giving up my life expectations of enjoyment.
In humbleness praying to counter evil's deployment.
Open eyes see God's heartwork being done!
My passionate longing is to give one more to the Son!
Thursday, October 22, 2009
What's in a Name?
There is a verse that I have always considered a harsh enigma where Jesus says, "If you deny me before men, I will deny you before my Father in heaven." (Matt 10:33) This statement is right next to the pronouncement of the "unforgivable sin", and ranks right up there with it in provoking uneasy self questioning and uncertainty. What christian of fervent hope does not fear, that in weakness or persecution, they will not become like Peter and deny any knowledge or acquaintance with their Lord? That fear, when caught in physical extremity, they might succumb to cowardice?
Commendable though it may be to always be alert for opportunities to be a witness for the gospel, I don't believe that Christ is saying we need be legalistic about every word that comes out of our mouths. After all, oppostion is only an excuse to let the light shine in the dark, and we don't lose our relationship with our Lord when in uncertainty or doubt. Instead, an idea of what this denial is, is hinted at where Jesus tells of the sheep and the goats. Do you remember how some who say "We did it all in Your name!" are rebuffed? "I never knew you!" Christ responds.
They did it in His name? A name is the truth of who someone is. Titles are a part of this. "God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord." (Phil 2:9,10) "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12) Christ is "Mighty God" in Isaiah and "my Lord and my God" to Thomas the formerly doubting disciple. If you get the picture that Jesus is God in the flesh, with no others who could even hope to approach that position, then you understand the main part of my thinking.
Anyone who defines the identity of Christ Jesus differently is unacquainted with the genuine Lord. Attaching His name to whatever we happen to worship does not give the idol His identity, even if we call it by the same name. This is what denial of Christ means. Creating a christ in our own image with characteristics that fill our own desires is preaching another gospel. Paul said that anyone who did this is cursed, (Gal 1:8,9) because our salvation is dependent on who Christ is. "The essence of sin is substituting man for God, while the essence of salvation is subsituting God for man."
Commendable though it may be to always be alert for opportunities to be a witness for the gospel, I don't believe that Christ is saying we need be legalistic about every word that comes out of our mouths. After all, oppostion is only an excuse to let the light shine in the dark, and we don't lose our relationship with our Lord when in uncertainty or doubt. Instead, an idea of what this denial is, is hinted at where Jesus tells of the sheep and the goats. Do you remember how some who say "We did it all in Your name!" are rebuffed? "I never knew you!" Christ responds.
They did it in His name? A name is the truth of who someone is. Titles are a part of this. "God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord." (Phil 2:9,10) "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12) Christ is "Mighty God" in Isaiah and "my Lord and my God" to Thomas the formerly doubting disciple. If you get the picture that Jesus is God in the flesh, with no others who could even hope to approach that position, then you understand the main part of my thinking.
Anyone who defines the identity of Christ Jesus differently is unacquainted with the genuine Lord. Attaching His name to whatever we happen to worship does not give the idol His identity, even if we call it by the same name. This is what denial of Christ means. Creating a christ in our own image with characteristics that fill our own desires is preaching another gospel. Paul said that anyone who did this is cursed, (Gal 1:8,9) because our salvation is dependent on who Christ is. "The essence of sin is substituting man for God, while the essence of salvation is subsituting God for man."
Salamander Grace
A signal sentinal of stone guards the center of the house, it's heart of fire reaching out to all the inhabitants with a living warmth.It freely bestows its glowing light on house residents. This closeknit communty of family is astonished and amazed by a flash of color emerging from the flames. A salamander, elemental of fire, is a reflection of the red and orange jewel tones of the flames. Merely human eyes observe and wonder at the mystery of a creature which lives in flame and is of flame. The creature represents the incomprehensable. The captive audience would love to emmulate the beauty and aquire the wisdom that dwells in the heart of the flame.
Just so is the christian that emerges from his fellowship with the Savior, our Rock with a heart of molten passion. Our souls reflect the jewel-like clarity of His character. We are bound, in mute wonder, to the unrelenting joy which is the immutable radiance of His being. Do others glimpse through us the unceasing glory of He through whom we "live and move and have our being?"
Or have we left ourselves out in the cold, without the knowing of the warmth of His acceptance? Do we squabble in the dark because our eyes refuse to see the light shining in front of us? Can we tell when our own passions, that we lay claim to as the most important virtues of our lives, are nothing more than "sentimental rot", and unruled by the eternal flame who is our Savior?
Friday, October 2, 2009
More Than This!
Here comes the question. It's the one capping off all of the most intermidable of sermons. You can recite the words before you hear them. You've already tuned them out because you've made your decision and you feel that the question no longer applies to you. "If you died tonight, do you know where you would spend eternity?" That's it. There it is, the end of the story.
"But wait, there's more!" What if the gospel is more than just a "get out of jail free card"? What if it is more than just the pass to get you through those pearly gates? What if it is the chance to change what you can only see as an ending, to a beginning that stretches into eternity on a cosmic scale? The book's ending can be changed. You can "rewrite an ending that fits", so that He is the start of the best part of the story.
If, without Jesus, man is no more than a project sabotaged, to be thrown on the scrap heap, how much more is a life in Him a new beginning that will see no end? Each and every weakness, surrendered to His keeping, every painful circumstance we decide to face with His praises, each conscious sacrifice done to glorify Him, becomes a permanent part of our destiny with Him. Because of what He has done, and in His name, we can choose to bring new life to wherever we are at right now. In Jesus, we can opt out of the ending of our story.
"But wait, there's more!" What if the gospel is more than just a "get out of jail free card"? What if it is more than just the pass to get you through those pearly gates? What if it is the chance to change what you can only see as an ending, to a beginning that stretches into eternity on a cosmic scale? The book's ending can be changed. You can "rewrite an ending that fits", so that He is the start of the best part of the story.
If, without Jesus, man is no more than a project sabotaged, to be thrown on the scrap heap, how much more is a life in Him a new beginning that will see no end? Each and every weakness, surrendered to His keeping, every painful circumstance we decide to face with His praises, each conscious sacrifice done to glorify Him, becomes a permanent part of our destiny with Him. Because of what He has done, and in His name, we can choose to bring new life to wherever we are at right now. In Jesus, we can opt out of the ending of our story.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Destination: Destiny
Our physical senses and therefore the material world, constitute only a fraction of our existence. Many concepts exist which do not repond to newtonian physics, and are not bound to a corporeal form. Transcendent values of morality, self sacrifice, and love clearly demonstrate that man is not meant to "live by bread alone", (Matt 4:4) but in the power and provision of the Lord. Man is not, ultimately, to be tied to the confines of a universe made of matter. At present, we "see through a glass darkly", (1 Cor. 13:12) having our senses bombarded by this world composed of matter, and distracted from that which will endure forever.
The reality of our destiny as the servants of Glory for the Most High King is only thinly veiled over. "It does not yet appear what we shall be", but "we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is".(1 John 3:2) Forever priests of the King of Kings, our body will be unshackled from the corruption of pain and death. We shall rejoice forever in the strength of our fellowship with Him. In His authority, we will transend the limits of mere flesh. May He hasten that day.
For now, our every word and action,in Him, is pregnant with God's purpose and meaning. In His Spirit, we administer joy and peace. Each moment of time is embued with repercussions that echo through eternity. Burdened with such a great weight of His glory, do we not "do more than just exist"?
Finding Identity as.......
In submission
I become
not less
but more.
Prostrated,
I am
exalted.
Created as
a conduit of:
Your mercy
Your compassion
Your love.
In humility
I find
my calling.
Limned in light
Your radiance
shines out.
Effective now,
Your servant!
The reality of our destiny as the servants of Glory for the Most High King is only thinly veiled over. "It does not yet appear what we shall be", but "we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is".(1 John 3:2) Forever priests of the King of Kings, our body will be unshackled from the corruption of pain and death. We shall rejoice forever in the strength of our fellowship with Him. In His authority, we will transend the limits of mere flesh. May He hasten that day.
For now, our every word and action,in Him, is pregnant with God's purpose and meaning. In His Spirit, we administer joy and peace. Each moment of time is embued with repercussions that echo through eternity. Burdened with such a great weight of His glory, do we not "do more than just exist"?
Finding Identity as.......
In submission
I become
not less
but more.
Prostrated,
I am
exalted.
Created as
a conduit of:
Your mercy
Your compassion
Your love.
In humility
I find
my calling.
Limned in light
Your radiance
shines out.
Effective now,
Your servant!
Friday, September 25, 2009
Alternatives to Reality
The Lord our God has blessed us exeedingly. His grace and mercy are unsurpassed, both in heaven and earth. The masterful subtlety of His leadership, or in other words, His perfect timing and provision, inspire amazement and awe. He, Himself, put aside all the priviledges of divinity, so as to not just show us the way, but to become The Way, so He could support us with His great strength. All of His efforts are motivated by His depthless love. The Master is discerning towards us so as to ever increase our love for Him. He knows that love forced is love lost, so He has given us the freedom to choose.
Those who know and understand, know that there is only the one game in town. There is no other way. There is no other God. There is no other end but what He decrees. It it but foolishness to choose any other but Him, the One who is all in all. It strains the limits of credulity as to how anyone could do otherwise. God lets them blaze their own path to eternity, knowing that they seek only to have their own way. Their ears and hearts are closed to all but themselves, unless some trauma should dislodge them from their complacency. In their hearts, they design and live in a make believe world.
There are various manifestations that evidence this attempted escape from reality. People display their lack of obedience to God in multiple ways. The most ubiquitous method used in western culture is an identification with science. God is left out of modern science so as to put a "safe" distance between us and Him. Some take it even further by twisting science to deny God's existence, making instead, science the recipient of their faith. There are those who make religion itself the object of their worship. The focus is on rules of behavior, while expecting God to accept these "great" sacrifices. There is no comprehension that God's standard's are far higher than can be attained by a humanity without Him. The most honest escapist is that one who pursues his own personal pleasure, while acknowledging that his weakness is his refusal to give up his sin. The here and now is made more important than the forever.
All avoiders of reality out there misunderstand and are blinded to God's true nature. In order for them to feel that they maintain some semblence of control over what they feel is theirs, they turn away from what is far greater and much more glorious than they could ever imagine.
Those who know and understand, know that there is only the one game in town. There is no other way. There is no other God. There is no other end but what He decrees. It it but foolishness to choose any other but Him, the One who is all in all. It strains the limits of credulity as to how anyone could do otherwise. God lets them blaze their own path to eternity, knowing that they seek only to have their own way. Their ears and hearts are closed to all but themselves, unless some trauma should dislodge them from their complacency. In their hearts, they design and live in a make believe world.
There are various manifestations that evidence this attempted escape from reality. People display their lack of obedience to God in multiple ways. The most ubiquitous method used in western culture is an identification with science. God is left out of modern science so as to put a "safe" distance between us and Him. Some take it even further by twisting science to deny God's existence, making instead, science the recipient of their faith. There are those who make religion itself the object of their worship. The focus is on rules of behavior, while expecting God to accept these "great" sacrifices. There is no comprehension that God's standard's are far higher than can be attained by a humanity without Him. The most honest escapist is that one who pursues his own personal pleasure, while acknowledging that his weakness is his refusal to give up his sin. The here and now is made more important than the forever.
All avoiders of reality out there misunderstand and are blinded to God's true nature. In order for them to feel that they maintain some semblence of control over what they feel is theirs, they turn away from what is far greater and much more glorious than they could ever imagine.
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