"Time"

Time.....

I have used it wisely.  

I have wasted it.

I have ignored it.

I have watched it go by without any regard.

I have also hated it.

Some days I have more it and some days I have less of it.

No matter what I do, time, will go on.  It stops for no one.

(Well, that's not entirely true.)

For the last couple of weeks I have been reading from the book of Ecclesiastes written by King Solomon.  As with Solomon I too have taken stock of my life and find myself lacking.

What period of life was Solomon in?  Early days as King?  Mid-life?  Or near the end of his reign?

I have an idea.  However, you shall have to wait until I finish the book to find out.

Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived and he spoke with much wisdom.  Yet, the words here in Ecclesiastes are spoken from his heart.  I guess you can say that it is wisdom mixed in with life's experience.  

(Me thinks I have an answer.)  

Today I started chapter 3 and just reading the first 8 verses I tried to guesstimate what season of life I am in now.  My answer is verse 6.

                                                  A time to gain, 

                                                      and time to lose; 

                                                  A time to keep,

                                                      and a time to throw away;

See ya in part two.

Thank you and God bless.

"LORD, I do"

From " to and fro'" he goes after those who are weak.  

Preying upon their weakened faith, from God, them, he tries to keep.

His roar is loud and direction unknown from where he may come, hoping the faint of heart will succomb.

My God before, in times of old, has shut the mouths of lions.

No fear, no danger, no one overcome in the midst of their trials.

The fiery furnace cannot consume those whom God has hedged.

The angry waves cannot overturn those whom God anchors.

To richer shores my feet shall trod in the presence of my God.

With waters rolled back and the Pillar ahead, no enemy shall I dread.

A holy path, the way shall be to keep His own in righteousness.  No one unclean will pass it through, Jehovah's judgment falling anew.

LORD I do believe Your word, within my spirit Your voice is heard.

"Rise up, reach out, ascend my holy hill.

Who can know the pleasure of my presence, without knowing me?

Behind the veil My glory shines hidden from the eyes of men.

You walk in darkness, you shed innocent blood.  My Spirit no longer within."

God above let Your light shine in the darkest corners and purge my sin.

My soul is downcast, my spirit is dead.  Where can I find life to lift me from this dread?

To You I run, in You I find rest.  LORD, I do believe; help me with my unbelief.  

Your faithfulness sustains as my tears fall like the rain.

Consume me Most High in Your embrace, lead by that amazing grace.

No other love have I known than the God who saves and brings me home.

Night/Day

Happy Resurrection Sunday.

Today started out at an odd time.  0342 this morning.  

I was awakened by the oddest of thoughts.  How did creation respond to Jesus coming out of the grave?  

This is not scriptural by any means, just my random musings on this glorious day.

How did the grass and trees and sun react to the stone being rolled away and Jesus walking out of the grave?

Was the grass in front of the tomb greener as the glorified body of Jesus emerged from its burial place?

Did the wind blow softer or stop all together at this wondrous sight?

And Mr. Sun.  How dim his light became with the radiance of Jesus' appearance.

Did the trees bow down in humility to His greatness?

Romans 8:22 For we know that the whole of creation groans and laboratory with birth pangs together until now.

Creation itself was present when Jesus became the Risen Saviour.  

Surely the rocks cried out "He is risen.  He is risen."

Did they marvel as the stone was rolled away from the opening?  

The scriptures paint such a vivid picture of Jesus coming out of the sepulchre alive, unbound and unhindered.  

He's alive again the stones been rolled away

He's alive again He's no longer in the grave

Let all the earth rejoice He's alive

My Jesus is alive and so am I.  

"What if" comes to mind a lot.  I think sometimes  what if I had not accepted Jesus as my Saviour at such a young age?  Where would I be now?  Has the reality of His death kept me grounded and rooted within Him?  

What if the person in whom I have shared the gospel with don't accept the work of the cross?  

What if?

What if? 

What if?

Needless to say it does not matter.  I have made Jesus my Lord and Saviour.  

Free will gives everyone else the right to say yes or no to salvation.  

God has an appointed time and place for everything.  I can only obey Him and in the end trust that all who hear make the proper decision.  

After the trial and subsequent death of Jesus, I am sure the apostles said to themselves and each other "what if?"

How easy it would have been to turn tail and run home to comfort and a life of ease. 

But they did not.  Only Judas Iscariot chose differently. 

What if's are tool of Satan to get us to doubt our faith.  The past is gone and nothing can be done to change it, unless you accept Jesus Christ as your savior and find forgiveness for the sins that seperate you from your Heavenly Father.

It is never too late to change your mind.  Redemption is only a heartbeat away.

Enjoy part 2 of the weekend trilogy.

God bless

Reposts

Good mornig.  Happy Good Friday to everyone. 

I will be reposting three blogs entitled "The Weekend Trilogy".

Initially i had planned on a seven short blogposts denoting the last week of Jesus' life.  One for each day. However, seven turned into three.  Thus, the trilogy.  

Enjoy and have a great weekend.  It was all done for you and I.

God bless

In Stages

It has been some time since I've wanted to see the sun rise.  So, I awakened this morning with a renewed joy.  As I prepared myself and (as a back-up) set my alarm to go off at 620, giving me plenty of time to get in position for the 0703 event.

I cannot say that I actually went back to sleep because I was giddy with excitement.  

As I watched I began to think about the spiritual condition of mankind.  As a help I will use one of my favorite verses from the bible, Isaiah 60:2.

                 

                              For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, 

                                 and gross darkness the people...(v. 2a)

The picture above is currently the spiritual condition of many people today because of sin.

I was once covered in sin and darkness.  But then someone told me about Jesus and how his death on the cross and the shedding of His blood can take away the darkness of sin and give me a new life.  Eternal life.

                  

                          Psalm 18:28 For You will light my lamp; The LORD 

                                      my God will enlighten my darkness.   

As I began to read the word of God and grow spiritually, I started to see there were other things in my life that could possibly hinder my walk with the Lord.  As I dealt with each issue the darkness slowly turned to light.  

Psalm 18:30 As for God, His way is perfect; the word or the LORD is proven; He is a shield to all who will trust Him.

                   

With the Holy Spirit indwelling and the Light of His presence before me, I could not stumble and not get up.   In a few days time I will turn 45.  These past 4+ years have been very, very hard on me and I never imagined my life turning out the way that it has.  Life has not been kind and I've struggled to maintain my sanity as best I could.  Staying close to God has at times been even harder.  Why? 

God knows my struggles, the number of my days and everything in between.  He is not surprised by any of it.  Through personal issues and financial hardships God has proven faithful to me.  Yes, I would like to have some relief from my trials and sufferings but God never said it would be easy.  

Hmm.  Maybe even understanding of it all would be better?  

Growing pains are a part of all of our lives and for the one who acknowledges and has God as Lord and Saviour of their lives we know that we should rejoice because it all leads to the praise, glory and honour of Jesus Christ when He is revealed to us on that day. 1st Peter 1:6,7

                    

As children of the Most High God we are to grow from glory to glory.  It says so in His word.  

Jesus suffered pain as He hung on the cross.  Yet, His mind was on the things to come for all who choose to follow in his footsteps...forsaking all for the glory of the Father.

This final picture represents the glory of God.  It's not a true representation, but it serves its purpose.  

Let me end with a verse from the Old Testament book of Lamentations (KJV).

It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassionate fail not.

They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.  The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore I will hope in him.

Just as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west so too is the faithfulness of my God.

Thank you Jesus.  

God bless

You Alone

"Be still and know that I Am the LORD"

I stopped and looked around.  The quiet space around me brought little comfort.

Slowly I sat down on the hot pavement and hoped for a glimpse of You.

Time slowly passed and I still did not see You.  Until.....

The flight of the birds in the air.

The clouds pasted against the blue canvas.

Felt the soft gentle breeze.

Aha.  You are here.

What can I say?

Looking outward I see Your handiwork.

Looking inward my problems are magnified.

You made the heavens and the earth.   Elohim

You created me in Your image.  Elohim

From the dust of the earth I was made, created for Your glory and Your fellowship.  Elohim

With a timeless love You have called me to be with You, with a matchless love You have drawn me near to You.  Yahweh

A joyful song I sing to You.  Holy are You.  I will sing praises to You.  Yahweh

Where do I begin without Your touch?  Jehovah

When does my life end without Your word?  Jehovah

You came to this earth forsaking Your glory for me.  Yeshua

Your words are spirit and life to the dead.  Yeshua

You chose me.  Yeshua

Your death was for me.  Yeshua

I'm wanting more.   Empty

I'm weak and lonely.  Helpless

I'm poor and needy.  Broken

I'm in need of You.  Sinner

You alone are my all in all

You alone are mine and I am Yours

You alone fill me with awe and wonder

You alone are worthy

You alone are Faithful and True

You alone sit on the throne

Tunein

Good morning.  I heard these words from a song on Rejoice radio.  Pretty powerful.  

"I find hope and I find  grace far away from the worlds embrace.  In my Lord, my secret place."

God bless