Keep On Keeping On
In the rising of the sun, I see His smile
restoring me with heavenly warmth,
the joy from knowing He did reconcile
with the Father, who created me to love
by the Son, who went the extra mile
to save my soul from the darkest pit
to save my spirit – life really is worthwhile!
In the spring, I see Him in the rose
shadow dancing, with the light of hope
in the summer, I know that He knows
all about me, and loves me despite the worst
in the autumn, I feel the time as it slows
and I remember how He healed my soul
in the winter, as the year comes to a close
there is wonder that comes to those who see
He is alive and His love is always free – He arose
to set the sinner free – oh, He gave His life for me!
In time, I’ll meet Him face to face
see the beauty, the wonder of His grace
In the end, I hope that you will see
why He came to this world
He is love and He came for you and me
He is the song that sings to the spirit
He is the light and I fall down on my knee
to worship this Jesus, who is love I can’t explain
He is the love that took me, a nobody
and made me a somebody with His grace
a somebody who fell down beneath that tree
and, I’m still praising, praising forever
because He gave me His guarantee –
with Him beside me, I never need fear
with His love, a love that is always sincere
I know the truth – It’s all crystal clear
He is my Savior and with Him, I’ll persevere!
Paul encouraged the Thessalonians to take risks of faith when he prayed that “by His power” God would “fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith.”8 Every genuine act of faith expands your horizons for God. Before long you will find yourself actually looking for greater risk opportunities for Him because you know that the size of the risk also determines the size of the reward.
You Were Born for This (p. 104). PRH Christian Publishing. Kindle Edition.
In His Presence
There is a feeling, yet not a feeling
it’s more of a sense, sensitivity
to the touch, the joy, the love that flows
from the One who knows me
as I’ve never been known by anyone
He knows my heart, my soul, my spirit
the fears I’ve felt, the way I’ve met
with darkest days and sunlit praise
the gentling truths, the music of grace
the winds of chance, who bless and say…
life is more than just getting by
there is letting go and sacrificing
there is kindness that amazes
there is serenity that never fades
there is joy and peace, a sincere belief
life is more than the shadow’s gray
it is light that flows from heaven
it is the whisper of His resurrection
it is the still that comes with that moment
when God Himself hears your story
life is more than the dream that holds
so you know that love will always guide
life is more than the silence of that star
glistening and shining, letting us all know
it is love that binds our lives to the One…
the One who overcomes, the One who assures
wherever we go, whatever we think we know
there is a hope that is more alive than the sun
it shines inside each one who knows the love
that comes from the One who sits on the throne…
the One who is life, who is love, who is ours
He is the promise that one day we will live
up in heaven, where we’ll know what it is
to love without conditions, to love without
any doubt, with a love that never burns out
in His presence, where I always hope to be
there is a feeling, yet the feeling isn’t complete
without the assurance that my soul believes
He is the answer to every prayer, each need
He is the reason my story quietly sings…
of a joy that will never fade away, a story
that restores the light to the day, a story
that always finds a way, so I know that
He will never go away – He will always stay
and I know that, in His presence, I may…
find my dreams grow wings that breathe
still the silence of my darkest grief,
restore my hope, give meaning to this life
where I know I may never know the light
that shines through the heavens, His love…
coloring the world in healing, revealing
what it means to love without concealing
the joy that is more than a feeling, the love
that comes down from His home above,
the love that I feel when I’m in His presence,…
everlasting peace and love, forever
lasting through the tears, the fears, the years
between this world and the heavenly home
where I know I’ll feel the warmth of His love
in His Presence, there is eternal kindness
there, with Him, there is love that never leaves
there is the wonder of a light that never fades
there is the promise of grace that never fails
there is the music that never recedes or wanes
there is the love that never wilts away…
in His presence, where love never dwindles away
there is love that stays and stays and stays
there is love that always makes a way
there is love that I will always say
brings light to the darkest day!
In His presence, is where I’ll always pray I stay
In His presence, is where I’ll live eternally
In His presence, is where I’ll find a way
In His presence, is light that never fades
In His presence, is the grace that surely saves!
At some point, trusting God becomes a step of faith. No one can prove God. You will have to make the choice to trust Him for yourself. Making that choice doesn’t mean you have settled your questions; you may not see those questions resolved in this life. But you can make the decision to try trusting God again. You can take a step forward with all your unresolved questions and invite God to reveal Himself. It’s okay to live with what I call “unfinishedness.” I think about my mother and how “finished” she looked in her relationship with God—as if everything were settled, everything clear. But when you read Mother’s poetry, you discover she was anything but finished. She simply learned to live with her questions and to trust God anyway.
Graham, Ruth. Fear Not Tomorrow, God Is Already There: Trusting Him in Uncertain Times (p. 12). Howard Books. Kindle Edition.
Appalachian Seasons We welcome Spring with blooms From bright red and yellow tulips It feels like the season of flumes With the scent of fresh hyssops Summer skies roll on around With gently floating white clouds Fresh mown lawns cover the ground Leaving crisp, emerald shrouds When Autumn happens through With orange, red and amber hues The entire world is a changed view Mountains painted brilliantly new Winter covers the world in white Enchanting icicles hanging from trees All the world is dazzling even at night It’s a wonderland of a peaceful freeze Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter In the Appalachian Mountains we find There is no place to be found any better Seasons of bliss surround us with a design God’s paintbrush has chosen our world To leave impressions of such joy and beauty Colors assorted, mixed and swirled To create a vision of dreamy bounty ©July 29, 2014 Written for Vibrant Verses Contest
