Moment by Moment with Him

Sometimes we so easily forget,
How unpredictable our lives may be,
We make plans for our tomorrows and our futures,
Not realizing they could change instantly,

Then one day, you wake up, and it happens,
Something occurs that's not at all like you've planned,
Your life has now taken a new direction,
And it may be difficult for you to understand.

God never promised that we'd never have struggles,
That there would always be sunshine and not rain,
But He said He'd never leave nor forsake us,
And with His presence we will forever be sustained.

When God takes us from the height of the mountain,
And then places us in the valley of despair,
It's here we can learn total dependence,
Upon the One who will always be there.

Oftentimes it's only through the midst of the trials,
We see God works in ways we'd never have dreamed,
He accomplishes so much beyond our understanding,
And now things may not be at all what they'd seemed.

We may not know why God allowed such a hardship,
We must learn to trust in the One who knows best,
For our future is seen by Him only,
And in Him we can confidently rest.

So when the unexpected may arise in our lifetime,
And the way God is leading seems dim,
May we face it not ONE DAY at a time,
But instead, MOMENT BY MOMENT with Him.

Rainbow

The rainbow’s colors came to play
and chase the evening rain,
but Red looked down and had to say
“Your color’s rather plain.”

While shining from his lofty height,
he looked upon the rest
and felt his color burning bright.
He knew he was the best.

The rays of sunlight glorified
by all its hues arrayed
are weaker now since crimson pride
began a steady fade.

Then Orange looking down at Blue
declared, “You look so pale.”
Blue tried to be another hue
but this to no avail.

So Yellow shouted from the crowd
as anger swelled within,
“I don’t know why you must be proud
for prideful ways are sin.”

“With just a glance I know you’ll see
I’m center of it all,
so if a winner there must be,
I’m brighter overall.”

But Green with envy had to ask,
since now allowed to speak,
“In all your brilliance others bask,
why must I be so weak?”

Said Indigo to their dismay,
“At least I’m not so Blue.
I may not be like Red, but hey,
at least I’m not like you.”

Poor Violet in silence yearned
to be another shade.
It’s sad to think they never learned
we’re all divinely made.

Apart they’re seen by everyone
but never shine as bright
as when their God spoke through his Son
and said, “Let there be light.”

Silent, Vibrant and Beautiful

I went beyond to walk today
Into the wood to see
Then while dusk fell abroad I stayed,
As a sailor upon high sea.

Natures' being engulfs me round.
My God, likewise, feels close.
Though still, I hear my favorite sounds
He, to me doth disclose.

The rain that fell hath now abated...
So still after the storm.
Now is when nature is concentrated...
And easier, so, to learn.

A still, silent glade lies before,
Midst a motionless stand of timber.
So silent in whole and yet with noises in store,
All jagged with sunlight, from clouds growing thinner.

With shadows growing longer
And the sun sinking fast...
Natures’ grip doth grow yet stronger,
As I’ve found a field of grass.

Crouched-astride a rock, on-top a rise
By a field, on-side a mountain.
To watch in awe the brazen skies
And the valley, the tempest has stricken.

Sporadic sun-rays shine through the mist
Transforming to show a rainbow.
A wide realm of life seems so fresh-kissed
To the river-side farms below.

Billowing fog "from the river" rises.
Surroundings sparkle like a fountain.
All else seems vanity... God's beauty chastises! 
The works of man are "for now" forgotten.

So, to watch and o, to listen
Is why I have come.
To seek that which delivers
My mind that can’t succumb.

O, the silence! "thus the peace
Of our first habitation!
Vibrant!" yet, smoothed through grace
Is the beauty of creation!

So simple to behold.
So complex in design.
Quick to bless the soul.
And sure, to sooth the mind.

Good for inspiration.
A perfect spot for prayer!
Still sure midst confusion.
When were you last found there?

Tis God's own world, for his own pleasure.
And though parts now seem frightful,
Enter what He gave by measure,
For tis silent, tis vibrant, and beautiful!

God Makes Things Happen

God makes things happen,

in His time, at His will
He can make the wind’s gust
or He can cause them to still.

He can alter the course,
of the season’s of the year
He can make them painless
or cause in them great fear.

God, makes things happen,
nothing is a coincidence
everything He does . . .
is of great significance.

He makes kingdoms rise,
He causes them to tumble
He can withdrawn His wisdom
or give it to the humble.

God, makes things happen,
in His time, at His will
there is no one else who has
His power, or His skill!

Daniel 2:20-21

“Daniel answered and said,
Blessed be the name of God
for ever and ever:
for wisdom and might are his:
And he changeth the times
and the seasons: he removeth kings,
and setteth up kings: he giveth
wisdom unto the wise,
and knowledge to them
that know understanding:”

From Here to There

From here to there, my Lord, is where

I wish that I would come
But nowhere near it would appear
Though far from where begun

This hunger now seems to somehow
Be never satisfied
Try as I might this appetite
For more has ever cried

How is it so, this gap will grow
As I am passing through
I round the bend to near the end
Behold a mountain new

We need the place where trusting grace
From God is where we rest
We need discern that what we learn
In gaps from God is best

God’s pleased with you when you pursue
When He’s what you desire
And there’s no price that would suffice
To stop you climbing higher

Now don’t lose heart because you start
Yet never seem to finish
You understand it is His plan
His love will not diminish

His work in us is finished thus
To whet the appetite
To hunger more for what’s in store
And re-adjust our sight

So do not tire for your desire
Shall surely soon be met
Before His throne when ushered home
Your hunger you’ll forget

God haste the day when we can say
My Lord I do declare
Your work begun is now all done
You’re faithful “here to there”

The One

We simply cannot grasp the loss
Until it becomes our painful cross
Whether we become the one
When at last all is said and done.

There is suffering and heartache
So humbling when we must take
Yet, if there would be but one
Who believes in God, the Son.

Rest and peace will surely come
Even when a body must succumb
Because God asks for us to care
Take the time to love and share.

And only time will truly tell
If we are the one, or the well
For the one who needs the friend
Might become you, in the end.

Life is hard and unpredictable
But God calls on the able
Yet sadly so many fail to give
In their own life they will live.

So hear the words the Savior sends
He says, "I have called you friends"
There is no greater love, cries the Son
When you are called to be the "one"

"Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for a friend... I have called you friends..." (John 15:13-15)

There Is a Man on the Cross

There Is a Man on the Cross

Whenever there is silence around me

By day or by night—
I am startled by a cry.
It came down from the cross—
The first time I heard it.
I went out and searched—
And found a man in the throes of crucifixion,
And I said, “I will take you down,”
And I tried to take the nails out of his feet.
But he said, “Let them be,
For I cannot be taken down
Until every man, every woman, and every child
Come together to take me down.”
And I said, “But I cannot bear your cry.
What can I do?”
And he said, “Go about the world—
Tell every one that you meet—
There is a man on the cross.”

Whenever there is silence around me
By day or by night—
I am startled by a cry.
It came down from the cross—
The first time I heard it.
I went out and searched—
And found a man in the throes of crucifixion,
And I said, “I will take you down,”
And I tried to take the nails out of his feet.
But he said, “Let them be,
For I cannot be taken down
Until every man, every woman, and every child
Come together to take me down.”
And I said, “But I cannot bear your cry.
What can I do?”
And he said, “Go about the world—
Tell every one that you meet—
There is a man on the cross.”