Second chance

 Once again I have felt led to repost something I wrote some years ago on my blog, to give all glory to God and His Son Jesus, and their presence in my life:-

The following is a song that I wrote after I had come to know Jesus as my Saviour, and was one of the songs I used to sing in the streets with a Christian friend.  I write this song on my blog as a testimony to the love and compassion that I have found in that Saviour.

Second chance

Listen all you people there's a story to be told
a wondrous tale of beauty talked about in days of old
It speaks about a mystery, a beautiful romance
how the God of all creation gave this world a second chance
A second chance to walk with God, to become His holy child
to be rescued from our wretchedness, and to Him be reconciled
by believing on Jesus, the lamb who was slain
that we might be accepted by the Father again
No more to be in torment, no more to be in shame
when we trust on our Saviour and the power in His name
Yes the Father sent Jesus just to save you and me
He's the bread sent from Heaven, He's the life-giving tree
So turn from your hard labour, come out from slavery
for the Son of God released you on that cross at Calvary
Don't let sin be your master, come shout sing and dance
for the Lord God of Heaven has given us a second chance

There are two other songs which I felt to put on this post.  The first one is a song in which I felt the Lord was speaking to me, and the second one is me speaking to God, in a prayer that I made, and still do make, for others.

Weep no more child

Lost in the world, I was entangled in sin and shame
Lord that was when I met You
Then from my grave I heard You calling, calling my name
with a voice that was gentle but true
'Turn around my child, and look at me'
were the words that were piercing my heart
'Turn around from your sin, be set free
come to me and make a new start'
Then water so pure and crystal clear
was washing away all my doubt and my fear
and the tears ran free, as you said to me......

'Weep no more child, I have bought your peace
I have suffered in your place
All the blows the world has dealt you
I have taken on my face
Turn around, turn around and I will forgive
Turn around, turn around, turn around child and live
For I take no pleasure in the death of a soul
Turn around, seek my face child, and I'll make you whole

Strive no more child, I can bring release
I regained what you had lost
Righteousness was purchased for you
when they nailed me to that cross
Turn around, turn around, and I will forgive
Turn around, turn around, turn around child and live
For I take no pleasure in the death of a soul
Turn around, seek my face child, and I'll make you whole

Sin no more child, turn and look at me
see that I have paid the price
So that you could have salvation
I became the sacrifice
Turn around, turn around and I will forgive
Turn around, turn around, turn around child and live
For I take no pleasure in the death of a soul
Turn around, seek my face child, and I'll make you whole

Somewhere

Somewhere someone's hurting Lord
somewhere someone's hurting
A wife has left her husband
and he's crying in despair
he doesn't know there's a comforter
he doesn't know You're there
Lord reach out and comfort him
send help from above
send help from the sanctuary
let the world see Your love

Somewhere someone's dying Lord
somewhere someone's dying
The doctors shake their heads and say
' There's nothing can be done '
but they've never seen a miracle
performed by God's own Son
Lord reach out and heal him
send help from above
send help from the sanctuary
let the world see Your love    

Somewhere someone's crying Lord
somewhere someone's crying
her tears are shed for all mankind
she knows the end is near
but she doesn't know there's a perfect love
that casts out every fear
Lord reach out and love her
send help from above
send help from the sanctuary
let the world see Your love

Somewhere someone's waiting Lord
somewhere someone's waiting
They've heard there's hope in Jesus Christ
the name above them all
so they're waiting for their Lord's return
responding to Your call
Lord, you've reached out to us
God sent help from above
He sent help from His sanctuary
when He sent You, His perfect love

In my thirty five years of knowing Jesus, I have come to know, and am still learning about, that perfect love of God  that wants to change us into the image of His Son, but understands that we are flesh.  I have never come across anything so compassionate, longsuffering and powerful.  That love has the ability to change me, not by force, but by placing in me the knowledge that the change would bring about the most beautiful peace in my soul that I could ever imagine.

Jesus went to the stable for me

 Jesus went to the stable for me
born in a human likeness was He
a babe in a manger He was to be 
just as the Father told Him
There He lay with the cattle and sheep
placed on a bed of straw to sleep
every word in His heart to keep
just as the Father told Him 
Jesus went to the desert for me
taunted and tempted by Satan was He
but Jesus answered words of victory
just as the Father told Him
‘You shall have everything you see’
Satan said ‘If you worship me’
‘To God alone will I bow’ said he
just as the Father told Him
Jesus went to the mountain for me
Spoke with Elijah and Moses did He
there He was given all authority
just as the Father told Him
‘We’ll build booths for these two’ they said
‘see they have come back from the dead’
‘My Son alone will you hear instead’
was just what the Father told them
Jesus came in the Spirit for me
Comforter, counsellor, healer is He
and from the curse I have been set free
just as the Father tells me
Now my heart and my mind are stirred
I must act on what I have heard
and I shall live by God’s every word
just as the Father tells me

The window of opportunity

 'Stay in bed for the day' my husband said' get rid of that cold'. 'Hmm.. I thought, maybe I will have a few hours in bed.'  I could do with a rest. So I had stayed in bed that morning and much of the afternoon.

As I was laying there, gazing out through the window, I watched the people passing by in the street and reflected on how their lives might be, on whether there might be sadness behind the smile, or worry and anxiety behind the sombre look.  I thought of how little we might know about one another's lives, whether we be workmates, neighbours or even strangers. After a while my husband brought me a cup of tea and I started to feel a little better, and decided to read.  I looked at the books on my shelves and chose a book of poems called 'In Memory Of', a collection of poets' tributes to, and memories of, friends and loved ones that had died.

As I read poem after poem of people's feelings, some of joyful memories and some of grief, I began to realize that God was revealing to me what I had pondered on earlier while gazing through my window.  He was now showing me what lay behind a face in the street, revealing to me people's innermost feelings, people who were mostly hurting through loss and loneliness.

I don't believe that God does anything by chance. I am a Christian and 'every day in my life is written in His book  before even one of them was formed.' 

As I lay in my bed I had to question my part in life as far as my fellow man was concerned.  I read on and became filled with compassion for the people who had allowed me to see into their lives. 

I know that on that day, when I was brought to see inside the hearts and minds of others, I felt compassion which brought in turn responsibility. I have been made aware of the loneliness and suffering of others, Christians included, and it has compelled me to play my part in life to the best of my ability.  May the Lord help me always to be alert to where, and when, I may help another.

One poem in particular about a man who was grief stricken at the loss of his soul mate and looked to God for release filled me with such sadness that it brought me to write this poem which contains, I suppose, my own deepest feelings.

THE WINDOW

'Twas sickness caused me on that day 

to rest and in my bed to lay

while through my window I could see 

the world outside did not need me

It carried on its busy life 

regardless of my pain and strife

Yet as I gazed upon the scene 

that lay beyond lace covered screen

I wondered at each passer by.... 

if face reflected truth or lie

I lay in comfort needing naught 

my husband food and drink had brought

but for my mind to idle be 

was nothing short of misery

Then suddenly my eye was cast 

upon my books - a treasure vast

A book of poems I should read 

to satisfy my spirit's need

To see what lay within the mind 

of other beings of my kind

I turned the pages one by one... 

a stirring journey had begun

For hidden there in every leaf 

was joy and sorrow, love and grief

A vast collection here was seen  

of frozen dreams that might have been

of past regrets and loneliness  

sweet memories of tenderness

lost loves and breaking of the heart 

when sudden death caused to depart

a soul mate of so many years

My burning cheeks felt cooling tears

Such moving stories I had read 

as I lay sick upon my bed

a window had been shown to me 

through which I 'd seen reality

of pain that lay behind a smile  

of need to go the extra mile

What of my part in life I thought 

What words of comfort had I brought

in all my years upon this Earth  

What words of love, support and worth

had touched the lives of those I'd met  

Was there remorse, was there regret?

What use is it if kindly word 

is left in thought and never heard?

This world that from my bed I saw, 

that looked so proud and strong before

has need of me.... and I of it, 

each soul to do its special bit

To share with others words of love  

God's seeds of blessing from above

is all that may be asked of me 

to help to set another free

from pain and hurt and misery 

that death and loss has caused to be

But seeds can never come to birth 

unless they're planted in the earth

So Father help me in my life 

to ease another person's life

to seek my Lord to try to do 

the things that I have learned from You

and may You cause my eyes to see 

windows of opportunity

to stretch a tender loving hand 

towards the suffering in this land,

to sow Your seeds of love and peace  

that word and deed might bring release 

How do we think

I feel to republish a post I wrote some time ago. 

I had a dream in which I was trying to speak to a very important person on the phone but could not get connected. This brought me to think of how we, as believers, connect with God. Do we connect with Him through the carnal mind or the mind of Christ as spoken of in 1 Corinthians ch. 2 v.16:- 

'For who has known the mind of the LORD, that he may instruct Him? But we have the MIND OF CHRIST.' This is saying that when we have been born again of the Holy Spirit and  are spiritually  part of the body of Christ on earth, as stated in 1 Corinthians vs. 12 and 13 ( For in one Spirit we were all baptised into one body, whether Jews, or Greeks , slave or free, and we were all given one Spirit to drink...) then we  have the mind of Christ. 

Isaiah ch. 55 vs. 8 and 9 clearly states that Gods thoughts and ways are totally different to mankind's thoughts and ways :- 'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways' declares the LORD.
Do we argue with that Word?

Job ch. 40 v.2 states:-

' Shall he that contends with the Almighty instruct Him? he that reproves God, let him answer it.'

This is how Paul the Apostle spoke to believers in Ephesians ch. 4 vs 22-24 regarding how they should be in Christ:-

'You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, to be made new in the attitude of your minds, and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.'

Jesus' Words to us, enlightened by the Holy Spirit,  are what enable us to work out our salvation, and just as He did, we too can learn obedience through the things we suffer, trials strengthening us as we journey on.  Hebrews ch. 5 vs. 8 and 9 state:- 'though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,'  and I see through this that to 'obey' Him means to 'act' on the Word spoken to us as believers, and not just be 'hearers' of that Word.

Recently, the cover on my mobile phone broke and I needed to buy a new one. I do not buy on line and asked my daughter in law if she would order one for me. She went through several of them for me, asking which one I would like, many with butterflies on which I said would be the right one but which were out of stock.  She came to one with a picture of a lion on it and asked me would I like it. I said 'I love lions' , so she ordered it for me. She said 'What will you call the lion?' I started thinking about this and suddenly she said to me 'Did you say 'Judah'? I said to her that I had not said a word. She could not believe it, and said she literally had goose bumps on her arms.

Isaiah ch. 61 v.10 reads:-

I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For He has clothed me with garments of salvation and ARRAYED ME in a robe of HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS.' 

1 Corinthians ch. 1 v.30 reads:-

'It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, Who has BECOME for us wisdom from God: our RIGHTEOUSNESS, holiness and redemption....'

If the scriptures say that He has become our righteousness, and also that God has arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, I believe absolutely that what happened with my daughter in law regarding my phone cover is a sign from the Lord accompanying His Word.

What I have on my mobile screen is a picture of a sea and the words 'Walk on water', signifying that I must keep my eyes focused on the Lord, and not on the tribulations in my life.  Now that there will be a lion covering on that statement it speaks Spiritually to me that as long as I keep my eyes upon the Lord, Who is the Word of God, then I shall be covered by His righteousness.

I end this post with a section of 2 Corinthians ch. 10 v.5  that has greatly encouraged me to change my way of thinking.

'.......bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ' 

 Every morning, before I start my day, I open my Bible to read the Word. This morning I read Psalm ch. 9, and these words really spoke to me. 

'But the Lord sits enthroned for ever, He has established His throne for judgement, and He judges the world with righteousness, He judges the people with equity. The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble, and those who know Thy name put their trust in Thee, for Thou, O Lord, hast not forsaken those who seek Thee. Sing praises to the Lord Who dwells in Zion! Tell among the peoples His deeds! For He Who avenges blood is mindful of them, He does not forget the cry of the afflicted.'  vs. 7-12

The following is a picture poem I wrote and painted a long time ago. I have probably shared this before, but it continues to speak to me daily.

Love one another as I have loved you

 This story is a true story about something that happened in my life some years ago.

The other day a neighbour's cat came to my house crying for food. At first I sent it away.  'It is not my responsibility', I thought, 'It belongs to my neighbour'.  The plight of the cat got worse and she grew thinner and thinner until I felt I had to give the cat some food.  It didn't matter whose cat it was, she was starving.  Maybe the owners couldn't afford to buy cat food, maybe they were feeding it a food which it couldn't eat, or maybe they just didn't care about it.  Whatever the reason, I had let the fact that it was someone else's cat blind me to the fact that it was starving.  I had food to give it, we have three cats of our own, and it had to be fed or it could starve to death.

God spoke to me through this incident. He brought me to realize how easily I could have looked the other way and tried to justify myself by saying 'The problem is not mine.'  The truth of the matter was that the problem was not mine until I was made aware of it.  The cat had come to my door and I as a believer know that the cat does not really belong to my neighbour, it belongs to God.  'The earth is the Lord's and the fullness therein.' (Psalm 24).

Sometimes we are reluctant to share what we have, not only the material things but also the spiritual things, because we think it will cause a loss to us. However, the Lord tells us to give and it shall be given to us (Luke ch. 6 v.38).  Whatever God has given to us is to be given out to others where there is a need, we need not fear that we shall suffer through our giving.  In fact we are more likely to suffer through our lack of giving, especially where sharing our faith is concerned. If a plant was to be put in a vessel that did not have any holes in the bottom, water being poured into it frequently would soon cause the plant to rot.  If there are holes in the vessel the plant will take what it needs through it's root system, and the excess will flow out, keeping the plant healthy.

However, no gardener will add water to a plant that is already saturated and in danger of rotting because the water hasn't been allowed to drain away. So let us make sure our vessels have holes in them, and that the 'water of the Word' that we have been given will be shared in this world, just like the widow in 1 Kings ch. 17 shared her bread. Let us all try to be like the widow woman who trusted the Word of the Lord so much that she gave to Elijah when he was in need before she took for herself and her son.  It is by our works that we show faith.  Let us share both the things that we have in this world, and also our faith, through the BREAD OF THE WORD.  God is faithful, 'the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail' according to the word of the Lord for the widow woman, and neither will it for us. For the Lord knows what things we have need of before we ask.

A CHILD IS DYING IN THE STREET

IT CRIES ALOUD FOR BREAD

DO YOU GIVE OF WHAT YOU HAVE

OR WATCH IT 'TIL IT'S DEAD

A WORLD WAS DYING IN IT'S SIN

IT DIDN'T ASD FOR 'BREAD'

GOD COULD HAVE GIVEN PUNISHMENT

HE GAVE HIS SON INSTEAD

Yes, let us love one another in the same way that God loved us.

When the Lord is the 'gardener' we need not fear that He will neglect to 'water' us. Proverbs ch. 11 v.35 says 'The generous man will be prosperous. And he who waters will himself  be watered.' 

A child is returning home

The scriptures say that in the end times many shall fall away from the faith, and that is just what is happening in these times. I believe Jesus  will be returning soon to take up the remnant, and that it is so important that we repent on the things we may have done wrong and turn back to having God's ways and thoughts. The following is a poem I wrote some time ago regarding my thoughts on this.

A CHILD IS RETURNING HOME

The Lord looked down from Heaven
and said to His angels one night

'There's an empty house in Jerusalem

that needs to be filled with my light'

My Father says 'Make this house ready

a child is returning home

Go, welcome him into my sanctuary

and tell him no more will he roam

Tell him his Lord has redeemed him

and not for the good deeds he's done

but because the Father has loved him

and he trusted upon His Son'

So come, let us make this house ready

and fill it with goodness tonight

for a child that was lost has come home again

to be blessed by the Father of Light