near mountain and river and field
where in Summer I’d sit and ponder in peace
on the beauty of nature revealed
I would love to watch in the Autumn
as the farmer is harvesting hay
and see mountains all covered in snow and mist
in the Winter when skies are grey
I would love to hear little lambs bleating
to their mothers when Spring comes around
and see poppies bright red in the meadow
and corn flowers covering the ground
But as I watch all the birds in the bay tree
and I sit in the shade of my cherry tree
I know I have the next best thing
For as I look at the beauty of one small part
of creation entrusted to me
I marvel again at the fact that Your hand
has fashioned each thing that I see
Like the garden spider who spins her web
hung low as she hides from her prey
while the butterfly fluttering high in the tree
lives to see yet another day
Although we may find a great contentment in what we have in our physical lives, there is no greater contentment than that which is found in our spiritual lives when we are born again of God's Spirit in Jesus.
So as I journey along in God's Spirit I say this prayer to Him:-
Lord never let me turn aside
from Your reproof because of pride
that mercy and humility
may be the power that reigns in me
Lord when I have to make a stand
when truth and lies go hand in hand
and righteousness must be my choice
bring me to speak with mighty voice
Lord never let me turn and run
when man's injustice has been done
show me the way to conquer fear
as You say 'Be still, your Lord is near'
Lord let Your wisdom overrule
the wisdom of this foolish fool
that I might some day be made whole
in body, Spirit, mind and soul
Lord let Your Spirit take firm grip
upon my actions when I slip
Bless me with guidance from Your throne
that I might call what's Yours my own
....A counsellor proved sure and true
A comforter sent forth from You.
Father Your beauty's all over the earth
if we take time to look around
but contentment discovered within our new birth
is the place where true peace can be found
In order to die to our fleshly, sinful self we have to continue to grow in the Lord, and put the old man to death. This can be quite hard as our carnal mind is totally different to the mind of Christ. I say this prayer to the Lord, asking for His guidance to overrule the guidance of my carnal mind.
Lord when I’m being taunted and mocked for loving You
Cause me to remember that You were taunted too
When I’m being laughed at for calling on Your name
Let me see You standing there and taking all that shame
And if I’m being tempted to draw back into sin
Tell me ‘Turn away child, don’t let the devil win’
Lord sometimes it’s difficult to die to sinful man
When the Spirit says ‘You can’t’ and the flesh says ‘Yes you can’
I’m so afraid I’ll fail You, the old man can be strong
Sometimes it’s hard to tell Lord what’s right and what is wrong
The old man says ‘Retaliate!’ To every harsh word said
The new says ‘You’ve been born again, the old man is now dead’
So Lord teach me to listen, when I hear You speak
Create in me a spirit that is lowly and meek
Take away the old man of anger, greed and lust
Form a new creation inside this outer crust
Help me to forgive them , when the world abuses me
Teach me how to show Your love, that I know can set them free
Lord help me go all the way to that rugged cross
Show me that to lose this life is gain and not a loss
And then just like the chrysalis that hangs upon it’s thread
I’ll become a butterfly - and You’ll have raised the dead
17 comments:
This was inspiring, Brenda. Beautiful. Encouraging. I was a little fearful to say some of these things aloud, but I prayed it as I read along. I knew someone long ago, a former co-worker, who in humility was stronger than anyone I'd ever seen. He had no problem with someone else being right instead of him or admitting he was wrong or any of the other things that endear people to others. Your poem reminded me of that and of how God's ways are not to be feared. They are better.
Your words "plucked from the stormy seas" in the page header jumped out at me today. I had a moment in church Sunday where I felt, just for an instant, that it was time. That line made me think of it. Blessings. 🌸
Hi Sandi,
yes I have, as all of us have, been plucked from the stormy seas, and it is not because I deserved to be saved but because God sent His precious Son to earth that all might be saved. We have a wonderful forgiving Father Who sent to us a very loving Son. God bless you Sandi.
So beautiful, Brenda -- just what I needed right now to help me stay centered on God's grace. God bless you,
Laurie
Hi Laurie, i am so glad that you have been encouraged through what the Lord has given me to share. I have to say that without the Lord being the key factor in my life I would not have been able to come through my trials. He is well able to do what man can not do and His thoughts are for our welfare and not to harm us.
God bless you and your husband Laurie with all He has for us.
Amen, Brenda, He wants to bless us and give good gifts to His children. Without Him, we can do nothing, but with Him, all things are possible.
God bless you and your family also,
Laurie
That's right Laurie, and we pray for the gift of faith, that all those things that are possible with our Lord, but not possible with man, will be brought into our lives.
God bless you and yours Laurie.
Lovely post, Brenda. Now that I've heard you speak on your recordings a few times I was hearing your written words with your voice. The last stanza brought the verse from Hebrews 12:3 to mind: "Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart." God Bless you!
Hi Jephyr, you could not have picked up your a more appropriate verse. I hope my Welsh accent isn't annoying you. :-)
Sorry about the extra words, it is predictive text on my phone. I keep forgetting to check my texts before I send them.
Sometimes predictive text can be quite entertaining. :) I actually quite like your voice, Brenda. As I've mentioned before I have a bit the Isles flowing in my blood — so I've always had a warm place in my heart for the people there.
Amen, Brenda! Without Him we can do nothing, but with Him, all things are possible. God bless you.
Amen to what you have said Laurie, and that Word has proved true in certain situations in my life, as I am sure it has in yours and other believers. God bless you and yours.
Yes, Brenda, He truly is faithful, and answers our prayers beyond whatever we could think or imagine. God bless you too!
Wonderful. Beautiful. Inspiring.
God bless.
Hi Victor,
thankyou for your kind comment. It is lovely to be back interacting. I shall have to be very careful what I do on my blog :-)
always learning.
God bless.
THANK YOU, BRENDA, FOR YOUR INSPIRATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT.
Hi Karen, you are very welcome, and thank you for your lovely scriptural blog.
In these times it is very encouraging to live in the body of our Lord on earth - the living church.
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