Good Thoughts
Pray for my soul.
More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of.
Wherefore let thy voice rise like a fountain for me night and day.
For what are men better than sheep or goats that nourish a blind life
within the brain,
If,knowing God they lift not hands of prayer both for themselves and
those who call them friends?
For so the whole round earth is every way round by gold chains about
the feet of God.
Tennyson
The Dream
So let this dreamer dream
set her spirit free
Her soul filled with the love of God
her eyes turned toward the sea.
Searching for a place to rest
a place she can belong
In His arms she finds her peace
it's been there all along.
So at night she lays her head
on a pillow made of love
And dreams till dawn shines on her face
a soft light from above.
She awakens with a feeling
of her spirit being free
A brand new day, a new beginning
His love alive in me.
JD
A Christmas Acrostic
Christ is born
Hallelujah!
Rejoice!
In the still night a
Star shines
Three wise men
Magi from the East
Arrive in Bethlehem they
Seek the newborn King.
The Annunciation
God whispered, and a silence fell;
the world
Poised one expectant moment,
like a soul
Who sees at heaven's threshold
the unfurled
White wings of cherubim,
the sea impearled,
And pauses,dazed,to comprehend
the whole;
Only across all space God's
whisper came
And burned about her heart
like some white flame.
Then suddenly a bird's note
thrilled the peace,
And earth again jarred noisily to life
With a great murmur as of many seas.
But Mary sat with hands clasped
on her knees
And lifted eyes with all
amazement rife,
And in her heart the rapture
of the spring
Upon its first sweet day of blossoming.
-Theodosia Garrison-
Father! I bless thy name that I do live,
And in each motion am made rich with Thee,
That when a glance is all that I can give,
It is a Kingdom's wealth that I do see;
This stately body cannot move,save I
Will to it's nobleness my little bring;
My voice it's measured cadence will not try,
Save I with every note consent to sing;
I cannot raise my hands to hurt or bless,
But I with every action must conspire
To show me there how little I posess,
And yet that little more than I desire;
May each new act my new allegiance prove,
Till in thy perfect love I ever live and move
-Jones Very-
God has a thousand ways
where I can see not one;
When all my means have reached their end
Then His have just begun.
A sad refrain I heard,
from poet sad,
Which on my soul with deadening weight
did fall;
But quick another word,
which made me glad,
Did from the heavens above me seem to call.
The first was Nevermore:
which like a knell,
Struck on my ear with dull, funereal sound;
The last was Evermore; which like a bell,
In waves of music filled the air around.
Forevermore with love and lost to be,
No more to suffer change, nor grief, nor pain,
From partings sad to be
forever free,
Such was that sweet bell's music;
it's sad refrain
Blended with voices from the heavenly shore,
Each whispering to my heart
Forevermore.
Thou hidden love of God, whose height,
Whose depth unfathom'd no man knows,
I see from far thy beauteous light,
Only I sigh for thy repose;,
My heart is pain'd nor can it be at rest,
till it finds rest in thee.
Yet hindrances strew all the way;
I aim at thee,
Yet from thee stray.
'Tis mercy all that thou hast brought my mind
to
seek her peace in thee.
Heavenly Father,you are the the God who knows my
every care
You know the demands of this day.
You are even aware of the added burdens
tomorrow will bring
Remind me, Father that you never intended
for me to carry even one days cares alone
but that you have made yourself available
to share and sometimes even bear my load
Remind me to pray rather that worry
Replace my anxiety with faith
Amen
I said a prayer for you today,
and know God must have heard
I felt the answer in my heart
although He spoke no word
I didn't ask for wealth or fame
I knew you wouldn't mind
I asked Him to send treasures
of a far more lasting kind
I asked that He be near you
at the start of each new day
To grant you health and blessings
and friends to share your way
I asked for happiness for you
in all things great and small
But it was for His loving care
I prayed the most of all
Tell him
Tell him about the heartache
and tell him the longings too.
Tell him the baffled purpose
when we scarce know what to do.
Then leaving all our weakness
with the One divinely strong
forget that we bore a burden
and carry away a song
-Phillip Brooks-
Symbol
My faith is all a doubtful thing
wove on a doubtful loom
Until there comes each showery spring
a cherry tree in bloom
And Christ who died upon a tree
that death had stricken bare
Comes beautifully back to me
in blossoms everywhere
-David Morton-
Life Sculpture
Chisel in hand stood a sculpture boy
With his marble block before him,
And his eyes lit up with a smile of joy,
As an angel dream passed o'er him.
He carved the dream on that shapeless stone,
With many a sharp incision;
With Heaven's own light the sculpture shone-
He'd caught that angel vision.
Children of life are we, as we stand
With our lives uncarved before us,
Waiting the hour when, at God's command,
Our life dream shall pass o'er us.
If we carve it then on the yielding stone,
With many a sharp incision,
It's heavenly beauty shall be our own,
Our lives that angel vision.
-W.C. Doane-
There's a wideness in God's mercy,
Like the wideness of the sea;
There's a kindness in his justice,
Which is more than liberty
There is welcome for the sinner,
And more graces for the good;
There is mercy with the Savior;
There is healing in his blood.
For the love of God is broader
Than the measure of one's mind;
And the heart of the Eternal
Is most wonderfully kind.
If our love were but more simple,
We could take him at his word;
And our lives would be more loving
In the likeness of our Lord.
-F.W.Faber-
I Believe
I believe in friendship, and I believe in trees,
And I believe in hollyhocks a-swaying in the breeze,
And I believe in robins and roses white and red,
And rippling brooks and rivers and blue skies overhead,
And I believe in laughter, and I believe in love,
And I believe the daffodils believe in God above.
I am no unbeliever, I know that men are true,
I know the joy of summer time when skies above are blue,
I know there is no earthly power can shape a budding rose,
Or bring a daisy into bloom; with all that wisdom knows
It could not fashion, if it would, the humblest blade of grass
Or stretch a living carpet where the weary travelers pass.
I believe in friendship, for I have found it good,
And I believe in kindly words, for I have understood;
My faith is founded on the years and all that I have seen,
Something of God I've looked upon no matter where I've been.
Within a swamp but yesterday a lily smiled at me
And only God could set it there to bloom for me to see.
-E.Guest-
from:When God Whispers Your Name
If our greatest need had been information,
God would have sent an educator.
If our greatest need had been technology,
God would have sent us a scientist.
If our greatest need had been money,
God would have sent us an economist.
But since our greatest need was forgiveness,
God sent us a Savior.
-M. Lucado-
Light Shining out of Darkness
God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform;
He plants his footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never-failing skill,
He treasures up his bright designs,
And works his sovereign will.
Ye fearful saints fresh courage take,
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy, and shall break
In blessings on your head.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust him for his grace;
Behind a frowning providence,
He hides a smiling face.
His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding ev'ry hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flow'r.
Blind unbelief is sure to err,
And scan his work in vain;
God is his own interpreter,
And he will make it plain.
-W.Cowper-
From:Into The Depths Of God
In spite of all we have said about art,
it is at these moments the Christ of high art
is passed by in favor of the Christ of things intimate.
When I am in need,show me no Rubens or Rembrandts-
no golden robed Christ at home in the halls of the Louvre.
Give me a burlapped carpenter who will sit with me
until my quiet emptiness is filled by
his all-sufficient power.
-C.Miller-
Build a little fence of trust
Around today;
Fill the space with loving work
And therein stay.
Look not through the protective rails
Upon tomorrow;
God will help you bear what comes of joy
Or sorrow
How brightly beams the morning star!
What sudden radiance from afar
Doth glad us with it's shining?
Brightness of God, that breaks our night
And fills the darkened souls with light
Who long for truth were pining!
Rightly leads us,
Life bestowing.
Praise, O praise such love o'erflowing!
Through thee alone can we be blest;
Then deep be on our hearts imprest
The love that thou hast borne us;
So make us ready to fulfil
With ardent zeal thy holy will,
Though man may vex or scorn us;
Hold us, fold us, lest we fail thee.
Lo, we hail thee,
Long to know thee!
All we are and have we owe thee.
-J.A.Schlegel-
Faith
It is faith that bridges the land of breath
To the realms of the soul departed,
That comforts the living in days of death,
And strengthens the heavy-hearted.
It is faith in his dreams that keeps a man
Face front to the odds about him,
And he shall conquer who thinks he can,
In spite of the throngs who doubt him.
Each must stand in the court of life
And pass through the hours of trial;
He shall tested be by the rules of strife,
And tried for his self-denial.
Time shall bruise his soul with the loss of friends,
And frighten him with disaster,
But he shall find when the anguish ends
That of all things faith is master.
So keep your faith in the God above,
And faith in the righteous truth,
It shall bring you back to the absent love,
And the joys of a vanished youth.
You shall smile once more when your tears are dried,
Meet trouble and swiftly rout it,
For faith is the strength of the soul inside,
And lost is the man without it.
-E.Guest-
A Morning Hymn
Christ, whose glory fills the skies,
Christ, the true, the only Light,
Son of Righteousness, arise,
Triumph o'er the shades of night:
Dayspring from on high, be near;
Daystar, in my heart appear.
Dark and cheerless is the morn,
Unaccompanied by Thee;
Joyless is the day's return,
Till Thy mercy's beams I see;
Till thy inward light impart,
Glad my eyes, and warm my heart.
Visit then this soul of mine;
Pierce the gloom of sin and grief;
Fill me, Radiancy divine;
Scatter all my unbelief:
More and more Thyself display,
Shining to the perfect Day.
-C.Wesley-
The Prayers I Make
The prayers I make will then be sweet indeed,
If Thou the spirit give by which I pray:
My unassisted heart is barren clay,
Which of it's native self can nothing feed:
Of good and pious works Thou art the seed,
Which quickens only where Thou say'st it may;
Unless Thou show to us Thine own true way,
No man can find it: Father! Thou must lead.
Do Thou, then, breathe those thoughts into my mind
By which such virtue may in me be bred
That in Thy holy footsteps I may tread;
That fetters of my tongue do Thou unbind,
That I may have the power to sing of Thee,
And sound Thy praises everlastingly.
-W.Wordsworth-
Oh, not for more or longer days, dear Lord,
My prayer shall be-
But rather teach me how to use the days
Now given me.
I ask not more of pleasure or of joy
For this brief while-
But rather let me for the joys I have
Be glad and smile.
-B.Y.Williams-
Amen
I cannot say,
Beneath the pressure of life's care to-day,
I joy in these.
But I can say
That I had rather walked this way,
If Him it please.
I cannot feel
That all is well when dark'ning clouds conceal
The shining sun:
But then I know
God lives and loves; and say, since it is so,
"Thy will be done."
I cannot speak
In happy tones;the tear-drops on my cheek
Show I am sad;
But I can speak
Of grace to suffer with submission meek,
Until made glad.
I do not see
Why God should e'en permit some things to be,
When He is love.
But I can see
Though often dimly, through the mystery,
His hand above.
I may not try
To keep the hot tears back; but hush that sigh
"It might have been;"
And try to still
Each rising murmer, and to God's sweet will
Respond - AMEN.
-F.G. Browning-
He Leadeth Me
In pastures green? Not always;
sometimes He who knoweth
best, in kindness leadeth me
In weary way, where
heavy shadows be.
Out of the sunshine warm
and soft and bright, Out of
the sunshine into darkest
night; I oft would faint
with sorrow and affright.
Only for this-I know He
holds my hand, So whether
in the green or desert land.
I trust, although I may
not understand.
And by still waters? No, not
always so; Oftimes the
heavy tempests round me blow,
And o'er my soul the waves
and billows go.
But when the storm beats
loudest and I cry Aloud
for help, the Master standeth
by, And whispers to my
soul, "Lo, it is I."
Above the tempest wild I
hear Him say, "Beyond
this darkness lies the perfect
day, In every path of
thine I lead the way."
So, whether on the hilltops
high and fair I dwell, or
in the sunless valleys where
The shadows lie-what
matters? He is there.
And more than this; where'er the
pathway lead He gives to me no
helpless, broken reed, But His
own hand, sufficient for my need.
So where He leads me I can
safely go; And in the blest
hereafter I shall know why
in His wisdom He hath led
me so.
-H.H.Barry-
Life is a mixture of sunshine and rain,
Good things and bad things,pleasure and pain.
We can't have all sunshine,but it's certainly true
There is never a cloud the sun doesn't shine through.
So always remember that whatever betides you
The power of God is always beside you.
And if friends disappoint you and plans go astray
And nothing works out in just the right way,
And you feel you have failed in achieving your goal,
And that life wrongly placed you in an unfitting role,
Take heart and stand tall and think who you are,
For God is your Father and no one can bar
Or keep you from reaching your desired success,
Or witholding the joy that is yours to possess,
For with God on your side it matters not who
Is working to keep life's good things from you,
For you need nothing more than God's guidance and love
To insure you the things you're most worthy of.
So trust in His wisdom and follow His ways,
And be not concerned with the world's empty praise,
But seek first His Kingdom and you will possess
The world's greatest riches which is true happiness.
Gnosis
Thought is deeper than all speech,
Feeling deeper than all thought;
Souls to souls can never teach
What unto themselves was taught.
We are spirits clad in veils;
Man by man was never seen;
All our deep communing fails
To remove the shadowy screen.
Heart to heart was never known;
Mind with mind did never meet;
We are columns left alone,
Of a temple once complete.
Like the stars that gem the sky,
Far apart,though seeming near,
In our light we scattered lie;
All is thus but starlight here.
What is social company
But a babbling summer stream?
What our wise philosophy
But the glancing of a dream?
Only when the sun of love
Melts the scattered stars of thought;
Only when we live above
What the dim-eyed world hath taught;
Only when our souls are fed
By the Fount that gave them birth,
And by inspiration led,
Which they never drew from earth,
We like parted drops of rain
Swelling till they meet and run,
Shall be all absorbed again,
Melting,flowing into one.
-C.P.Cranch-
The Human Touch
'Tis the human touch in this world that counts,
The touch of your hand and mine,
Which means far more to the fainting heart
Than shelter and bread and wine;
For shelter is gone when the night is o'er,
And bread lasts only a day,
But the touch of the hand and the sound of the
voice
Sings on in the soul always.
-Spencer Michael Free-
The Path That Leads To Nowhere
There's a path that leads to Nowhere
In a meadow that I know,
Where an inland river rises
And the stream is still and slow;
There it wanders under willows
And beneath the silver green
Of the birches' silent shadows
Where the early violets lean.
Other pathways lead to Somewhere,
But the one I love so well
Has no end and no beninning-
Just the beauty of the dell,
Just the windflowers and the lilies
Yellow striped as adders tongue,
Seem to satisfy my pathway
As it winds their sweets among.
There I go to meet the Springtime,
When the meadow is aglow,
Marigolds among the marshes,
And the stream is still and slow;
There I find my fair oasis,
And with careful feet I tread
For the pathway leads to Nowhere,
And the blue is overhead.
All the ways that lead to Somewhere
Echo with the hurrying feet
Of the Struggling and the Striving,
But the way I find so sweet
Bids me dream and bids me linger-
Joy and Beauty are its goal;
On the path that leads to Nowhere
I have sometimes found my soul.
-Corinne Roosevelt Robinson-
The Boy Jesus
Once,measuring His height,
He stood
Beneath a cypress tree,
And,leaning back against the wood,
Stretched wide His arms for me;
Whereat a brooding mother-dove
Fled fluttering from her nest above.
At evening He loved to walk
Among the shadowy hills and talk
Of Bethlehem;
But if perchance there passed us by
The pascal lambs,He'd look
at them
In silence,long and tenderly;
And when again He'd try to speak,
I've seen the tears upon His cheek.
-John Bannister Tabb-
Were Not The Sinful Mary's Tears
Were not the sunful Mary's tears
An offering worthy Heaven,
When o'er the faults of former years
She wept-and was forgiven?
When bringing every balmy sweet
Her day of luxery stored,
She o'er her Saviour's hallowed feet
The precious perfume pour'd;
And wiped them with that golden hair
Where once the diamonds shone,
Though now those gems of grief were there
Which shine for God alone.
Were not those sweets,though
humbly shed,
That hair-those weeping eyes-
And the sunk heart that inly bled-
Heaven's noblest sacrifice?
Thou that has slept in errors sleep,
Oh! wouldst thou wake in heaven,
Like Mary kneel,like Mary weep,
"Love much," and be forgiven?
-Thomas Moore-
Though the mills of God grind slowly,
Yet they grind exceeding small;
Though with patience He stands waiting,
With exactness grinds He all.
-Longfellow-
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