A Christmas poem that I wrote in 2001

It was on a starlit night,
Jesus came so long ago.
Born of the virgin Mary,
Angels proclaimed it was so!

Was it in a grand palace
The King of Kings was born?
No, 'twas in a lowly stable
With straw and hay to adorn.

The heavens alit with glory
As angels filled the sky,
Bringing the news to shepherds
Who were in a field nearby.

May we, this Christmas season,
Approach the manger once more,
Telling others of God's love
That for them is in store.

Two weeks ago tonight something changed in my life...I sent an e-mail to my pastor saying that I felt like I was burnt out...He gave me Psalm 33 to read. Well, I read it and things began to change. I read it that night in The Message. I went back until I got to Psalm 31:23 and I started there. I read all the way through to the end of chapter 33. I love the way The Message puts it; it's so expressive. The first few verses of chapter 32 was exactly how I feeling at that time..."When I kept it all inside, my bones turned to powder, my words became daylong groans. The pressure never let up; all the juices of my life dried up." (vss 3,4) I have always had the tendency to keep everything bottled up inside of me. Well, sometimes the dam has to burst and and let it out. I read and cried and prayed. I did what the next verse says, "Then I let it all out, I said,'I'll make a clean breast of my failures to God.' (vs 5) I prayed and cried before the Lord. It was so refreshing!! Over the next few days the next verse came true for me. "...the pressure was gone-my guilt dissolved, my sin disappeared."

(vs 6) The pressure that I felt for months - maybe even years - disappeared. I felt free!Verses 1 & 2 say to "Count yourself lucky" - well, I don't believe in luck; but I count myself blessed! As verse one states I "got a fresh start, (my) slate's wiped clean....God holds nothing against (me)." I am trying to to not hold anything back from him either; anyway, it's silly trying to, isn't it. He knows everything about you anyway!

Verse 7 says, "God's my island hideaway, keeps danger far from the shore, throws garlands of hosannas around my neck." Whenever I need to "get away"; I go to my island hideaway - God - and I get refreshed there!!

I love verses 8-10. Verse 9 says "Don't be ornery like a horse or mule that needs bit and bridle to stay on track." I'm not ornery, am I? Most humans are! We do need a bit and bridle to stay on track - God's Word is that for me. As long as I stay in the Word, I stay on track, but the minute I take the bit out of my mouth and don't read the Word, I get off track - EVERY TIME! You'd think I would learn!
"God-defiers are always in trouble; God-affirmers find themselves loved every time they turn around". (vs 10) Do you want to be always in trouble or always loved?

And then there's chapter 33 - it's so poetic! But I will go to the last two verses.
"Watch this: God's eye is on those who respect him, the ones who are looking for his love. He's ready to come to their rescue in bad times; in lean times he keeps body and soul together. We're depending on GOD; he's everything we need. What's more, our hearts brim with joy since we've taken for our own his holy name. Love us, God with all you've got - that's what we're counting on." Isn't that beautiful!! I read this every day now; but I make it my own; I put "my" and "I" in it instead.

I'll close with the last two verses of chapter 31. "Love God, all you saints; God takes care of all who stay close to him, But he pays back in full those arrogant enough to go it alone." Which one are you?
"BE BRAVE. BE STRONG. DON'T GIVE UP. EXPECT GOD TO GET HERE SOON"

He's here now. What are we going to do about it?

Have you ever...

Have you ever sat by the ocean's front...
On a warm summer's evening...
By a campfire and watched...
Watched the sun as it sinks...
Sinks farther out of sight
Making itself almost seem
A part of the land...
It's so beautiful!!
Just look...
Look at the sky
Isn't it beautiful?
The redness of it...
It looks as if the whole universe
Is one g-r-e-a-t b-i-g flame...
A big fire!
Look at the ocean
The reflection the sun has on it
It's such a beautiful sight!
Let's wait...
Wait until the moon is up
And all the stars are out.
There...
The moon is coming...
Coming up over the mountain.
The water is so calm
And the lights...
The lights from the town across the harbour
Are shining...
Shining across the harbour
And in the midst of these lights
Is a reflection...
The reflection of the moon shining...
Shining right over this vast body of water
Making itself a part of the land.
Look...
The stars are all out.

Every time I look...
Look into the heavens
I marvel at this great sight
I just sit and look
It is just so beautiful
Our minds can not comprehend it...
And yet...
Yet there are those who can look...
Look at this wonder
And say that
"There is no God".
How can they say it
When there is so much beauty?
If there is no God
Then where did this beauty come from?

Written by: Rosemary Lank (Netznik) January 1982

Rainbows

I was just reading Genesis 9; where God promised to never destroy the eath by flood again. In verses 14 & 15 it says, "Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life." It dawned on me as I was reading that this morning, that God still remembers that covenant every time we see a rainbow today. That is awesome! So, the next time you see a rainbow, instead of just saying "That is beautiful", think about the reason we have rainbows and praise God right there!

The Dash

Check out this movie with a poem at the following address:
http://www.dashpoemmovie.com/

thanx.

Have you ever wanted to give up?

Have you ever wanted to give up? I have. Think about the two woman - the two Mary's - that went to the tomb early on that first Easter Sunday morning. Why did they go? Was it hope - hope that they would see Jesus alive. No. They didn't have that hope. They didn't believe He was alive; if they had, they wouldn't have brought the oils to put on His dead body. Why did they go? It was out of duty - devotion. After all, what hope could a dead man give? None.

Are there times in your life when you are required to give something without getting anything in return? Of course there are. That's what these two women thought they were doing - putting oils on a dead body, not expecting to get anything in return.

What if they had given up? What if they decided to turn back when they had gone part way? What if they had asked. "What's the use?" What if they had said, "We're tired of being the only ones who care. Let His disciples do this."

What would they have missed if they had given up? They would have missed seeing the angel. They would have missed seeing the empty tomb. They would have missed seeing Jesus.

What will you miss if you give up? That new job you have been trying to get. Seeing the salvation of a loved one or friend. The return of a prodigal son or daughter.

In our case: the house is ours!

The lesson. DON'T GIVE UP!! DON'T QUIT! God still answers prayers. He was watching and listening to the two Mary's. He is watching and listening to you, too.

Seeing others as God sees them

What if we saw others the way God sees them?

What would the world be like?

How did Jesus see people when He was here on earth?

"Like sheep without a shepherd"

"He had compassion on them"

Do we have compassion on people?

Real compassion?

The kind that Jesus had?

If we had compassion on people,

if we saw them as God does,

what would our relationships be like?

If everyone lived like that,

what would our world be like?

How do you see yourself?

When you look in the mirror tomorrow morning, ask yourself "How do I see myself?" Bed-head - yeah, wrinkled PJ's - yeah, puffy eyes - yeah,no make-up, ew -yeah, perfection - probably not, holiness - no.

How does God see you? Honesty - yes! You are seeing who God sees all the time and loves all the time - you - just you!Unkempt you! He sees you as you really are and loves you anyway.

Do you love who you see in the mirror? God does.

When you look in the mirror tomorrow morning, instead of thinking "Ew, what a mess", say, "I am seeing what God sees - a masterpiece - flawless - a miracle - His child - perfection.

See if thinking this way changes your day and the way you see yourself.