The Simple Truth
March 29, 2015
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There’s a simple truth
Hidden behind all the noise
We are born Beloved
This truth will always get lost
Because of the failure of man
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How to recover
That is my biggest question
I found the process
There are no easy answers
I now know where to begin
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Wounded souls cry out
The sick know that they need help
They are the ones who can hear
The desperate door
The one I avoided the most
Is the one that I walked through
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There are two commands
Love God, love one another
The secret is here
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We say we love God
I think we really mean it
There are two problems with this
The first: “Who is God?”
Second: “Who is my neighbor?”
Love them like you love yourself
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You cannot love God
If you do not love yourself
The place to begin
You must learn to love yourself
When all others forsake you
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There’s greatness in you
You are made in God’s image
You are wonderfully made
Beloved and cherished
You are larger than your pain
I learned this from my Teacher
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Others have forsaken me
My parents and friends left me
Talents, health, gifts failed me
That’s when love came
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Over the years of listening to thousands of stories of people searching for meaningful relationships, I found this one thing to be true. Until a person decides to accept their own greatness in the midst of the massive failure they feel from their own life and from how significant others have failed them, they will stay trapped in the darkness of desperation. There is a fire in the human soul that at some point will rise up and fight. It is my job, once a person decides to fight, to give those I meet the life tools I have discovered to build a “life that loves to happen no matter what happens.” History is full of lives that made this decision to live by walking through the doorway of desperation. The Master Truth I know to be true regardless of circumstances is this. “You are Beloved.”
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Proverbs 29:11; Psalms 59:17; 89:15; 89:26; 89:30-33
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http://www.coachinglifematters.com
The Voice of the Children
March 19, 2015
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I cannot be far
From the world of suffering
My eyes are open
I can’t bear the pain alone
Can I believe that You are near
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My mind is trained to listen
To the voices that speak truth
I see faces of children
Abandoned and lost
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I’ll not sit silent
Show me what to do today
How can I respond
Take up a timely action
Give and make a difference
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We must do it together
Join hands as did the children
Link hands all around the world
Make love real today
Declare love larger than death
Hear the voice of the children
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Bring your people together
Let’s stand with the voice of love
Let the little children come
There’s safety with Him
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Reflections today after reading Psalm 19, 49, 79, 109 and 139; Proverbs 19. God declares His presence and love. Let us join Him today.
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Read Story on March 4, 2015 – Your Story Matters
Contact: http://www.frrme.org
Arabs-Jews-Christians Unite in Response to Terror
March 4, 2015
Springs of Hope – A global Forum creating a new narrative for the Voice of Victims of Terrorism being held in Jerusalem March 1-4.
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A grandfather stood before the ISIS group and was given the option of denying his faith or watching his grandchildren be slaughtered in front of him. He denied his faith and called his minister, Andrew White, to confess. “Will God forgive me?” This was his question. When the terrorist approached the children for them to deny their faith in Jesus or else die, they joined hands and said, “We cannot deny our Jesus. We love him.” Then, they each were killed.
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This is the third day of the conference on Terror I am attending in Jerusalem. The sad reality is that we are sitting within the beginning of a movement that is coming to fruition. A group of people are intentionally killing men, women and children who do not agree with them. It is happening here before our very eyes.; just as the Holocaust happened. These are real people in real time. And, it demands a response from me, from us.
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I was born during the Holocaust in 1942. Here, I am meeting with the children of people who were born during this horrendous time or immediately thereafter. Their parents survived and lived with the trauma of PTSD. And the impact afflicted on them as the children of Holocaust victims is and was horrendous. I met Peter (not his name) whose parents met in Auschwitz and married afterward. They all suffered and continue to suffer. I do not know what I am going to do, but I am going to do something.
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What I am witnessing is that there are refugee camps with children who have had no food for a month. We can begin by getting them food. My new friend, Andrew White, who is the Anglican Vicar of Bagdad told the story of a little boy who heard him speak to his school. After school the boy brought him a dollar to help the children. He shared this with many people who want the children to be fed and asked them to began sending their dollars. If you are interested in joining me, in giving this Anglican Vicar a dollar for the children, the address of where to send your donation is:
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Address: Go to website www.frrme.org: To make a donation
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You may also go online to discover information regarding Andrew, his remarkable life and the books he has written. He can no longer be in Bagdad or they will kill him. Although he remains in contact with those who are caring for one another and those in the refuge camps. He is truly on the front-line of this tragedy. His bodyguard was standing beside him as I talked with him. Andrew is the real deal, a man that can be trusted, and any and all monies donated will make it to the children. This I can assure you.
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We cannot sit by and do nothing. Please join me in praying for these people and what you can do. I can give a dollar and so can you. This, at least, will be an immediate start.
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If you will, join me in sending dollars for food and care for those driven out of their homes and land and will likely never return. I will not stand by and do nothing. It is something we can do now. This is just the beginning.
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Five Decisions for Life
February 22, 2015
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I need the tools
The ones that open the mind
To inexpressible joy
There’s a way to find peace
That passes understanding
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Five decisions must be made
First a decision to live
Then don’t make friends with your pain
Are two essentials
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Now you are ready
Take Responsibility
Stop blaming others and self
This is the big one
There’s no growth till this happens
Life begins with your beliefs
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The past is a gift
You know what you don’t want
Or you know what you do want
Get a clear vision
Of who you are and what you want
Then you will know the questions
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This is the big one
Decide you are worth fighting for
Yes, you are worth it
Your value is in being
You must learn to love yourself
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So there are five gifts you must give yourself
1) Decide to Live
2) Decide to Not Make Friends with Your Pain
3) Decide to Take Responsibility
4) Decide to Get a Clear Vision
5) Decide You Are Worth Fighting For
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All the best on your journey.
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For more information go to http://www.coachinglifematters.com.
The Gentle Way of Love
February 18, 2015
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Light in the darkness
Peace in the midst of the storm
Joy larger than circumstance
Hope impossible
For those who believe in love
Death will have no hold on us
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Love demonstrated
A life well lived speaks loudest
I have decided
Today I will choose to trust
My heart, soul and mind in HIm
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I will name the enemy
The lie handed down to me
The empty dark way
My mother and father lived
And lost what really mattered
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You are who they lost
Without love at the center
Everything breaks down
Religion; psycho-babble
Are built on the empty way
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Love’s the foundation
Peace is the gift that’s given
Work of the Spirit
Modeled in one man who loved
Courageous, gentle and kind
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You’re loved by God
The master truth of God comes
To those seeking truth
Who have the courage to stand
Who believe they are worth it
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After winter spring will come
After death you will be raised
One came to overcome death
And give life to all
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Darkness called me to seek light
Pain called me to seek healing
Through failure came forgiveness
Love came through a man
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David, King of Israel stated: “Give us aid against the enemy, for the help of man is worthless. With God we will gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies.” Psalm 108:12
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“Delta Blues From Darkness to LIght” is available at Amazon/Kindle for $0.99 cents.
http://www.coachinglifematters.com/delta-blues.html
A Secret Hope
February 17, 2015
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I can’t live off yesterday
The past can condemn my soul
My failures can overwhelm
I need a fresh start
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Depression sets in
I cry out in my despair
My soul languishes
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Although the good memories
Are there to console my soul
The judgment of my heart is strong
I look for relief
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A drink, a song or a good joke
Can distract me from the pain
Lying down I remember
The noise of judgment
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I arise to fill my life
With something to stop the noise
These things only medicate
They’re temporary
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My search landed in the Psalms
With a King who failed his God
His family and his friends
He despaired for life
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He discovered the secret
The unfailing love of God
Who forgives all those who come
Desperate for hope
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The reflections were born out of meditation in response to Psalm 17, 47, 77, 107 and 127. If any of you would like to hear an audio reading of some of these Psalms, then message me your cell phone number and I will send it to you if you have a phone that receives audio. All the best!
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A Focused Love
February 13, 2015
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Each day brings trouble
Tragedy is around us
Suffering overwhelms us
Where can we find peace
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My soul languishes
Fear and anxiety rule
Where can I find rest
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I stand amazed when love comes
Light springs up in the darkness
Hope born in desperation
Our God hears our cry
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Looking back I see
When I trusted God He came
Lifted the burden
Opened my eyes to see love
My greatest work is “Believe”
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I’ll hope against hope
I’ve been given a reason
I’ll focus and understand
God became a man
Human in every way
He chose to suffer the pain
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A personal gift
An intimate love given
Each person is known
Beloved, seen, heard and treasured
This is the heart of God known
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Death cannot destroy
Joy sits above circumstance
The presence of love
In the life of everyone
Can be seen by looking back
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Open our eyes, Lord
To see things that matter
Let gentleness rule
The way that we treat ourselves
And the way we treat others
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Your unfailing love
Was demonstrated so well
In the life of your Son
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No matter what the trouble I may face each day, I get to choose who sits at the center of my soul. With all the noise of the human tragedy around me my heart is drawn to one voice. It is the voice of love I will focus on today. That love is bigger than my circumstance. It is bigger than death. That love is worth dying for. That love will enhance every person I meet today. This love guarantees permanent, constant and continual growth. It is testable! I could be right! These reflections come out of meditating on the Psalms. All the best!
Can I Believe Your Delight
February 2, 2015
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Can I believe you
That you take delight in me
It is so foreign
To the way I think of you
The God of the Universe
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The tragedies of this world
Overwhelming suffering
Injustice screaming so loud
Where can I find you
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The greatest surprise
When I focused on one man
One who claimed to be with you
Says he looks like you
Maker of the Universe
Calls himself the Son of Man
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Filled with compassion
Touched the woman at the well
Offered her living water
Surprised with kindness
He knew her story so well
It changed the way she saw God
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A song of hope comes
The pinhole of light comes through
I feel the tension
I choose to take the long view
His promises restore me
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You light up my mind
When I focus on your love
Your presence comforts my soul
Your word restores me
Though circumstances fail
My feelings deny your care
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You delight in me
I choose to trust in your words
You delight in me
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Meditation on the Psalms each morning opens me up to a way to process the reality of life. The ups and downs of human behavior, my own and others is exposed. God enters in the noise of my soul and gives me a focus. In desperation I cry out and God comes in the stillness to comfort the human heart and gives a certain hope. I am surprised by His delight. Psalm 2, 32, 62, 92 and 122 give the long view.
He Counts Your Tears
January 26, 2015
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When I am afraid
I will trust in you, O God
It’s your words I trust
How can mortal man hurt me
In God I trust; I will not fear
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Record my lament
You keep record of my tears
You even count them
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You always get the blame God
For the suffering and the pain
It is man’s abuse of man
Where are you, “O man?”
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In God I will trust
He’s the one with compassion
I see the heart of man hurt
Abuse and deceive
Give God the blame for lying
And not look in the mirror
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You have delivered my soul
Met me in desperation
Given your presence of love
In stillness I find
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I know the story
How God’s love became a man
He offered “abundant life”
I was skeptical
I looked closely at the man
A man of sorrows and grief
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He met the lonely
The broken and abandoned
Was gentle and kind
Gave hope to the hopeless ones
I know I was one of them
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I wept when I saw
The way he lived and he died
His personal touch
Reaches the most broken ones
He counts each person “Beloved”
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I once was desperate. Now I meet with desperate people. I’m desperate again. This time I bring hope to desperate people. Every human being is precious and needs to know they count. I discovered a God who not only counts the tears but sees the person and is pursuing each one. They don’t need my answers but need someone who is present listening and giving what I can. Can God really be that close? Psalms 26, 56, 86, 116 and 146 opened a window to an awareness of someone who is there with love and understanding.
Anguish Healed
January 25, 2015
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Overwhelmed with anguish
The pain and loss is so great
Does anyone understand
The devastation
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No friends to comfort
Loses of my dear love ones
Where is God who cares
Why is this happening now
Can anyone answer me
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The cry in the human soul
There are no easy answers
God promises to confide
In those who fear Him
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I cannot fathom
A God who lets this happen
Suffering and grief
What is it I am missing
Do I really want to know
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Truth hurts and it heals
The tragedy in my soul
Comes down to two things
I must face the truth about me
I must face the truth about God
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“Fear” does not mean “Be afraid”
It means I must face greatness
Of the love of God revealed
To my shattered soul
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The consequences
Of the choices I have made
I am destitute
The poverty in my soul
Is hidden from all to see
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The confusion inside me
With the unanswered questions
Were cleared up when I focused
On the love of God
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He promised to never leave
To meet me in my anguish
To forgive me of my wrongs
To renew and restore
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I will trust in Him
Gives victory over death
Carries my burdens
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Insight only comes
After one chooses to trust
The Giver of life
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May you be blessed by the Lord
Maker of heaven and earth
One who understands your need
Gave all to forgive
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These reflections will be enhanced by reading Psalm 25, 55, 85, 115 and 145. Sarah Young, an amazing therapist and teacher, offers insight to the anguished soul in her book “Jesus Calling.”
The Father’s Touch
January 24, 2015
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What do I yearn for
Where does my heart go when still
I will seek your face
When you appear I’ll see your face
I have set my heart on you
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My weaknesses still cry out
The sadness-es all around
So many lost in nothing
My inner soul weeps
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The little sparrow
Finds a place to rest and sleep
God knows what is happening
I’ll praise His greatness
Enter into communion
With my Father who loves me
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You’re my sun and shield
Light to find my way today
Protection from enemies
Angels to attend
To all those who will trust you
Who seek you with all their heart
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Your power’s displayed
You do the impossible
When you are trusted
You surprise with your answer
Light comes, love’s demonstrated
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Trust takes away fear
Anxieties are dispelled
I’m surprised by joy
Your living presence reveals
A Father in touch with you
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There is no trouble
That he does not understand
And promises to take action
Of all the voices
I can choose who I will trust
A gift from the Father’s touch
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I have fallen many times
Failed to trust, done it my way
Suffered the consequences
Felt desperation
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I arise with His Spirit
Renewed by Eternal Love
Accepted, forgiveness given
Live today in peace
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Reflections after reading Psalm 24, 54, 84, 114 and Proverbs 24. Sarah Young speaks to the promises in the pain in her book “Jesus Calling.”
I Believe
January 21, 2015
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“I believe in
Christ,
like I believe
the
sun
not because
I can see it,
but by it
I can see
everything”
C. S. Lewis
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Understanding leads to life
Knowledge will help get you there
Seeking with all of your heart
Will let the light come
Proverbs 21:16
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I know what to seek
It is righteousness and love
It leads to prosperity
With life and honor
Relationships will flourish
Real friendships are developed
Proverbs 21:21
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The word righteousness is not self-righteousness but it is the commitment to the best interest of the other person and justice for all.The book of Proverbs has fathered me giving counsel and insight into love, money, sex and power.
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Victory will come
Accessing a private time
Wisdom will be discovered
In stillness I come
Waiting with expectation
For the healing light of love
Proverbs 21:31
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Music In My Soul
January 20, 2015
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There is music in my soul
I’ve trained to practice basics
My body is the instrument
My soul holds the strings
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When the strings get tight
And stress gets unbearable
A surprising sound
When I surrender my soul
Music flows that brings comfort
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I draw near to God
A daily practice I’ve found
When I feel good or feel bad
He always comes near
That is the promise he made
One I choose to trust today
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The winds on the sea
Can toss the soul all about
The storm and the rain bring grief
I learned this one thing
When I’ve set my sail to seek
The storms have become a gift
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This mystery comes
To all and not just a few
Who choose to seek love
To be defined by what’s true
To align the soul with joy
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Freedom is the fruit
Peace passes understanding
My mind and heart are captured
Knowledge will illuminate
Hope is born in the darkness
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I interviewed a young musician years ago and asked him how he played the instrument so well. He said, “My coach is a concert violinist. Every day she pulls out her instrument and practices the basics until she gets the sound out of the instrument she wants. I do the same.” My instrument is my body. My soul holds the strings. I found the coach of life eager to train me to be loved and love. Psalm 20 holds promises I have found to be true. The music in the Psalms is what I train to practice. All the best!
Invitation
January 18, 2015
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An Invitation
A way to live that makes sense
Thoughts to consider
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A way to live that brings peace
A way to live that brings hope
A way to live that brings joy
The freedom to love
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That’s what I looked for
As a child what I longed for
As a man I came searching
Found the great surprise
My God was looking for me
Gives inexpressible love
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Yes, it’s experiential
The door way is on the bottom
In the brokenness He comes
Seeking to comfort
In my personal despair
He gives the greatest blessing
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Comfort in the loss
Forgiveness in betrayal
Compassion and love
For me and for the others
The massive failure we feel
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Those who betrayed me
And for the ones I betrayed
Inexpressible
Love given to each of us
With gentleness and mercy
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Knowledge is what I needed
Hidden information came
Brought certainty to this love
My mind was captured
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I chose to believe
My heart leaped with the wonder
Incomprehensible love
Was revealed through one
Who chose to be one of us
And offer “abundant life”
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This love is hidden
Ages and generations
Have discovered this
God is closer than your blood
He is the air that you breathe
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God’s my friend, indeed
I come each morning seeking
To stay close to him
Find healing in His counsel
He reminds me who I am
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Chosen and Beloved
Favored and given his peace
Empowered by His Spirit
To see and bring hope
To proclaim with compassion
His personal love for all
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It’s time to come out
Reveal everlasting love
God loves you personally
Not talk but action
Each day you can meet with Him
Receive His love and give it
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These words are not an invitation “to church” or “religion.” These are words born out of a quest I began fifty-four years ago. God is real! God is present! And He loves you! In silence I began this quest seeking to know if this love was real. I found these words “abundant life.” I found these words not only true but beyond my imagination. God is my friend. God is your friend! We can meet with Him daily and interact on the deepest soul level. I always honor my questions. He has always kept His promises.
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Psalm 18 gives language to this love.
Your Story Matters 