Father in Heaven

Praise my God, Holy God, O my God, I love You God.
Father God, Almighty God, Perfect God, Invisible God,

Master, Maker, Rock, and Savior
Counselor, Teacher, Mediator
Prince of Peace, King of Kings, Resurrection, Dayspring
Bridegroom, Branch, Carpenter, The Great I Am
Alpha and Omega, Bishop of Souls, Anchor, Immanuel
Man of Sorrows, Son of man, Head of the Church, the Lamb
Amen, Rose of Sharon, Servant, Cornerstone,
Bright Morning Star, Way, Truth, and Life, Beloved, the world's Light
Faithful and True, Advocate, Shiloh, the Son whom the Lord Beget


Judge

The Night Before

How close would you walk to the edge of pleasure if you knew, that you wouldn't fall over and could always come back to, the promise of a life without hardship and pain, kind of like a life spent here without restraint, but not the same because pleasure can be in vice and sometimes that life seems so nice. And so, I ask once again, how much would you sin, if you knew that before He came you would assuredly be forgiven?

Harbor not, such evil plots, send them away from your thoughts, lean upon His wisdom as you ought. False tales tell of how you can be welcomed to hell, it's not about freedom to sin but how to live well. Live for your King who gave up everything to gain everything back and for us to retune, an infinite step down to cover an infinite wound.

Remember

Battered, whipped, and cut,

Struck, suffered blasphemy, but

He never gave up, and the day of His victory has come

He will have His justice and heal what sin stung

I saw Him die when I realized how much sin I had let in my life

I then saw Him rise when I repented and cried

Transformed, a new man in the Body of Christ

Flesh was torn for our scorn,

A forlorn people, ripped apart in the storm,

Days pass as we continue to mourn,

Useless the journey seems, always revoking what’s sworn

Maybe we’ve been misinformed,

Grabbed the wrong horns,

All I know is the promise of a new life with a new morn’.

Firm Foundations

What happened to living The Way that Jesus lived? What happened to being a follower of Christ and a doer as He did?

The pillars of spiritual life which have fallen by the wayside are as follows:

1. Reading the Word of God (Bible) daily and with fervor (it's your only weapon against the enemy, learn to wield it well - Jesus is the Word and Jesus is the Victor, the armor He's given you is of Himself as well - this is a mystery)

2. Praying without ceasing both with understanding and in the spirit (spiritual language/tongues) - the prayer, in order to be effective must come from a righteous person, and also the prayers are to be prayer based on Scripture, that is, what you ask for you don't receive because it isn't in the Father's will, and you don't receive because you don't ask (father and son - stone, bread) - how much greater does your heavenly Father love you (and all good things come from Him)

3. Continual fellowship with other believers - for prayer, worship, confession, fasting corporately, healing, teaching, helping, etc... (we are the Body, don't work alone because Christ didn't work alone; he brought many in as participants and so participate with one another in seeking the Lord's face, investing your gifts for the blessing of the Body and to be a blessing for all of mankind - we glorify God as being in His likeness, reflecting Him)

4. Discipleship with a Christian mentor - someone of the same sex, preferably 15-20 years older who is really following the Lord with their all (deacon, elder, pastor...) Would God have had Paul write so many letters to the churches if He hadn't meant for the process of discipleship to perpetuate? Or are all to learn solely from the Lord alone? Both are right, but God uses others to teach us and direct and guide us. The Holy Spirit is our Wonderful Counselor, and he might counsel us to be in communion with our Christian brother or sister who He also counsels that the Body might be unified and benefit one another. Paul wrote two letters (that we know of) to Timothy, inspired by the God, for His spiritual growth and encouragement in walking in spirit and in truth. Surely if Timothy needs encouragement and a mentor, then we do as well. This is not to say man teaches us, for God alone can teach us His Word, but it is the Holy Spirit in others by which we are taught.

Become as a child who is like a sponge seeking the truth from our spiritual parents. Ask God to refine what you are taught that you may be fruitful with such seed planted in your heart.



"You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory." - Psalm 73:24

"In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling." - Exodus 15:13

"It is the spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding." - Job 32:8-9

"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you." - Psalm 32:8

"The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you." - John 14:26

God bless
DMS

P.S. I hope all the reads and no comments means that you find this accurate... :)

The week at a glance

This will be a week of turning in papers and taking exams for many college students. If we could keep everyone in our prayers - as there will be stress and anxiety - for guidance and that by casting our cares upon the Lord we can study hard, write well, and not lose focus on the truly important things in life.

Check out what Aristotle wrote in Book 9 of his Nicomachean Ethics

"So goodwill seems to be a beginning of friendship, in the same way the pleasure of seeing is the beginning of falling in love, for no one falls in love without first being pleased by someone's looks, but someone who delights in those looks is not any the more in love, except when he yearns for the absent person and longs for that person's presence."

Think about the spiritual implications of this...and how we often look to the gifts rather than the Giver of those gifts.

More to come....

God bless,
DMS

Poetry’s Cry

Pardon my use of the word "whore" if it offends you, but part of the intent behind using this word rather than others deals with how God relates to the Church.

Two-twenty rolls around and I’m still confusion-bound,
Mind - holding facts like a fist of sand,
Poetry - barren and weak like end rhymes’ slant,
Sound creativity used to flow with my words hand-in-hand.
But good ideas slip away
And my eyes glaze as my mind begins to fade,
Deadline coming quickly, in fact, it’s today.
If only I knew what to say, success – an illusion’s hound.

There’s much to write, but less is more.
Most material is useless, making writing a chore.
When writing is not for love, it becomes the poet’s whore.
Stop whoring my passion; true poetry’s roar.

If you’re silent on the subject, let down the pen and read.
Go to bed, save the words, that’s what poetry needs.

a,b,b',b,c,c',c,a, d,d,d,d, e,e'