1-29-16 Sufficient

⁸ For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. ⁹ And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

2 Corinthians 12:8-9 KJV

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Infirmities and troubles will abound,

Of this the mortal man can be assured,

And though we beg the Lord we not be bound,

Sometimes these weaknesses must be endured.

The grace of God is all you ever need,

For here sufficient lies love’s very root:

Christ sacrificed His perfect life and freed

You from both death and hell without dispute.

His strength’s made perfect in your weakness now,

For how could you survive without His grace?

Through these infirmities the Lord shows how

He manifests the wealth of His embrace.

So glory in your frailty and your faults.

The pow’r of Christ’s made known through life’s assaults.

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Remember: God’s awesome grace is enough so that you may depend on Him completely.

1-4-16 Blessed is the Man

Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

Psalm 1:1 KJV

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How blessed is the man that walks with God,

Who listens to His counsel night and day,

For those that don’t are living a facade,

Whose best advice no more than a cliché.

How blessed is the man that stands with Christ,

Who keeps the Lord’s commandments out of love,

For those that don’t the world has so enticed,

Whose fate is bound in darkness and thereof.

How blessed is the man that kneels in prayer,

Whose faith is in the Lord so full of grace,

For those that don’t are sitting in despair,

Whose scorn and hate are all they can embrace.

Keep focused on the Word in thought and deed.

He’ll guide you through this place of sin and need.

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REMEMBER: When you walk in the Light of Christ you will not stumble.

11-6-15 All is Vanity

Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity.

Ecclesiastes 12:8 KJV

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Don’t get caught up in all this world displays;

You’ll soon forget the reason you are here.

Most everyone you know is in a daze

Believing these illusions are sincere.

The moment you are born the show begins,

And all the lights and sounds will mesmerize;

You’re told the more you have the more you win,

And told the more you know will make you wise.

It’s vanity; all this is meaningless,

For Jesus is the only thing that counts.

He’ll guide your way around this awful mess;

There’s nothing in this world He can’t surmount.

This place is not your home – you’re heaven bound!

Now spread the gospel – help the lost be found!

11-2-15 The Spirit of the Lord

The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound

Isaiah 61:1 KJV

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The Spirit of the Lord is with you now,

The same upon Isaiah and in Christ;

When you called Jesus Savior to avow

The Holy Ghost became within you spliced.

The Comforter that Jesus spoke about,

The power that brought Him back from the dead

Can work through you, of that there is no doubt,

To preach the gospel to the meek ahead.

The Holy Ghost can bind a broken heart,

Bring liberty to captives bound in sin.

Obedience to Jesus sets apart,

And love will let the miracles begin.

Be clear, it isn’t you that does these things;

The Spirit of the Lord the Savior brings.

8-17-15 Justice

¹⁹ Fret not thyself because of evil men,

neither be thou envious at the wicked;

²⁰ For there shall be no reward to the evil man;

the candle of the wicked shall be put out.

Proverbs 24:19-20 KJV

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These days the wicked dance and strut around

As if they own the theater and the stage,

And evil men around the world are bound

To be so honored for their public rage.

Corruption is the norm; they shout amen

With flashy golden teeth and endless cash.

Fret not yourself because of evil men:

The day is coming soon their teeth shall gnash.

The wicked will not live to see the Son,

When angels fill the sky with righteous swords,

So don’t be envious of all this fun;

I tell you they will get their just rewards.

The candle of the wicked will be snuffed;

When darkness settles in they’ll be rebuffed.

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sonnet #439

7-27-15 Dumb

³² As they went out, behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil.

³³ And when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake: and the multitudes marvelled, saying, It was never so seen in Israel.

Matthew 9:32-33 KJV

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The Devil prowls the earth with rancid breath,

Befouling souls with lies and hate and pride;

His simple goal: to lure us all to death,

To bring us down with him and there abide.

 

When Satan wraps his talons round our throat,

He robs us of our hope and leaves us dumb.

But there is One of whom the prophets wrote,

Who casts all demons out and leaves them mum.

 

When we have faith in Jesus, we reach out

And put our hand in His, then with that touch,

Our lives are changed forever with a shout!

Our tongues are then set free to praise Him much.

 

If you can’t say you’re saved and glory bound,

You’ll find your voice in Christ a loving sound.

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sonnet #418

7-6-15 On Obedience

⁵¹ And, behold, one of them which were with Jesus stretched out his hand, and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest’s, and smote off his ear.

⁵² Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.

⁵³ Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?

Matthew 26:51-53 KJV

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The sacrificial Lamb, obedient,

Stood ready to be given up for you,

Could call for legioned angels to be sent

To save Him from the death that would ensue.

But no, this was not time to wield a sword;

The days of ‘eye for eye’ had passed away.

Christ came to yield His life, our sovereign Lord;

The pure unspotted Lamb would have His day.

The sins of all the world would soon be borne

Upon the shoulders of the Lamb of God,

Then beaten, bloody, His whole body torn

Was bound for victory with love to laud.

The sword was put away as so much dross

And in its stead was glory on the cross.

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sonnet #407

6-27-15 Hypocrisy

²⁷ Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.

²⁸ Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

Matthew 23:27-28 KJV

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Hypocrisy is practiced more than not,

And chances are you practice every day,

Pretending you are wise and know a lot

When really you’re an ass that loves to bray.

That suit you wear on Sunday, crisp and clean,

Is like a coat of paint on rust and rot.

That Bible in your hand on Sunday seen

Back home is tucked away behind your pot.

Remember, were it not for God’s good Grace,

You would be bound for Hell for all you’ve done.

Get humble now and fall upon your face;

Repent and follow Christ, the perfect one.

If you don’t think you are a hypocrite,

You’re worse along than you care to admit.

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sonnet #400

5-29-15 Serve

And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant

Matthew 20:27 KJV

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If you would be a servant of the Lord,

Then be a servant now to all you meet,

But don’t serve others for some great reward;

Expecting something back just spells defeat.

The greatest of you thinks that they’re the least

And does not know that they are great at all.

You will not find them sitting at the feast;

You’ll find them washing dishes down the hall.

Give up your vain ambitions now, my friend,

For Hell would be the thing that you deserve.

There’s feet to be washed now until the end,

So roll your sleeves, get on your knees and serve.

The chief among you, let him give the most.

The more he gives the less he’s bound to boast.

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sonnet #373

11-22-14 Slave to Sin

If you are not a Christ-born child of God,

There’s nowhere left to go, no one to help,

For sin has got you bound and scarred and flawed,

A hopeless slave in debt, the devil’s whelp.

No matter how you try to do just good,

The chains of sin are fast around your neck,

But freedom’s found between three nails and wood:

The blood of Jesus saves you from sin’s beck.

Just give your life to Christ, the choice is yours,

And let the Holy Spirit show the way,

And if you fall, repent, God’s mercy soars;

You now belong to Christ, in him you pray.

When Jesus died for you he took your sin,

So live for him, my brother, now begin!

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Jesus answered them,

Verily, verily, I say unto you,

Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.

John 8:34 KJV