2-5-16 Built on Sand

²⁶ And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: ²⁷ And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

Matthew 7: 26-27 KJV

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How many of us like a foolish man

Who listens to the Word and nods his head,

But keeps instead his own distorted plan

And builds his house without foundation bed.

Just knowing Christ’s commands is not enough;

He needs to be within our hands and feet.

A fancy car without four tires rides rough;

A house built on the sand the floods defeat.

If Jesus is your Lord, then serve Him well;

A servant is no good laid up in bed.

When trouble comes all you can do is yell.

The storms of life will tear your house to shreds.

A tree with meager roots is doomed to fall;

The first time winds descend the tree will sprawl.

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REMEMBER: A strong foundation is built by exercising the will of Christ.

1-22-16 Consider All God’s Done For You

Only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.

1 Samuel 12:24 KJV

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Consider all that God has done for you!

With His eternal grace you’re given breath;

The joy of love that comes to you anew.

He gave His Son so you through Him’s no death.

So serve the Lord in truth with all your heart!

Submit your will to Him new every day;

Be humble in your duties from the start.

Remember He is all you need today.

With great affection only fear the Lord!

Now love Him as a child will love her Dad;

Simplistic awe and worship in accord,

In reverential yearning pure and glad.

Consider all God’s done with gratitude.

Give everything you do this attitude.

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REMEMBER: He is all you need today.

12-30-15 The Party Scene

And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts: but they regard not the work of the LORD, neither consider the operation of his hands.

Isaiah 5:12 KJV

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It seems as if the party scene is cool:

The thumping bass is felt down in your bones,

But if you don’t go with them you’re a fool;

Your name won’t be a contact on their phones.

The wings and pizza make up quite a feast;

The beer flows freely, so do all the drugs,

But they don’t know the Lord, they serve the Beast;

You mention Jesus, all you get are shrugs.

Those partyers are lost unless they yield

To Someone greater than their Insta friends.

If they don’t turn to Christ their fates are sealed.

Keep trying to get through; God’s grace transcends.

Don’t get caught up- you’ll surely get dragged down.

If you share Christ with them they may not drown.

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REMEMBER: Don’t get caught up in the party scene. To some of them, you might be the closest thing to Christ they’ll ever know.

12-26-15 Do It For Him

With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men

Ephesians 6:7 KJV

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Whatever service you are tasked to do,

Your attitude reflects its quality.

If you work as for man your point of view

Will be to please a transient degree.

But if you act as if it were the Lord

Who will receive the fruit of your employ,

You’ll strive for excellence to one adored,

With love, devotion, gratitude and joy.

To be just good enough’s not good enough.

You represent the Lord of Lords today.

Your work now demonstrates more noble stuff

Than what can be produced then cast away.

With good will do your work as to the Lord,

And not to men, who seek their own reward.

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REMEMBER: Whatever you do in the name of Christ, in the spirit of His love, He will sanctify. It doesn’t get any better than that!

12-21-15 Serve the Lord with Gladness

Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

Psalm 100:2 KJV

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Let’s serve the Lord with gladness, joy and cheer!

Let’s worship Him with singing full and strong!

Now come before His presence, gather near,

And praise our God with labor and with song!

Assemble all you saints and harmonize

By lifting up your voice in gratitude,

For by His loving grace our souls arise

To worship Christ our Lord with certitude!

Let’s praise the Lord, for He has shown His love!

Upon the cross He sacrificed His life

So those of us with faith could soar above,

To serve Him here and in the afterlife!

Let’s magnify the Lord and share the Word!

Let Jesus work through us now undeterred!

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REMEMBER: When you serve the Lord with joy in your heart and a song on your lips, the unsaved will be more receptive to His light in you.

Love in Deed and Truth

My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.

1 John 3:18 KJV

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LOVE IN DEED AND TRUTH

There’s nothing wrong in giving love with words,

But that should not be all you ever do,

Like in your hunger getting some cheese curds

When what you really needed was hot stew.

If words were silver, actions would be gold,

And loving deeds like diamonds cut and new.

To truly love is often to be bold:

A selfless act will show your love is true.

When you love Jesus you become like Him,

And He came not to be served but to serve.

So go throughout your day a living hymn

And give to all you meet with loving verve.

An “I love you” is music to the ears;

To show it is a symphony for years.

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REMEMBER: What Jesus did on the cross for you proves that actions speak louder than words.

9-24-15 His Power in You

⁸ Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;

⁹ And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

¹⁰ Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

Matthew 4:8-10 KJV

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When Satan comes and whispers in your ear,

Or more than likely shoves it in your face,

And tempts you with his guile, then have no fear

For Jesus dwells with you in every case.

The father of all lies knows who you are;

He wants to have you bow to him alone.

He’ll offer you the world and go so far

As giving you a seat upon a throne.

The Savior lives and breathes the Holy Ghost;

The power that raised Him is in you, too.

The next time Satan offers you the most

Just let the Spirit get ahold of you.

Say ‘Get behind me, Lucifer! You lose!

I serve the Lord above! It’s Him I choose!’

9-6-15 You’re Being Watched

And his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand.

Genesis 39:3 KJV

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When you go through this day do not forget

The light of Christ is shining through your deeds,

And others see there’s something special yet,

In all you say and do a peace proceeds.

Remember that to most you represent

The closest thing to Jesus they will know.

Those hungry for the Word will soon relent

To find out what it is that makes you go.

When Jesus lives through you it surely shows,

Especially the moments love’s revealed.

The Holy Spirit is affirmed in those

Who feel the fire and begin to yield.

You have a deep responsibility

To serve the Lord and act as His trustee.

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8-15-15 It’s Time to Make a Choice

Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.

Joshua 24:14 KJV

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There comes a time when you must make a choice

To put away your worship of the world,

And like a young lad’s ever-changing voice

Becomes in speech mature, a man unfurled.

The gods this world promotes are full of need

And calls to you a thousand different ways,

Imploring you to buy their shiny bead,

But once you do you find it’s made of clay.

There is no better time to choose the Lord;

The hourglass is running out of sand.

The Spirit’s nudging you to leave the horde

And give your life to Jesus; take His hand.

Let go the worldly gods that stole your youth

To serve the Lord sincerely and in truth.

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sonnet #437

8-14-15 All for One

⁴ Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.

⁵ And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.

⁶ And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.

1 Corinthians 12:4-6 KJV

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A breeze wafts through a window open wide;

The curtain shudders, papers flutter, too;

A candle light makes shadows dance and glide,

And all these things a single breeze can do.

The Spirit moves ten million souls and more

As preachers, teachers, missionaries, clerks,

To prophesy, to write, to mind the store;

We serve a single Master in our work.

Discretion, grace and patience all are gifts

Bestowed by just a single, holy God;

The Father’s love that heals, reveals, uplifts

Can resurrect the dead and leave us awed.

Such wondrous grace upholds the universe

And shows in all we do as we traverse.

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sonnet #436