Several of you have asked for me to post this video, so here it is. This is from our service at church Sunday night, April 22. This service went well and we had an opportunity tom pray for several who were sick at the end of the service. It was a blessed time in the Lord.
I am going to post this on both of my blogs, so if you are following both, you will see this on my Psalmist blog as well.
I pray it blesses you!
I awoke this morning at five with a few words in my head. As usual, I knew God was speaking a new verse into my spirit, so I rolled off the bed and grabbed my phone (the modern day note pad beside the bed). I opened up my email and created a new message – to myself. I sat back down on the side of the bed and just started typing as the words came to me:
To be ever in His presence
To be always by His side
This Is what I long for
This is my desire
I reflected on these words for a few moments and laid back down on the bed, phone in hand. This is my heart’s cry! To be with Him in good times and bad, in hurting and in joy, in the midst of the storm and when all is peaceful. He filled me with the truth of these words, then I started to hear His voice again, and started typing more. And more. 10 minutes later, the song was done.
This is how God works with my poetry and songs. Every one of them comes just like this. It is rare I only get a piece and then go back and finish it (although once in a while that does happen). It just pours into me from His voice and within my spirit, and I do my best to capture the words exactly as He dictates.
When, I finally got up and dressed, I was ready to post this piece, which is called “Settled By His Grace”. I started reading it back to myself and broke down weeping at the words God had given me. And I just started to wonder why?
I am not anybody special. I am a sinner saved by grace. He has been so merciful to me throughout my life. Far from perfect, in fact not even in the same vicinity as perfect. I falter daily trying to follow Him. I am an unknown in this world. My poetry is posted here and on my Facebook page regularly as He directs me. Many followers, few readers, some likes.
Many have said they are masterpieces. That is because the Master gives the words. Many have said they are blessed by the words. That is because God brings a blessing.
Many have commented they sang along with the poem as they read it. That is because God puts a song in their heart.
Many have encouraged me to keep writing. God keeps giving the words.
I think it’s natural to ask “Why me, God?” Why do you give these songs to me? These poems? These words of praise? These words of encouragement to the body of Christ? Is it simply for the few dozen that see them where I post them? Is it simply for my comfort? Or is there a greater purpose?
My piano teacher is convinced that if these songs God gave me could reach the right eyes and ears, it would not be long they would be all over the airwaves. My best friend agrees. My pastor and my congregation agree. My wife is flabbergasted by the steady stream of words that God puts into my heart. It is humanly unexplainable.
Many have said it’s simply that I listen. I listen for His voice and write what He says. Can it really be that simple? If so, I am thankful He gave me ears to hear. If so, I am awed by His choice of me as a vessel. If so, then let His will be done in all of this. I will remain a conduit through which He can speak to you and others.
I will continue to listen. I will continue to write His words. By His grace, I pray he will continue to give them to me. By His mercy, they will be posted on my poetry blog as often as He gives them. (If you are not on my poetry blog, you can find it here).
For now, here is the whole song he gave me this morning – “Settled In His Grace.” I pray it is a blessing to you.
My days can get so lonely
When I try to walk alone
But there’s no reason this should be the case
He promised to be with me
Until the very end
I’ll daily set my eyes to see His face
He’s with me in my spirit
I must listen carefully
His voice is calling out most every day
He wants a conversation
He wants my company
He wants to walk with me and guide my way
To be ever in His presence
To be always by His side
This Is what I long for
This is my desire
Walking close beside Him
Step by step each day
Hearing words of hope
Settled in His grace
The sweet sweet love of Jesus
Is always there for me
In good times and in bad He’s always near
By faith I feel His presence
My spirit knows His breath
When I remember this I’ll never fear
To be ever in His presence
To be always by His side
This Is what I long for
This is my desire
Walking close beside Him
Step by step each day
Hearing words of hope
Settled in His grace
Knowing Him
Loving Him
Praising Him
Hearing Him
All I need
He provides
Ever present
In my life
To be ever in His presence
To be always by His side
This Is what I long for
This is my desire
Walking close beside Him
Step by step each day
Hearing words of hope
Settled in His grace
I was sitting today, trying to get over a cold which has plagued me for 5 days now. On top of that, I had my maintenance chemo treatments Wednesday and Thursday, so my body is weak. I just needed rest, which is a hard thing for me to do. I like to be on the go. Sitting around is not my cup of tea. I needed a lift out of this place of being a bit down.
As I sat here, I thought about how much God cares for me, and I thought maybe you could use a little picker-upper as well. You see, when we are in a place of hurt or weakness, it’s easy to get a little down. It’s easy to feel like we are alone. We can get into a place of pity for ourselves because of the place we are in. I do not like those kind of thoughts.
Then God spoke to me and reminded me of a scripture that we should all strive to keep in our hearts for just such an occasion as this. Psalm 139:17-18 tells us this:
How precious to me are your thoughts, oh God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand—
when I awake, I am still with you.
It took me a long time to get my head wrapped around these verses. God has precious thoughts toward me? So many of them that they outnumber the sand of the sea? How can that be? I do so many things wrong! There are so many times I fall short of what He asks me to do! There are so many times I do things I know God would not like so much. I say things that are hurtful to others. How can He have precious thoughts of me?
Yet He does – more than I can imagine. Those thoughts are always there. When I think about that, how can I be down? How can I be discouraged? For me, it is impossible. These words lift my spirits every time, and I will endeavor to keep them in my heart and mind for such a time as this! I hope you will too.
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
I know we are in Galatians on our study, but this verse popped into my head this morning, and I don’t think I have ever posted any of my songs on this site. I always put them on my Psalmist blog. This chorus was given to me several years ago and it is very dear to my heart.
Who do you belong to? If you are your own, you follow your heart and your ways. You walk in your understanding and consider your wisdom. You want what is best for you and will strive to attain it no matter what. Me first is the operative slogan!
When you belong to Jesus, He takes the reigns. You trust in His mercy and grace. You do your best to follow after His word in everything. You give out mercy and prefer others over yourself. You love unconditionally and always encourage others, never complaining or putting others down. You walk in peace and joy no matter what is happening in your life.
To be honest, I am usually somewhere in between these two very different lives. But I have been bought with a price – I do belong to Him. I just need to act like it! Jesus said we cannot serve two masters, but a lot of the time I do. This song expresses my sincere desire to be all His – all the time.
(I am not the best singer or the best piano player. But I do my best and give Him the glory) I hope you enjoy this.
It was a day I will not forget. I have a driver who takes me to my chemo appointments in Mason City every other Wednesday. He has been an enormous blessing to me and my wife throughout the two years I have been going to those. He does it and asks nothing, but we give him gift certificates to a restaurant he likes as a token of our appreciation. After all, it is a thirty-eight-mile trip one-way, and with today’s gas prices, it is costing him quite a bit to do this.
This past Wednesday, he told me when he arrived at my house that his car had trouble starting that morning. It cranked for a while before it would start. He thought maybe the battery was going bad. He decided he would take it to a relative who ran a shop when we got to Mason City. We had no problem getting up to the Cancer center. He dropped me off and went straight to the shop, where he found out his battery was fine. The mechanic said it was probably a bad spot on his started and he would most likely have to replace the starter soon. He came back to the Cancer center and waited for me to finish.
We went out to the car and it started fine. But the shifter would not shift out of park! He tried and tried with no success. It would not budge. I called my mechanic, and he suggested we try pushing the brake down hard a few times to try and engage the shift interlock. That didn’t work. He suggested we take the bolt off that connects the shift interlock with the shift lever. We did not have the tools for that. I thanked him and decided to call the Ford garage in town, possible they had a mechanic that could come and help us out.
The service director answered the phone and I told him our dilemma. He suggested we take the key and hold it between on and start with the motor off and then try shifting it. That worked! We then put it in neutral and started it. We were on our way. We had two more stops to make, and did not put it back in park either time. But at the second start, we were both going in, and could not get the key out while it was in neutral. I guess you can only take it out when in park. Being in a safe place, and parked a little way off from other cars, we left the keys in and the doors unlocked and went it. The car stayed there!
On the trip home, the cruise control would not engage at one point. He tried several times, but to no avail. Later in our drive he tried again and it kicked in. Four problems, all within the steering column, in one day. Not a good sign for his car with only 76,000 miles on it! He was going to talk to his mechanic as soon as he got to town!
Sometimes our walk with the Lord can be like our time with that car and the shift lever problem. We will come to a comfortable place in our walk with Him. We are open to His blessing, His grace and His mercy. But we are not doing anything to pass those blessings on to those around us, which is what we are supposed to do. We are stuck between on and start! Jesus told us, in His sermon on the mount, that:
Matthew 5:13-16 King James Version (KJV)
13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
This is a mandate to take what He has so freely given to us and give it to others. We just can’t seem to get up the courage to start doing something for God. But we are called to the mission field we are in. God has given each of us a circle of friends that need to be reached with the Gospel. No one else has the same mission field. Our family, our friends and our business associates all need to hear about God’s love for them.
Hebrews 12:1-2
12 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God
It is time to put our lives in drive – start to run with patience the race that is set before us. We do this by remembering what Jesus endured for us, and by looking at how so many that have gone before us have accomplished being salt and light. Their testimony should spur us on to do for others as he has done for us! Let’s DRIVE!
Be blessed
God's Maintenance Man 