VESPERS AT THE END OF THE SABBATH: FACING LIFE: Lean On Jesus!

For All The Brethren

Facing ... Life's Storms!

Bow Your Head In Faith!
Say A Prayer With Hope!
With Our Beloved Lord Jesus Christ

Who Is Our Peace
We Shall Weather The Storm
For
His Word Stills The Winds
Calms The Seas
AND
Comforts Hearts Forlorn!

Yes! The Storm Is Raging!
Yes! The Day Seems Bleak!
Yes! Your Heart Is Troubled
BUT
Listen!
King Jesus Speaks:

Oh, Weary One

Cease Your Fretting!

I Created The Wind!

Oh, Fearful One

Cease Your Murmuring

I Gave You The Voice

With Which You're Speaking!

My Ways Are Not Your Ways

Neither Are Your Thoughts Mine!

I AM God!

Be It Storm Of Wind

Flood Fire

Test Tempest

I Made It All!

I AM God!

Trust Me!

The Battle Is Mine!

Hold On To Your Hope In Me!

Lean On My Love For You!

I AM The Lord!

You Get The Good!

I Get The Glory!

In Me Is Your Bliss!

Gold Is Tried In Fire!

Clay Must Be Molded To Shape!

Rocks Are Piled On Each Other 

Before A Sturdy Wall May Take Shape!

Cloth Must Be Cut To Make A Garment!

Beans Must Be Boiled To Make A Stew!

New Wine Must Be Poured In New Bottles

And For You To Live With Me

I Must Make You Anew!

Change Is Never Easy

Never Comfortable! 

A Shoe Will Pinch

Before It Wears Well! 

Sugar Salt Leavening

Must Be Used Judiciously

Or One Will Not Have

Good Eating Bread!

You Are Being Prepared

For Your New Life! 

These Things Are In My Counsel

I AM God!

Take Not The Shortcut To Glory

As The Devil

And Soon

You Shall See Your Great Reward!

By Faith

With Humility

See To Your Labors! 

Pray! Call On Me! 

I AM Here!

Trust Not Your Feelings

Your Eyes

Your Eyesight! 

Trust Me! 

I AM Your Light!

I Will Heal You Of Your Fears!

Cast Upon Me Your Cares!

Take My Peace!

I Give It!

It Passes Human Understanding!

Take My Hand!

Let Me Lead You Home!

Take Daily Grace

For Each Day's Journeying

And You Won't Have To Live

With Remorse

As You Through This Life Doth Course!

Mercy For You Is A Given!

Call On Me!

I AM With You All The Way!

You Are Not Alone!

I Give Unto You Of My Spirit!

Listen!

Heed The Teaching!

The Chastening!

Listen And Follow!

I AM Leading!

I Make For You The Sure Way!

Humble Yourself

Under My Hand!

I AM Mighty

And

Mighty To Save!

I Know All

Am In All

I See All

Believe In Me!

Heed The Salvation Call!

Walk By Faith! 

You May Stumble

But Trust In Me

For

I Shall Not Let You Fall!

Your Way To Eternal Life

Is Not A Smooth Walk

For, Beloved

You Are Climbing To Zion Hill!

You Need Foot Holds

Hand Holds

And

Clefts In The Rock For Shelter!

On A Smooth And Sheer Face

You Have Nothing

Upon Which Your Foot

Your Hand 

Your Body

To Place!

You Have The Choice!

Climb Rough With Me 

And

Enduring All

 Live

Or Try Ascending

By Walking Smooth With Sin

And Assuredly 

Fall!

Beloved,

Please See Yourself

As An Evergreen Tree

As A Deep-Rooting Desert Palm! 

Send Down Your Roots Into Me

The Living Giving Water

And Live

For

The Water Of Life

For Life

From Me

Is Flowing Free!

The Desert Wind

Blowing Sun-Heated Sand

May Sting You!

Scorpions In Your Roots

May Make A Nest!

Give Unto Me Your Vexations

And Soon

- Overcoming - 

Settled In Spirit

By My Grace

You Shall Rest

And By Me

You Shall Surely Be Blessed!

Take Heed!

The Angels Are Watching Over You!

Let Them Influence You 

For Your Eternal Good! 

Trust In The Lord!

Walk In Faith

With Your Heavenly Companions

And

You Shall Reach Home

The Haven Of Rest

Forever Blessed Of Your Lord!

Lean Not On Your Own Understanding!

Lean On Me!

I AM The Eternal!

The One Holy!

The Living God!

SINNERS : Willing And Sorry

In The Corporeal Realm
Of Mortal Man
Double-Dealing
Double-Mindedness
AND
Double-Dipping
Are All Nasty
AND
Dangerous
AND
Should Be Diligently Avoided
If You
- Being Esteemed Honorable -
Want To Healthy And Safe
Stand!

Having To Indulge
In Fancy Footwork
To Keep Your House Upright
Shows Plainly
That Yours Is Not A Foundation Firm
AND
That You Have Not
The Great Lessons Learned!

Fickle Minds
In Feeble Men
Make For Feckless Friends
AND
Friends Reckless Prove Luckless
In The Coming Not-Distant End!

Walk Upright In This Life
Even If You Walk Alone
For
Inappropriate Associations
Are
Around Your Neck
Nothing But
A Great Millstone!

Life Is A Highway
A Pathway
A Race Way!

Life Is A Byway
A Bad Word
A Good Word
A Gasp!
"They" Say!

Life Is A Rugged Mountain
A Valley
A Great Plain
A Spinning Top
A Bouncing Ball!
Life Is What You Make Of It
When Upon The Blessed One
You Infinitely Call!

Life Can Be Full
Of Parrots Which Parrot
Pigeons Which Poop
Prayers Which Praise
Psalms Which Search
Songs Which Expose Hurts
Cries That Cure
Walks That Heal
Runs That Steal
Talks That Appeal
AND
Actions That Seal
AND
It Also Contains
A Broadway That Leads To Hell
AND
A Narrow Way That Leads To Heaven!

We Can
- As Sorry Sinners -
Go To The Savior For Our Soul Salvation
OR
We Can
- As Willing Sinners -
Go To The Devil
For Deliverance To Damnation!

A Decision Is Ours To Make
AND
Even If We Make No Decision
We Make Decision
For

• We Cannot Run
• The Race For Life
• By Straddling The Spiked Fence
• Voting For AND Against
• Painting With Black AND White
• Playing A Harp AND A Cymbal
• Being A Hurt Bunny Cuddling With Wild Dogs
• Shouting For Silence
• Dancing Rock-n-Roll To A Waltz
• Picking Your Teeth With A Long Sword
• Polishing Your Shoes With Mud
• Syphoning Gasoline With A Burning Match In Your Hand

OR

• Walking Into A Tornado Calling Yourself The Man!

Take A Piece Of Advice ...

Be Bold!
Heaven Isn't In A Wall A Hole
So
Damn The Devil
AND
Call On
AND
Bless Christ
For
Righteous Living Is Better Than Nice
AND
It Rewards
With Eternal Life!

Who Will You Be From Today?

HAPPY SABBATH + I Like God!

I Like God!
He is My Friend
On Whom I Can Depend!
I Like God!

Seriously, I Really Like God!

"Strange Expression, don't you Think!?!"

No! No! Not at all!

Think about this:

The people with whom I choose to associate are the people I really like, respect, trust, find companiable, comforting, helpful, comfortable, resourceful, loving, funny, smart, and trustworthy. 

We are the same things to each other, and we love each other enough to like being in each other's company ... all the time!

And ... we are all-around good people, with character and faith in The True and Living God. 

Look at God:

• Faithful
• Merciful
• Helpful
• Caring
• Gracious
• Resourceful
• Creative
• Artistic
• Comforting
• Comfortable
• Trustworthy
• Loving
• Just
• Companiable
• Wise, and 
• Funny and 
• Serious and 
• True, and
• Truthful 

God Knows The Best Ways for Me to Walk, all The Best Places where I May Lay My Head, Sets The Best Table, Guards Against Enemy Attacks, and knows where The Living Waters Flow, AND He Gives Me Life!

Best of All, because He does not Pry, and Waits to be called, and is Always Available on Demand, I share things with Him that I will not Share with Another Living Soul, knowing full well that He will not "Desert Me" by Reason of my Weaknesses, and Bad Temper, and Lying, and Cheating and Stealing and Daily Fornications and Adulteries! 

God Listens and He Counsels, but there have been times when He put His foot down and Chastised Me, and stated clearly: "Don't Do That! That is Not The Way for You!"

He doesn't leave Me to "Figure it out!" for Myself!

He Teaches Me The Right Way, and Helps Me to Walk in it!

We have had a few dust-ups over the years, though and, believe me, things were pretty bad for a while!

You see, I wanted to do something that God - Repeatedly - told me not to do, and I got on my high horse, and called Him a few unflattering descriptives and went on my merry way and did my own thing and paid ... BIG TIME!!

I was totally ticked off at God after that Debacle!

"How could You let me do that?!
How could You let that happen to me?!
Why didn't You stop Me?!
I thought you were My Friend!"

Want to hear what He said:

"Beloved, you have Free Will and Free Choice!
I will Never Force you to do The Right Thing!
I will Chastise, and Plead, and Love, and Call you BUT I will let you Decide AND whatever The Decision is that you make, I will be here Waiting for you when you call!"

His Answer totally took The Wind out of my Overblown Sails!

One day, I told Him that I gave Him Permission to yank Me back when He sees me going Astray and, do you know what? 

He has taken that request to His Heart, and He sticks closer to me that even my brother can!

It is Amazing!

On another occasion, we were Talking, and I Wondered how He could be Satisfied to be Always Giving Me Blessings for which I could Never Repay Him?!

Do you know what He said!

"I Love You! 
It is Enough that you Desire to be with Me, and are always Talking Intimately with Me, willing to Follow My Lead, and that you Trust Me, and are Walking - Faithfully ... Steadfastly - on The Highway To Heaven, as you Learn and Grow from Following The Way as Set Forth in My Family Book of Gifts that I Gave to you!"

My Heart Leaped!

*******

God makes me Laugh - often!

God makes me Think - all the time!

In God, My Life is Complete

By God, I Stand Firmly on My Feet

With God, Bitter Tastes Sweet

For God Has Made Heaven The Prize

To Those who Faithfully Compete!

I Like God

He Is Wise

Uses No Lies

Plans No Way-out Strategies

Wisdom Is His Eye

I Can On Him Rely

By His Grace I Can Satan Defy

With His Mercy

In The Great By and By

I Will Live Forever

Winging To Worlds

Which Imaginings Can't Prophesy!

I Like God!

This Is Not About Obligatory Love

This Is Friendship ... And Beyond

He Called Himself My Friend - Unto The End

And Sought Me Out When I Faced Harm

He Looks Out For Me - Day and Night

He Fights For Me - Dissolving The Blight

He Died For Me - To Give Me His Light

He Carries Me - When Cares Benight

He Comforts Me - When I Take A Fright

He Watches Me - I Am Ever In His Eyesight

And Because Of His Sacrificial Love

I Shall Gain The Winner's Wreath At The End Of The Fight!

I Really, Really, Like God!

Happy Sabbath + God Gave Me His Blessed Assurance + Prayer: Thank You, Lord

God Gave Me His Assurance
He said He'd always be Mine
My Heart is now Overflowing
Because He is Ever Loving, Faithful and Kind!

God Wrote Out For Me His Promise
He signed it in Jesus' Blood
He sends Me Showers of Blessings
Which flow ever like a rushing Great Flood!

God Gave Me His Assurance
That Sin has a waiting Just Fate
And if I walk in Christ's Righteousness
I won't Suffer The Bold Sinner's Fate!

I am to Do Good to All Men
I must Continually Pray and Give Praise
I must Trust in God's Goodness
And never His Holy Name denigrate!

I Trust in God's Blessed Assurance
And I took Me The Great Plunge
Into The Watery Grave of Baptism
And I Emerged Thoroughly Cleansed by The Blood!

Holy Spirit has Taken Up Residence
And is Guarding My Heart's Gate
I now walk Me in The Right Way
For with Heaven I have a Going Into The House Date!

Thank You, Lord, for Hearing

Thank You, Lord, for Healing

Thank You, Lord, for The Helping Hand

That is Guiding my footsteps to My New Home

On The Holy Hill of Zion

Where Peace and Rest are Declared

Where Love and Life are Eternal

Where Fear and Night cannot appear

Where Death and Hell have no standing

Where The Holy God is Commanding

And You are in My Eyesight clear.

Amen

HAPPY SABBATH!! Prayer: Father, Thank You!

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for my spared life!

Help me to remember

that I will always need You!

Help me to never forget that

since I have no reason to regret that!

You, Lord, are Good, and You are Faithful.

Help me to never allow my eyes

to dictate what I shall be fed, and help me

to be contented with Your walking speed.

I ask You to help me to trust You as a

blessed child of a Beloved Father.

Thank You for the blessings and the

bounties You provide to me each and 

every day, and I ask You to keep me

steadfast, and don't let me ever again stray.

I love You, Lord, for You alone, are worthy.

AMEN.

Happy Sabbath Happy Rest!

Happy Sabbath!

Happy Rest !

God invites each one

To come and be blessed

To set all work aside

To give a relieved sigh

And abide

In King Jesus!

Happy Sabbath!

Happy Rest!

All our work has been done

We worked unto rest

And we have been blessed

For our hope is here placed

In Him who won the Race

On King Jesus!

Happy Sabbath!

Happy Rest!

So gracious

How blessed

Calls us to desist

From care, work and stress

To turn our hearts and our eyes

To God who sanctifies

With truth from on high

To Our Father!

Come now, please draw nigh

Lift your voice to the sky

Praise Him who can't die

And on whom we rely

Praise King Jesus!