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THE POEM
I knelt to pray but not for long, I had too much
to do.
I had to hurry and get to work...For bills would
soon be due.
So I knelt and said a hurried prayer, And jumped
up off my knees.
My Christian duty was now done My soul could
rest at ease.....
All day long I had no time To spread a word of
cheer
No time to speak of Christ to friends, They'd
laugh at me I'd fear.
No time, no time, too much to do, That was my
constant cry,
No time to give to souls in need But at last
the time, the time to die.
I went before the Lord, I came, I stood with
downcast eyes.
For in his hands God held a book; It was the
book of life.
God looked into his book and said "Your name
I cannot find.
I once was going to write it down...But never
found the time"
Now do you have the time to pass it on?
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The Quilt
As I faced my MAKER at the last judgment,
I knelt before
the LORD along with all the other souls. Before each of us
laid our lives, like the squares of a quilt
in many piles. An
angel sat before each of us sewing our quilt squares
of cloth off the pile. I noticed how ragged and
empty each
of my squares was. They were filled with giant holes.
Each square was labeled with a part of my life that
had
been difficult, the challenges and temptations I was faced
with in everyday life.
I saw hardships that I
endured, which were the largest
holes of all. I glanced around me, nobody else had such
squares. Other than a tiny hole
here and there, the other
tapestries were filled with rich color and bright hues of
worldly fortune. I gazed upon my
own life and was
disheartened. My angel was sewing the ragged pieces of
cloth together, threadbare and empty, like binding
air.
Finally the time came when each life was to be displayed,
held up to the light, the scrutiny of truth. The
others rose,
each in turn, hold up their tapestries. So filled their lives
had been. My angel looked upon me and nodded
for me
to rise. My gaze dropped to the ground in shame. I hadn't
had all the earthly fortunes. I had love in my life,
and
laughter. But there had also been trials of illness, and
death, and false accusations that took from me my world
as
I knew it.
I had to start over many times. I
often struggled
with the temptation to quit, only to somehow muster the
strength to pick up and begin again. I spent
many nights
on my knees in prayer, asking for help and guidance in
my life. I had often been help up to ridicule, which
I
endured painfully, each time offering it up to the FATHER
in hopes that I would not melt within my skin beneath
judgmental
gaze of those who unfairly judged me. And
now, I had to face the truth.
My life was what it was, and
I had to accept
it
for what it was. I rose and slowly lifted
combined squares of my life to the light. An awe-filled
gasp filled the air.
I gazed around at the others who stared
at me with wide eyes, then I looked upon the tapestry
before me. Light flooded
the many holes, creating an
image - the face of CHRIST. Then our LORD stood
before me, with warmth and love in HIS eyes.
He
said, "Every time you gave over your life to ME, it
became MY life, MY hardships, and MY struggles.
Each point of light
in your life is when you stepped aside
and let ME shine through, until there was more of ME
then there was of you."
May
all you quilts be threadbare and worn, allowing
CHRIST to shine through.
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You
can know all the scriptures,
Have all the bibles you can reach,
But when push comes to shove
Do you practice what
you preach?
Anyone
can go to church
And collapse on the floor,
But when Judgment Day comes
Will you be at Heaven's door?
You
can have the biggest of fits
And say the Holy ghost passed through,
But is that really reflected
In the things you
do?
You
can yell far and wide
Proclaiming your love for Christ,
But what have you given him
When for you He gave his life?
You
can lecture others
About the wrong things they do,
But before you look at others
You need to look at you.
You
can damn all the sinners
Tell them they're headed south,
But what have you done lately
Besides run your mouth?
You
can call yourself a Christian
Spend all your days at church,
But while you are praising His name,
Have you been doing
the Lord's work?
You
can boast of good deeds
To show us the spirit is within
But why show it to us?
You should show it to Him!
You
can memorize the bible
Know it from front to back,
But you don't use it to regulate others
Regulate how you act!
Take
a good look at yourself
Not at what others do,
Because when He comes to get his children ...
Will He be coming for
you too?
IF YOU REALLY LOVE ME, FEED MY SHEEP!
It is not a building that I desire,
Nor
your clothes or any attire,
It is not you preaching bold,
Nor your money, silver, or gold.
I do not need you
to negociate,
Bargaining will not get you through My gate,
I seek for the meek and pure in heart,
I always have from
the start.
I am not impressed by all the glamour and lights,
Do you really believe I listen to vain prayers at night?
I
will not change my heart and mind,
The clock is ticking your running out of time.
You only give in order to be blessed,
It
is your sins you must confess,
I have give to you my life, my all,
Surely you could take time at the altar call?
You
always seem to have somewhere to go,
Runing here and there and to and fro,
When you do unto others, you have done it
unto Me.
My children, are you still blind and do not see?
Every now and then I hear a drive-by prayer,
What about
the poor, do you even care?
I am meek, humble, and lowly,
Walk, my child, walk very slowly.
Oh how I weep, O'
how I weep,
Do you love Me? Feed my sheep,
Oh how I weep, O' how I weep,
Do you really love Me, feed my sheep.
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STRANGER IN THE HOUSE
A few months before I was born, my Dad met a stranger
who was new to our small
Tennessee town. From the
beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting
newcomer and soon invited him to live
with
our family.
The stranger was quickly accepted and was around t
o welcome me into the world a few months later.
As
I grew up, I never questioned his place in my family.
In my young mind, he had a special niche. My parents
were complementary
instructors: Mom taught me the
word of God, and Dad taught me to obey it.
But the stranger? He was our storyteller.
He would keep
us spellbound for hours on end with adventures, mysteries
and comedies. If I wanted to know anything about
politics,
history or science, he always knew the answers about the
past, understood the present and even seemed able
to
predict the future! He took my family to the first major
league ball game. He made me laugh, and he made me
cry.
The stranger never stopped talking, but Dad
didn't seem to mind.
Sometimes Mom would get up quietly while the rest
of
us were shushing each other to listen to what he had
to say, and she would go to her room and read her
books.
(I wonder now if she ever prayed for the
stranger to leave.)
Dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions,
but
the stranger never felt obligated to honor them.
Profanity, for example, was not allowed in our home ..
not from us,
our friends or any visitors. Our longtime
visitor, however, got away with four-letter words that
burned my ears and
made my dad squirm and
my mother blush.
My Dad was a teetotaler who didn't permit alcohol in the
home, not even
for cooking. But the stranger encouraged
us to try it on a regular basis. He made cigarettes look
cool, cigars manly
and pipes distinguished. He talked
freely (much too freely!) about sex. His comments
were sometimes blatant, sometimes
suggestive, and
generally embarrassing. I now know that my early
concepts about relationships were influenced strongly
by
the stranger. Time after time, he opposed the
values of my parents, yet he was seldom rebuked ...
and NEVER asked to
leave.
More than fifty years have passed since the stranger
moved in with our family. He has blended right in
and
is not nearly as fascinating as he was at first.
Still, if you were to walk into my parents' den today
you would
still find him sitting over in his corner,
waiting for someone to listen to him talk and watch
him draw his pictures.
His
name?
We just call him TV.
Author Unknown
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