The Weight Of All Sin

 

I carry my sins through each day,
And they can grow heavy.
I can’t fathom bearing the weight
Of all earth’s sins on me.
 
Beneath the weight of that old cross,
Christ bore for all mankind
The weight of each sin we commit
In body, heart, or mind.
 
It wasn’t just the weight of wood
That forced Him to His knee,
It was the weight of all those sins
He bore to Calvary.
 
I’ve felt it time and time again,
The shame of what I’ve done.
Each time I sin, I add more weight
To that borne by The Son.
 
We can’t take back the weight He bore
For sins of yesterday,
But we can try to add less weight
By sinning less today.
 
John 19:16-17
So he delivered him over to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place called The Place of a Skull, which in Aramaic is called Golgotha.
 
1 Peter 2:24
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.

The Words Of The Lord

 

In all the long years of my life
I’ve watched things come and go,
They’re here one day and gone the next,
The same old ebb and flow.
 
The fashion trends, the politics,
The music we enjoy,
Those things we praise today will soon
Be those things we destroy.
 
The Lord is not like fickle man,
Who blows with each new wind.
For He who calls the wind to heel,
Is the same to the end.
 
His wisdom does not fade with time,
As blossoms in the spring,
And His words will stand forever
With all the hope they bring.
 
Don’t fix your eyes on things as frail
As blossoms that will fall,
But look to the unchanging Lord
Whose word speaks truth to all.
 
Isaiah 40:8
The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.
 
Matthew 24:35
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

Out Of The Shadow Of Darkness

 
You have brought me through that valley
Out of darkness, sin, despair,
Into the Light of Your glory
For Your mercy’s ever there.
 
There is no path I can travel
That is not within Your sight.
There’s no place so lost in darkness
Where I cannot find Your light.
 
There is no fear I must face that
Stands defiant of Your might
If I rise up for the battle
In the armor of Your light.
 
Dark or light, the path before me
Leads me back into Your grace,
Where, rejoicing in Your glory,
I will rest in Your embrace.
 
Isaiah 9:2
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.
 
Psalm 23:4
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Your Sabbath Peace

 

Lord, lead us to Your Sabbath peace,
The place of Your Shalom,
Where every heart can turn to You
And find they are at home.
 
Let each of us turn our eyes to
The place before Your throne
Where we can stand within Your peace,
Knowing we’re not alone.
 
You gave the Sabbath to us, Lord,
To rest from all we do,
But, also, that we would have time
To just be still with You.
 
Let us seek You in each day, Lord,
With heart and mind and soul,
And thank You that Sabbath renews
The peace that this world stole.  
 
Mark 2:27
And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.
 
Psalm 23:2-3
He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

A Stressful Day

 

This day tore at me more than once,
But I held on to You,
And by the end, though there were tears,
You helped me to walk through.
 
There were more than a few kind folks
Who helped along the way,
And one or two who’s cheerful words
Brought laughter to the day.
 
I dreaded what this day would hold,
But miscalculated,
For I failed to account for those
Who brought me joy instead.
 
Tonight, as I sat down at last,
I realized once more
Though I may worry, Your plans hold
Blessings, then more, in store.  
 
Though life is stressful, there is joy
Present along the way.
Thank You for guarding me and for
Your patient grace each day.
 
Exodus 33:14
And he said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
 
Psalm 42:11
Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.

Water, Bread, And Grace

 

You made the rivers flow down stream
From mountain peak to sea,
And with them they bring fresh water
That brings relief to me.
 
The plans You laid out long ago
Clearly included all
Who had not yet been born to life,
But would answer Your call.
 
Those rivers still run through valleys
Where forests reach the sky,
And You still hold close in Your grace
Thirsty souls such as I.
 
You feed my soul and quench its thirst
With the unceasing flow
Of living water, bread of life,
And the grace You bestow.
 
Psalm 104:10
You make springs gush forth in the valleys; they flow between the hills;
 
Psalm 78:16
He made streams come out of the rock and caused waters to flow down like rivers.

Ears To Hear, Eyes To See

 

When it is time, Lord, call me home
And I’ll come right away,
But until then I’ll live within
Your boundless grace each day.
 
We often feel we’re overwhelmed
Or trapped in self-pity,
While You are reaching out to us.
Lord, give us eyes to see.
 
We cry out in our misery
When we should stand and cheer,
For Heaven’s King still comforts us.
Lord, give us ears to hear.
 
Too often we choose to lament,
Rather than to rejoice.
One destroys, the other comforts,
Which one we live's our choice.
 
This world will try to hold us down,
Distract us with worry,
But my ears hear and my eyes see
The blessings You give me.
 
Matthew 13:9
He who has ears, let him hear.”
 
Matthew 13:16-17
But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

As We Sow

 

That which you sow, you shall then reap,
Advice we all have heard.
It matters in the farmer’s field,
But, also, in The Word.
 
For God has cautioned all mankind
To sow the fallow field
Of good intentions, unfulfilled,
With a crop that will yield.
 
Don’t sow a crop of mortal pride
For that harvest will fail,
But one sown in His Word, instead,
Will prosper and prevail.
 
Sow seeds of righteousness and grace,
That your harvest may be
A bounty of God’s perfect love
As far as you can see.
 
A harvest that you can then share
With all who pass your way,
That those who hunger may be fed
His love, through you, each day.  
 
Hosea 10:12
Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you.
 
Galatians 6:8
For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 

Trusting You With Each Step

 

Why do I still stand in Your grace
When I fall short each day
Of the person I’m called to be?
Much to my own dismay.
 
I bow my head in shame because
I’m not doing it right,
Yet, I’m still blessed to stand within
The wonder of Your Light.
 
I see the gifts others possess
And use each time they speak,
Yet I don’t possess gifts like that,
No matter how I seek.
 
I find myself wondering how
I’m ever going to serve
The Great Commandment You left us,
The grace I don’t deserve.
 
Yet, Lord, You called me to be Yours
I heard You loud and clear,
And each time that I fall You’re there
Telling me not to fear.
 
It is as if Your plans for me,
Though real, are beyond sight,
And what I need to do right now
Is trust that You are right.
 
I need to keep walking the path
That You’ve set before me
And trust that when the time is right
You’ll make them clear to see.
 
Maybe the gift I’m called to live
For right now is just faith.
To learn that when I’m weak, You’re strong
Is not a myth, a wraith.
 
Then walk forward as You command
And trust You as I go
To lead me to the next lesson
You’ve planned to help me grow.
 
2 Corinthians 12:9
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Isaiah 54:10
For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you.

I'll Go Out On A Limb

So often we try to fit in
With those still of the world,
Only to find ourselves the brunt
Of their anger unfurled.
 
We’re called to love, yet are denounced
By those we’ve known for years
Because we hold fast to the Word
And not to this world’s tears.
 
They demand that we compromise
With the choices they make,
Yet they condemn the path we walk
As a heartless mistake.
 
I know that You lived this and worse
When You walked on the earth,
And I can never hope to be
The equal of Your worth.
 
Yet, I will go out on a limb
And live each day like You,
Doing my best to follow all
That You’ve called us to do.
 
I won’t listen to the voices
That tell me I am wrong
To follow the path of Your grace.
My faith in You is strong.
 
I’ll live as You’ve called me to live
Not as this world commands.
Though I may stand alone at times,
I’ll stand there in Your hands.
 
John 15:18-19
“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

Rejoice And Sing To Him

There is a song that fills my heart,
And it is seldom coy,
For it is born of gratitude.
A song of praise and joy!
 
I’ve walked the darkened valleys deep
And stood on mountains high,
But nothing can approach the awe
I feel when He is nigh.
 
Though I may stand within the storm
I’m also in His grace,
And there’s nothing that can pull me
Out of His fierce embrace.
 
Let all creation sing His praise
And rejoice in great glee,
For He who formed us, loves us still.
His grace has set us free.
 
No more the stain of sin prevails,
To Him renewed souls cling,
And, in His name, they will rejoice!
Let all praise Him and sing.
 
Psalm 47:6-7
Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises! For God is the King of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm!
 
1 Corinthians 15:55
“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

Time To Laugh

 

I stood upon the weekend’s cusp,
Your grace whispered to me
Of peace and rest, of joy and light,
As I want it to be.
 
Opps, I must have heard You wrong,
The power just went out.
Oh yes, You have a sense of humor,
Of that, there is no doubt!
 
Okay, I’ll take this all in stride,
Like I did yesterday.
Knowing that I still get time to
Hang out with You today.
 
Six hours, I was being told,
But with humidity,
That isn’t quite as funny as
It otherwise would be.
 
I made my plans and packed things up
To go visit a friend.
Then, just before I hit the road
Power came back again.
 
I still can hear the laughter drift
Down from heaven above.
Okay, You’ve got me laughing, too,
As push comes down to shove.
 
Some days I have to just sit back
And admit once again,
The power to control our lives
Does not belong to man!
 
I love spending time in Your peace,
But now and then I do
Enjoy the chance to sit and laugh
As I spend time with You!
 
Psalm 16:11
You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Seeking Your Peace

 

Lead me beside Your still waters.
Lord, I’m in need of peace,
But the unrelenting chaos
Of life just will not cease.
 
Each time I thought I could sit down,
Some new mayhem burst through.
That’s why, right now, all that I want
Is to be still with You.
 
I’m grateful for a busy life,
Lord, please don’t get me wrong,
But now and then I’m overwhelmed
From running for too long.
 
I know each day brings ups and downs,
Today’s been all uphill,
But, if it fits within Your plan,
Could we sit and be still?
 
I just thought I would ask You, Lord,
I knew You wouldn’t mind.
Yours is the only source of peace
I seek and know I’ll find.
 
Psalm 23:2
He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.
 
Jeremiah 29:13
You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

Your Plans Are My Plans

 

You clearly had my day well planned
Everything right in place.
I just wish I’d had some inkling
That it would be a race.
 
Yet, even though I didn’t know
What all You had in mind
I’m grateful that You needed me
To step in and run blind.
 
I got to help out more than once
And offer up some grace,
Before coming back home to rest
In my own quiet place.
 
I had a feeling You had plans
When I woke up today,
So, I was grateful for the call  
And praised You on my way.
 
I know I promised I would walk
The path You’ve given me,
I’m grateful that I got the chance
To do so joyously.
 
Proverbs 16:3        
"Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established."
 
Proverbs 19:21      
"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand."

The Birds Of The Air

 

My heart has rested heavily
Within me as of late.
Too many questions on my mind,
Worries running in spate.
 
There is no cause for such as these,
It’s just me being me,
But now and then I can’t help feel
Something bad’s bound to be.
 
Why do I let my mind drift thus,
Let false worries pile up,
When You have blessed me with Your grace,
An overflowing cup.
 
Birds of the air, don’t share my fears,
They live within Your plan.
They hunt and let Your plan unfold.
They’re more faithful than man.
 
I know I’ve faced some troubled times,
But You have brought me through.
Why do I cling to false worries
When I should cling to You.
 
Lord, help me be like those wild birds
Doing what I’m to do,
While letting go of doubts and fears
Because I trust in You.
 
Matthew 6:26
Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
 
Psalm 147:9 & 11
He gives to the beasts their food, and to the young ravens that cry…
the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.

This amazing photo is a blessing from LLT. Wow! 

Seeking Him Always

 

How vast is Your grace, oh my Lord?
It’s beyond all I see,
And that grace, born of boundless love,
You have poured out on me.
 
Though I was broken, I am healed,
My sins, fallen away.
My eyes and heart are both open
To You every day.
 
There is no place that I can go
That You will not go, too,
That I might come through each travail
Holding tightly to You.
 
When I am weak Your strength is mine,
When I’m lost, You’re my light.
When my heart breaks, it is Your peace
That turns grief to delight.
 
Let my heart ever seek You, Lord,
And let me share Your Word
With those who are still searching for
The truth they’ve not yet heard.
 
Acts 17:27
that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us
 
Ephesians 3:20
Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us

My Answer Is Him

He who called light out of darkness
And knows each star by name,
Has power beyond all measure,
And it is ours to claim.
 
As vast as His power may be,
His grace is greater still
And it is by that grace I find
The faith to trust His will.
 
He’s called me to step out, follow
The path He set for me.
Though I may doubt me, I trust Him,
So, I’m where I should be.
 
I don’t always know why I’m here,
But His plans are in place
And, if He’s called me to be here,
Then I’ll serve in His grace.
 
He knows the names of all the stars,
And I can’t see all them,
So, when it comes to who I trust,
My answer's always, “Him!”
 
Psalm 147:4-5
He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names. Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.
 
Psalm 37:3
Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. 

One Nation Under God

 

He spoke His Word into their hearts,
Breathed His grace through the land.
Though they struggled throughout the years,
He held them in His hand.
 
They built their nation on His truth,
Taught His words to their young.
From shore to shore in their nation,
His praise was rightly sung.
 
Though faith has wavered now and then,
Through struggle and travail,
He kept them close, beneath His wing,
Without falter of fail.
 
Founded upon His Word and law,
The nation thrived and grew,
And He has blessed them boundlessly
In all they have been through.
 
Today they still stand in His grace,
Though some have turned away,
And His praise still rings out across
That nation to this day.
 
Psalm 33:11-12
The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!

His Blessings Abound

 

The blessings of the Lord abound,
I cannot count them all,
And still, this day, He poured out more.
New blessings, great and small.
 
They opened up before my eyes,
I could not help but see,
That all those paths You’ve led me down
Have brought Your grace to me.
 
What I once thought was a hope dashed,
Has now returned with joy,
And there’s no praise or thanks enough
That my heart can employ.
 
I’m blessed, indeed, to be a child
Of heaven’s gracious King,
And I will praise His name as long
As I have breath to sing!
 
Psalm 144:15
Blessed are the people to whom such blessings fall! Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!
 
Psalm 84:12
O Lord of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you!

Mightier Than The Waves

They think they have authority,
But they have less than none.
The only power in control
Is the Father and Son.
 
Though they may rant and shake their fists,
They are but passing waves
That perish when they reach the shore.
They are the tempest’s slaves.
 
They roar and rage, frothing out loud,
Then, when they run aground,
They slip away, leaving behind
Nothing but shifting ground.
 
They slink away, seeking the chance
To rush ashore once more,
Hoping to create more havoc
Than they had done before.  
 
The world has seen them many times,
Suffered each time they failed,
Only to hear them promise more,
The next time they prevailed.
 
They have no power on the earth,
For they serve their own fame
And sacrifice all who follow,
Doing so without shame.
 
Call out upon the Lord on high,
Who rules the ocean’s waves,
And who, instead of lies and pain,
Offers a love that saves.
 
2 Samuel 22:4-5
I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.
“For the waves of death encompassed me, the torrents of destruction assailed me
 
Psalm 93:4
Mightier than the thunders of many waters, mightier than the waves of the sea, the Lord on high is mighty! 

Every Good Gift

 

The blessings of the Lord are vast,
For boundless is His love,
And all good gifts that we receive
Are from heaven above.
 
He is the hope when we are lost
Within the dark of night.
His is the strength that helps us find
Our way back to the light.
 
He is the shield that guards our souls
And lifts us from despair
When this world seeks to break our hearts,
And no one seems to care.
 
Where in this world could we find all
The gifts that mark each day,
Those that we take for granted and
Those splendid in array.
 
Stop wasting time counting your woes,
Instead count each blessing,  
Then lift your praise to Heaven’s King,
Whose love, such blessings bring.
 
James 1:17
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.