Loving A LIE ?

Whosoever LOVETH and MAKETH a LIE..

 … will not enter into the New Jerusalem.

 

That Holy City, coming down from GOD out of Heaven is that Continuing City, whose Builder and Maker is GOD. This Holy Jerusalem is the crowning jewel of the New Heaven and the New Earth.

 

 

And there shall in NO wise

enter into it any thing that defileth,

neither

whatsoever worketh abomination,

or

maketh a lie:

but they which are written

in the LAMB’S+  BOOK of LIFE.

Revelation 21:27

 

 

Lies are behind all idolatry, the work of the satan, to deceive the spirit of man.

 

The lying idols will make people believe things that will take them to their utter destruction. This is NOT a lie !  

 

It is a lying spirit that tells a drunk to imbibe MORE ALCOHOL ( i.e., “spirit water” ).  “It will make you feel good. It will lift your spirits,” the lying spirit tells that person… as the alcohol destroys the mind, the pocketbook, the family unit, his liver, his soul,  and eventually his life.

 

The drug-addict believes the same lie.  So does the materialist and money-grabber, whether rich or poor. The LIE functions the same regardless of the financial status of that individual. 

 

The LIE, it proclaims of itself,

will MAKE YOU HAPPY.

 

The trouble is, that is the ORIGINAL LIE.  It is exactly what will lead you into GREAT UNHAPPINESS.

 

Lies infiltrate everything connected to human life, from promiscuity to abortion, to clothing styles and entertainment, from pursuits of careers to pursuits of life-styles and pursuits of philosophies.

LIES infiltrate the CORE of our value system, alas.

 

LIES , unfortunately, are ingrained in us because Adam and Eve bought the LIE and passed it on to us in our Adamic Nature. That LIE was: GOD does not make us happy; the WORLD does !

 

Thus, we Christians STRUGGLE to untangle ourselves from the world wide web of LIES we have been born into, imbibed ourselves, and taught to love. If we do not see the error of our ways, we soon teach others to “love the LIE,”  also. 

Does the “TRUTH ALWAYS HURT” ,

as some folks say ?

 

The TRUTH NEVER HURTS.

 

The TRUTH SETS US FREE,

as The LORD JESUS

truthfully told us.

 

DEEP, SEARING PAIN, however, overwhelms us when we first see the LIE which has led us down the wrong path so long.  The WITHDRAWAL from a  lying value and belief system is as painful as withdrawal from any abused substance.

 

So, the TRUTH of the matter is that  the LIE ALWAYS HURTS; the TRUTH sets us free.

 

“What is TRUTH?” a very expedient Pilate asked, who lived to regret his expediency.  

 JESUS said,

 ” I+ AM The Way,

THE TRUTH,

and The Life;

 

no man comes to The FATHER,

except through ME.+ “

John 14:6

 

“Come OUT of her, MY+ People;

and touch not the unclean thing.”

 

That “unclean thing” is all LIES, all false values, all identities we adhere ourselves unto … other than JESUS CHRIST our LORD. HE+ is THE … THE… THE  … TRUTH.  There is no TRUTH outside of CHRIST JESUS.

 

We are strangers and pilgrims on this earth, whose citizenship is in Heaven, not on earth. 

 

On earth , we do not travel through another country and try to re-form its government as we pass through it. We simply tell its citizens the “Good News” about JESUS as we journey on our way.  We are not STAYING there; we are heading to another place where we are the RIGHTFUL Citizens of the land, our Heavenly Home.

 

Let us not entangle ourselves with the affairs of this life, Christians. Let us not think we can glibly slip into the marriage supper of the LAMB+. We may find out we do not have the PROPER WEDDING GARMENT.

 

Indeed, if we have already had affairs with this world and are impure with divided loyalties, we will not find a wedding garment set aside for us.  

 

The LORD will have NO DIVIDED LOYALTIES in His+ Bride; HE+ is looking for a pure BRIDE, worthy of wearing the white linen of the Saints.

 

BEWARE. Beware of the LIES. They are designed to steal your berth in the Holy , New Jerusalem.

 

For without are dogs,

and sorcerers,

and whoremongers,

and murderers,

and idolaters,

 

and whosoever loveth

and maketh a lie.

Revelation 22:15

 

+  +  +

KNOWING The Will of The LORD...

Time with CHRIST JESUS.

In Thy+ Light shall we see LIGHT.

 This is The WAY+ ; walk ye in it.

 

These are all Words of Life from Scripture, Words we know so well.

 So, why is it that we walk through our time here on earth in a confused muddle, not knowing whether we should go to the left hand or to the right ? 

Why is it, then… 

that The LORD’S Will is a mystery to us especially when we have a crucial decision facing us ?

 

If any of you lack Wisdom,

let him ask from the Giving GOD,

giving to all men freely,

and not reproaching

( chiding, upbraiding);

and it will be given to him.

James 1:5 literal Greek

We have the HOLY SPIRIT at our re-birth; it is a promise given to us in Acts 2:38 to repent and be baptized to receive the GIFT of the HOLY SPIRIT.  Marvelous Gift from GOD !

With all this help promised to us from The Word of GOD and from the HOLY SPIRIT dwelling within us… 

why are we confused,

stumbling, and up-set, 

not knowing whether to go to the left hand

or to the right ? 

 

We have all been in this state, and it is DISTRESSING.

 

We say …

” Oh, if only The Scriptures would tell me what to do ! If I could only open my Bible and see whether I should take this job…  move to that city … marry that one … embark on this out-reach. 

Then I would know what to do !” 

 

We say …

“Oh WHY doesn’t The LORD answer me when I NEED to know what to do ? “

 

But HE+ says:

 

“Oh, WHY

have you LIMITED your time with ME+ ?

 

Why have you been SO busy…

and then, too, too tired …

to spend QUALITY time with ME+ ?

 

Have I+ asked you to do

any great thing in your life ?

No.

 I+ have only asked one thing of you:

Come and sit with ME+

a-while

every day.

 

No studying,

not even reading at this time,

not fellow-shipping,

not singing,

not public worship.

 

Just come and SIT WITH ME+.

Alone. Every day.

 

But no, you will not do that

for even 30 minutes of earthly time.

 

You begrudge coming to SIT WITH ME+

beside My+ Still Waters.

 

You refuse to STILL yourself.

Everyday you are too busy

with “good” projects and necessary duties

to find time to sit with ME+. 

But, I+ am your Life-Source! 

I+ am your Wisdom!  

How then can you expect to hear My+ Direction

when the changes of Life occur

or when trouble raises its head ?

 

I+ will not join you in your busy-ness.

 

I+ cannot refresh your soul there.

 

You cannot hear My+ Voice there.

 

I+ will not reveal My+ Will

in the midst of other voices

competing for your attention.

 

If you want My+ Direction

you must come to ME+

in My+ Stillness. “

Everyday.

Before the crises of life happen.

+  +  +

 

LET US PRAY:

 

LORD JESUS, I have neglected YOU+, the Most Important ONE+ in my life. Life is meaningless without YOU+, yet I have gone on my way expecting YOU+ to accompany me… instead of me accompanying YOU+.

 

I repent of my mis-guided busy-ness. I place every one of my activities on the altar; burn them with the fire of Thy+ Holiness, O LORD.

 

Settle me down. Place upon me, now, O LORD, Thy+ Will, Thy+ Way and I will walk in it. Let me not go to the left hand nor to the right, to the Glory of GOD my FATHER.

 

Create in me a clean heart and renew a right spirit within me, O LORD.

 

I am still now, LORD,

… and listening.

 

+  +  +

Time to REBUILD the TRUE Temple of The LORD

Haggai 1:2

Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying,

This people say, 

The time is NOT come,

the time that the LORD’s house

should be built.

 1:3

Then came the word of the LORD

by Haggai the prophet, saying,

1:4

Is it time for you,

O ye, to dwell in your cieled houses,

and this house lie waste?

 …

 1:9

Ye looked for much,

and, lo it came to little;

 and when ye brought it home,

I did blow upon it.

 Why?

saith the LORD of hosts.

 

Because of Mine House

that is waste,

and ye run every man

unto his own house.

+  +  +

Is it TIME YET ?

 

I Corinthians

3:16

 Know ye not that ye are

the Temple of GOD,

and that the SPIRIT of GOD

dwelleth in you?

3:17

If any man defile the Temple of GOD,

him shall GOD destroy;

for the Temple of GOD is holy,

which Temple ye are.

+  +  +

Do not think for a minute that The LORD is lax about His Temple.

 

HE was not lax when HE brought His People out of Egypt.  HE was not lax when HE allowed His Temple to be destroyed by the Babylonians.

 

The Jews had so corrupted themselves that The SPIRIT of GOD abandoned their Temple, and the Destroying Nation was allowed to devastate the Corrupted Temple.

 

It had become VILE in the Eyes of The LORD. 

 

But do not think for a minute that The LORD is lax about His Temple .

 

HE was not lax back then;

HE is not lax now.

 

No, HE is NOT LAX now, either.

 

I Corinthians 3:16

 

Know ye not that ye are the

Temple of GOD,

and that the SPIRIT of GOD

dwelleth in you?

 

The Apostle Paul wrote this to born-again Christians, Followers of The LORD JESUS CHRIST, who were living in Corinth, a greatly corrupted metropolitan city. 

3:17

If any man defile the Temple of GOD,

him shall GOD destroy;

for the Temple of GOD is Holy,

which Temple ye are.

 

The Apostle was NOT KIDDING. He was in dead earnest. In great seriousness he wrote this to BORN-AGAIN Christians who were already Saved. 

 

The Apostle’s message was this:  We cannot defile our temple because The HOLY SPIRIT has been placed in it during Baptism ( Acts 2:38).

 

It is HIS+ TEMPLE NOW.

 

Thus,   WE  are  now

His+ LIVING Temple.

 

If we DO defile it, then our “temple” becomes VILE to The LORD and HE+ will destroy it. 

Defiling GOD’S TEMPLE is serious and The LORD is NOT LAX about how we are to conduct ourselves being His+ LIVING Temple .

 

What manner of life, then, are we to live ? 

 

We are to BUILD HIS+ TEMPLE

within our hearts…

not our own “temple”.

 

We are to sow to the SPIRIT … and not to the Flesh.

We are not to forsake the building of the Living Temple of GOD in favor of building our OWN temporal , earth-bound fiefdom.  It will bring death to our souls.

Rather… we lay hold on Eternal Life, to the which we have been called. We are to Cultivate the Salvation which has been given to us, with fear and trembling

… not nonchalance.

 

PRIORITIES of HEART and TIME and ENERGY

need to be re-focused on CHRIST JESUS first. 

HE+ will supply the rest,

as it is promised.

 

+  +  +

The HAMMER of The LORD

"Why do you say, ' LORD, LORD '

... and do NOT the things I+ say ? "

Are not MY+ Words like a refiner's fire, 

like a Hammer that breaks the rock, 

that goeth forth through all the earth ? 

Hearken unto ME+ :  Every Word that I+ speak will come to pass. None --- not a one --- will fall to the earth void.  

ALIGN YOURSELF 

WITH ME+. 

Why do you work for things which will not profit ?  

CHRIST the KING+ 

ever reigns on High; 

O Come, 

Let us adore HIM+ ! 

The LORD bringeth the counsel

of the nations to nought. 

HE+ maketh the devices of the people

of NONE EFFECT. 

Psalm 33:10 

For the Indignation of The LORD 

is upon all nations, 

and His+ fury 

upon all their armies: 

HE+ hath utterly destroyed them, 

HE+ hath delivered them 

to the slaughter. 

Isaiah 34:2

CHRIST the KING+ 

ever reigns on High; 

O Come, 

Let us adore HIM+ !

Be merciful unto me , O GOD, 

be merciful unto me. 

For my soul trusteth in THEE+; 

yea, in the shadow of Thy+ Wings

will I make my refuge

until these calamities be over-past. 

Psalm 57:1   

Be Still

and know that

I AM  ELOHIM; 

I will be exalted

among the nations, 

I will be exalted 

in the earth. 

Psalm 46:10

For I know that 

my REDEEMER+ Lives

and HE+ shall stand at the Latter Day

upon the earth. 

And though after my skin

worms destroy this body,

yet in my flesh 

shall I see GOD

Whom+ I shall see for myself, 

AND MINE EYE SHALL BEHOLD, 

and not another; 

my reins be consumed within me. 

Job 19

CHRIST the KING+ 

ever reigns on High; 

O Come, 

Let us adore HIM+ !

And the work of Righteousness shall be peace; 

and the effect of Righteousness, 

QUIETNESS and ASSURANCE for ever. 

Isaiah 32:17

THOU+ will keep him 

in Perfect Peace, 

whose mind is stayed

on THEE+ 

Because he trusteth 

in THEE.+ 

Isaiah 26:4   

 

CHRIST the KING+ 

ever reigns on High; 

O Come, 

Let us adore HIM+ !

+  +  +

 

 

 

  

 

Thy WORD+ is True from the Beginning...

Thy WORD+ is true from the beginning:

and every one of Thy

Righteous Judgments endureth for ever.

Psalm 119:160

 

O how I love Thy Law!

It is my meditation all the day.

Psalm 119:97

 

“O, how I love THEE+, O LORD .” 

 

This is the cry of our hearts.  Why do we love His+ Law, His+ Word, His+ Commandments ?   What good does it do to MEDITATE upon His+ Law all day long ?

 

The WORD+ of The LORD is a Living Word+.  It is not merely ink-on-paper.  It is not merely the thoughts of men.

 

 His+ Word is pulsating with the very SPIRIT of The LIVING ELOHIM. It is in-breathed, in-spired by His+ HOLY SPIRIT.

 

We know The LIVING ELOHIM only through ONE WAY… through The LORD JESUS CHRIST.  

 

Neither is there Salvation in any other.

For there is none other Name under Heaven,

given among men,

whereby we must be saved.

Acts 4:12

Through our LORD JESUS CHRIST is the  Law for our behavior made and given in the First Covenant … and then explained and EXPANDED to include the motives of our HEARTS, in the New Covenant.

 

Through HIM+, Our HOLY FATHER Which art in Heaven, is revealed.

 

Guidance and judgment, yes, we may obtain from a list of rules and regulations. 

 

But human beings CANNOT “LOVE”

A LIST of LAWS. 

 

We can only love a person, a living being.  And for most of us, we can only love a person who also loves us.

 

So WHY does the Psalmist say,

 

“O how I love Thy+ Law!

It is my meditation all the day” ?

 

It is because THIS LAW  is embodied in the person of Our LORD JESUS CHRIST.  HE+ is the one through Whom+ we know our Heavenly FATHER. 

 

HE+  is 

the LAW INCARNATE+.

 

HE+ is the one through Whom+ the great, loving, and merciful character — yet Righteous in every respect —  of our Heavenly FATHER is revealed for all … the widow and the orphan, for the stranger in the land, for brethren with one another, for the merchant and slave, for the thief and the murderer.

 

Through JESUS CHRIST the MESSIAH is the character of Our mutual Heavenly FATHER revealed .

 

Our FATHER’S character is Upright, no shadow of turning in HIM.  Our LORD JESUS shows forth The FATHER’S RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT in the matters of Religious Law with the woman taken in adultery.

 

So when they continued asking HIM+,

HE+ lifted up Himself+,

and said unto them,

 

He that is without sin among you,

let him first cast a stone at her.

John 8:7

 

Our LORD JESUS shows forth The FATHER’S JUDGMENT, even in civil matters.  HE+ told the ever clever, letter-of-the-Law-abiding Pharisees to look at Caesar’s coin.

 

Let us listen to His+ Words from The FATHER :

 Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk. And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of ELOHIM in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men.

 

Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?

 

But JESUS perceived their wickedness,

and said, Why tempt ye ME+,

ye hypocrites?

Shew ME+ the tribute money.

 

And they brought unto him a penny.

 

And HE+ saith unto them,

Whose is this image and superscription?

 

They say unto him,

Caesar’s !

 

Then saith HE+ unto them,

 

Render therefore unto Caesar

the things which are Caesar’s;

 and unto GOD

 the things that are GOD’S.

Matthew 22: 15-22

 

Through all these Scriptures, both Old and New, we see the character of our Heavenly FATHER revealed. 

 In the Old Covenant, His character is revealed through The LAW.  In the New Covenant, HIS character revealed in the Righteous LAW is

completed and EXPANDED

through Our LORD JESUS CHRIST.

 

So yes, we can heartily agree with this :

 

Thy WORD+ is true from the beginning:

and every one of Thy

Righteous Judgments endureth for ever.

 

O how I love Thy Law!

It is my meditation all the day.

 

There is NO CONFLICT between the Old and the New for followers of Y’SHU+. 

 

• GOD’S character is CONSTANT.

• His Discernment is accurate.

• His Judgments are real.

• And His Truth is un-changing, ever-lasting, and endures forever. 

 

All of this is REVEALED in the person of Our LORD JESUS CHRIST … the same yesterday, today, and forever.  Amen.

Let PATIENCE Have Her PERFECT WORK !

ALLOW   PATIENCE

TO HAVE HER PERFECT WORK !

 

Knowing this,

that the trying of your faith

worketh patience.

 

But LET patience have her PERFECT work,

that ye may be

perfect and entire,

wanting nothing.

James 1:3-4

 

Endurance with joy … or at least with obedience… will DO something for us, if we walk through our trial in the Companionship of The LORD JESUS CHRIST. 

 

HE+ suffered on the Cross for people who did not love HIM+ …. yet.  HE+ suffered mocking and scourging and rejection for people who did not know HIM+ … yet.

PATIENCE  will take us through such trials of our bodies and hearts also. 

He+ made HIMSELF+  of no reputation.  NONE!  HE+ was the humblest of men, taking upon HIMSELF+ the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men.  And being found in fashion as a man, HE+  humbled HIMSELF+.

 

PATIENCE will lead us down the path of humbleness also, especially if we embrace that path as “from The LORD.”

 

And became OBEDIENT unto death, even the death of the Cross.

 

Can we humble ourselves in our trials and hateful tasks yoked upon us … in order to join HIM+ on the Cross ?

 

SOME of our hateful and hard situations we find ourselves in, we have simply brought on ourselves.

 

We have clamored for THAT  mate, THAT house, THAT job, or THAT car.  We have been sad and depressed when our longing has been denied.  We yearn so DEEPLY for  “THAT” special mate or “THAT” special position or thing.  Just to make us happy.  Just to fulfill our lives, yes ?

 

But, throughout our impatient years, the LORD has blocked our desire. Still, we continue to nag and refuse to be content with the lowly, Self-effacing path HE+ has ordained for us.

 

Finally …

The LORD steps aside and allows us to obtain  “THAT”  — whatever it is. Unfortunately, it takes only a very short time to discover the Truth:

 

 All along, Our LORD has been saving us

from tremendous heart-ache,

saving us from tremendous burdens,

or saving us from a deeper sorrow

than our hearts had ever known.

 

And now, there is no turning back.  We chose our mate, that position, that house.  The bill for sowing to our yearnings is coming due.  Our burdens and heart-aches are increasing exponentially.

 

How do we survive ?

 

We humble ourselves to CHRIST JESUS.  We admit and confess that our hard-headedness and Self-will has procured for us this awful situation.

 

Then we repent. 

 

HE+ tried to warn us not to go in that direction.  HE+ tried to re-direct our will to JOIN HIS+ WILL… but we could not abide doing that. So now, with the distress sitting in our lap and growing bigger daily, we see the error of our Self-centered life and we REPENT.

 

We cry to HIM+ for forgiveness, for leaving the path of fruitfulness.  Our hands are so full of the distressing situation that we now are VERY LIMITED in what we can do for the Kingdom of GOD.  HE+ knew it all along; now WE see it as well.

 

Our next step is to ENDURE and walk in a companionship with Our LORD through the mess of our lives that we have created ourselves. 

 

For some,  after patience has had its perfecting and corrective work done in us,  HE+ will provide a way of escape.  HE+ will speak to our hearts about this and hopefully, by the hard lesson we have had forced upon us, we will WAIT and LISTEN for His+ re-direction of our lives… and GO when HE+ says “Go” and “Stay”  when HE+ says STAY.

 

For others, there will be no escape and they are left to carry the sole responsibility with the unwanted child to raise …  the  hurt of an unfaithful mate … the straight-jacket of an over-whelming debt locked into a neighborhood where there are NO friends and instead, is infested with spiritual enemies who are destroying our children  …  or the never-ending responsibility of a handicapped parent (child, spouse, or sibling) to care for.

 

Sadly, these burdens take the IMpatient ones totally off the work The LORD had originally chosen them for to further His+ Kingdom.

 

But wait ! 

 

There is hope for our life, even though the heavy issues are not resolved.  THIS TIME… we do EVERYTHING to walk in that straight and narrow path that leads unto Life. 

 

The LORD JESUS never abandons His+ sheep if we want HIM+ to rule our lives.  HE+ never abandons us … if and when we repent and return unto HIM+.

 

Thus, we are admonished by the Apostle James to “allow PATIENCE to have her perfect work ”  in us. 

 

We will see, then,

HIS+ Great Patience

with us !

 

Walking hand-in-hand with The LORD JESUS CHRIST through sorrow, we will receive correction and perfection.  Made mature, we will NEVER  follow our own devices and yearnings again.

 

We will learn to allow the LORD to bring into our lives the people and things and WORK which HE+ wants us to have as friends, mates, abodes, and labors.  We will learn to chase after NOTHING in our heart and in our flesh.

 

Then, when HE+ brings people, places, and work to us, it will be ordained by The LORD for our happiness and Self-worth, as we lose ourselves in His+ Perfect Will.

 

Yes, let us allow PATIENCE to have her perfect work in us. We will NEVER, EVER regret it… like we do from those regrets accrued by NOT allowing PATIENCE to bring us to maturity in CHRIST.

+  +  +

The Valley of Baca... The Valley of Weeping

The Valley of Baca … 

The Valley of WEEPING

Psalm 84

The Valley of Weeping is a Special Place for the Followers of JESUS. It is a place of sweet Companionship with the Savior+ of our souls.  It is a valley where we walk, one at a time, with our hand in His+ Hand… His+ Nail-pierced Hand.

 

HE+ knows the Way through that valley because, you see, HE+ walked it before we did.  HE+ suffered rejection and loss of family, for even some of His+ half-brothers did not believe HE+ was the Messiah. 

HE+ walked it through slights and taunts and rudeness as the learn-ed ones who knew The Word did not know HIM+, the Living Word+.

 

HE+ walked through that dark Valley when HE+ shared Isaiah 61 with the people HE+ grew up with … who turned on HIM+ in wrath and thrust HIM+ to the edge of the cliff to throw HIM+ head-long down the ravine.

 

The Valley of Weeping was where HE+ laid His+ head.  It was where HE+ opened the eyes of the blind and then rescued him from the Temple Pharisees.  

It was where HE+ healed the diseases and yes, where HE+ raised Lazarus with deep groans in the SPIRIT, heard by The FATHER.

 

 

What happens to our tears, as we walk through the Valley of Baca, with JESUS ?  Listen to the literal Hebrew:

Blessed is the man whose strength

is in THEE+;

in whose heart are the highways,

who passing through the Valley of Baca

make it a fountain;

even with blessings

the early rain covers it.

Our tears draw us to JESUS HIMSELF+.  They water the garden of our heart, right in the midst of the Valley of Baca. In our heart, you see, is the Highway to GOD and at times that Highway takes us through that Valley of Weeping.

 

But as we Weep With JESUS,  a phenomenal thing occurs.  Our tears become a REFRESHING fountain  for  others who must walk through the Valley, sooner or later.  Indeed, out of our belly flow RIVERS of LIVING WATERS !  John 7:38.

The Fountain of our Tears, joined to JESUS, becomes blessings for the strengthening of others,  just like the life-giving early rains for the production of food for mankind. Indeed, it will POUR forth from the Fountain of our Soul, rooted in JESUS.

 

The WORLD cannot give its followers this, in the midst of their sorrows.

 

Our LORD and SAVIOR+ JESUS CHRIST can SANCTIFY our trials and sorrow of heart … and MOST ASSUREDLY does … if we walk Hand in Hand with our LORD.  HE+ wastes nothing that touches our lives. It all is for OUR GOOD … and for others.

Our Companionship with HIM+ grows deeper than a lack of sorrow could ever bring. HE+ brings us to maturity in CHRIST, a maturity that is not possible to achieve without sorrow and grief and hurt.

 

No matter WHAT variety of  sorrow  we face, we have the promise that our SORROW will not last forever… but our joy in JESUS will ! 

+  +  +

Therefore, O LORD,

we praise you even now in the midst of our sorrow,

our hurt, and our weakness. 

 

Yes, we would like this sorrow to lift, 

but we know that YOU+, O LORD ,

have no shadow of turning in THEE+. 

YOU+ are always constant, the same. 

 

So, help us to stay constant in CHRIST. 

Through good times, through sorrow, 

let Your+ Light so shine in us before men,

that they may see our good works

and GLORIFY  YOU,

O Holy FATHER.

+  +  +

JESUS Wept… 

is written such

when sorrow much at Death prevails,

holding all in gloom-filled tomb;

no end in sight for Sorrow’s Might

when Death destroys a loved one. 

 

 

JESUS Wept… 

Scriptures said, 

when  tears o’r-flowed from family. 

Neighbors came a-weeping,

as Death untamed

laid its Claim for keeping.    

 

Yes, JESUS Wept…

Seeing Death affect the Living,

curse in sway sweeps life away,

destroying all it touches .

 

JESUS Wept… 

but swept aside His+ Veil of Flesh

and earthly fears with groans,

unheard His+ moans

by fleshly, human ears.    

 

Then JESUS  Lifted

… not the stone…

but the Tone

of Command.

There HE+ met the curse head-first: 

    

LAZARUS ! Here ! Outside !

HE+ cried.

This time… with no tears!