Tag Archives: Trial

THE TRIAL

17 Sep

“In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.” Psalm 18:6 KJV

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I couldn't pray today,

The words wouldn't form in my heart.

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The Scripture made no sense,

Blocks of words and numbers.

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I didn't know who to call,

It all seemed so confusing.

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Crying out - Lord,

What to do,

What to do.

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Simple words,

A simple sacred sacrifice.

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I praise You, Lord,

I thank You for this trial.

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Then, in a moment,

The miracle occurred.

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It was Joy,

In the height of the storm,

It was Joy.

 

 

 

※   Written  9-1-1991

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MOAB IS MY WASHPOT

24 Nov

Psalm 60 and Psalm 108

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I have been set between two warring factions,

Each is dear to my heart.

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I stand between the two and push each back,

Trying in the physical to do that,

Which only the spiritual can change.

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The anger and violence that explodes is frightening,

It cannot continue – it must not.

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One faction leaves in rage,

Tainting the lives of those left behind.

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I grieve.

I grieve in travail that seemingly,

Cannot be quenched.

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I pray and clean my house,

I pray and stand in faith,

I pray and wait for my miracle,

It is taking so long.

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“Moab is my washpot,” says God,

my thorn, of incestuous birth,

and my cleansing bowl.

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Moab is my washpot,

A chosen outsider that I love,

With all of my heart.

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I long to draw him close,

Yet he has pushed me far away.

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I kneel before God,

Cleansing my past,

Cleansing my generations,

Cleansing the ground on which I stand,

Cleansing the future for my family to come.

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As I prepare a new path,

A new home, a new way,

The heaviness of anger and grief lift.

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When my loved one returns,

Peace will overcome turmoil,

Love will overcome rage.

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There will be much pain to be healed,

There will be times of testing,

Times of patience,

Times of re-washing and cleansing,

Times of reconciliation.

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I bless God for the times that Moab rose up,

For we had a mere existence,

An acceptance of the way things were,

Things that were not right.

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Without Moab, things might never have changed,

Now God can work His will,

In drawing us together,

The way we should have always been,

But couldn’t find the way.

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Thank you God, for the trial of Moab.

 

 

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Written 2-8-2001

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INFERNO

7 Jul

That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:   -1 Peter 1:7


Here I stand,

Safe in the hand of God,

Kissed by a gentle breeze,

Cooled by the living water,

Of the Spirit.


All around me rages an inferno,

To my right, to my left,

Directly in my path.


The bowels of hell,

Threatening death,

Always testing my faith,

But held away,

By my closest friend, my savior.


Here I stand,

And here I will stay,

Until I hear the voice of God,

Directing my steps,

To reach the lost,

With His precious love.

 

 

Written 11-10-2000

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THE MOUSE IN THE POPCORN PAN

31 Mar

By Linda J. Humes

When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. Isaiah 43:2 (KJV)

mouseBy Linda J. Humes

During World War II my Grandparents supported themselves by owning and running a popcorn stand. They lived near a military base and on the weekends the soldiers would come to town to watch movies in an outdoor theatre. My Grandparents strategically set up their stand near the entrance to the theatre and sold the buttery delight to the hungry soldiers.

All my life I can remember a pan of popcorn in the oven. It became a family tradition. If you visited Grandma’s or Mom’s house and had a snack attack, you grabbed a bowl and raided the oven. Popcorn became more than a staple or a snack, it was comfort food.

When I started my family and raised my boys the popcorn pan was always there. When you have a gas stove, as we have, the popcorn stays warm and crispy from the heat of the pilot light – what a delight!

A few months ago I grabbed my bowl and headed for the oven – I could already taste the treat that awaited. I opened the door and to my surprise – a mouse was sitting squarely in the middle of my popcorn pan, stuffing his little self. I closed the door.

Wow. My first thought went to “I wonder how long he’s been doing that” and then quickly convinced myself that this HAD to be the first time – and it certainly was going to be the last. Convincing myself of this was the only way I could get my stomach to settle back down.

“What did you learn,” God asked. Convicted. That mouse wanted that popcorn so bad that he went past a large pilot light flame, up through the heating holes, across a hot oven floor, and into the pan. He went past the dog bowls and cat bowls, with food in them. He went past the bowl of scraps for the chicken coop. He knew what he wanted and he went past the fire and across the heat to get there. He desired the sweet savor that awaited. Oh, my Lord.

How often have I backed away instead of pressing into God because of a “fire” that stood in my path? How many times have I cut my Bible study or prayer time short because of the heat of daily life driving me to complete arduous tasks that have no eternal value? How many times have I been in the middle of a trial and screamed out “God, it’s too hard!”

My, my. A little mouse in a popcorn pan put me to shame. My true desire is to always run to the arms of God when storms rise – but my human side says “take shelter.” Then when I shake off that immediate fear, I turn back. I keep promising myself that the “next time” I’ll head straight in toward Jesus – no matter what. I can taste the sweet savor now. Delightful.

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