Someone Else's Faults

When judging someone else's faults,

let's stop and list our own.

Compare the notes with who we judge;

we'll see they're not alone.

It's easy to point out mistakes,

that someone else will do,

But as the saying goes, my friend;

"Walk a mile while in their shoes."

It's better to reach out a hand

to help someone in need,

than to stand and point a finger

at someone for a bad deed.

God could have done the same to us,

with His wrath, get everyone!

But instead He washed away our sins

with the blood of His own Son!

~ George A. Hellard Jr.



A Prayer of Thanksgiving

We thank Thee God for bird on wing,
For love of Thee which solace brings;
For tender moments of each day,
Which special be in their own way!

We thank Thee God for brother man,
Who is the heart of Thine own plan;
For wondrous creature great and small,
Oh Thou, the Author of us all!

We thank Thee God for moments sweet,
Such as the touch of baby's cheek;
A puppy's frantic wagging tail,
The beauty of a wind-swept sail!

We thank Thee God for time of prayer
In church or home where we prepare
To meet uncertainties of day,
When dark-rimmed clouds are swept away!

We thank Thee God for unearned grace,
The tender warmth of Thine embrace;
For wonders of Thy boundless love
Which brighter be than skies above!

~ Sancie Earman King

Give thanks
to the Lord,
for He is good,
His mercy endure forever.
1 Chr. 16:34

My Unfailing Friend



What a sweet and blessed feeling

When I wake up ev'ry day

Just to feel God's presence near me

Just to know He's there to stay.

Oh, I know I am not worthy

Of His tender love and care,

Still I have His precious promise

That He's with me ev'rywhere.

There will always be the shadows

And we can't escape the night,

Still I know He watches o'er me,

I am always in His sight;

Though the storms may rage around me

Still the Lord will help me stand,

There's a sweet and precious calmness

In the hollow of His hand.

~ Thomas D. Risk

Sometimes

Sometimes the days seem dreary

And weary seems the load,

Sometimes we meet with heartaches

As we travel on life's road.

Sometimes the skies seem darkened

As noonday turns to night,

Sometimes the load seems heavy

With future none too bright.

Sometimes our heart grows weary

With every passing day,

Sometimes a sickness makes us

Upon a bed to lay.

Sometimes does not seem pleasant

As we look upon the sad,

But sunshine follows shadows,

Then, sometime's not so bad.

Sometimes when day seems dreary,

Just remember you can pray.

Sometimes when heartaches gather,

Look to Jesus all the day.

Sometimes when skies seem darkened,

You can look unto the light.

Sometimes when loads seem heavy,

You are walking in Christ's sight.

Sometimes when heart grows weary,

He will understand and care.

Sometimes when sickness gathers,

You have love beyond compare.

Sometimes can be most pleasant

When we look to God above,

And sometimes makes you happy

If you'll look unto His love.

~ Charles G. Ramsey 

In the Garden of My Soul

 A tender heart with words unspoken

Glistening tears like rain-drops fall,

A heart so broken filled with sadness

Is the saddest fate of all.

But there's life beyond the mourning,

There is hope in a tossed storm sea,

There's an answer to each prayer

In our own Gethsemane.

So do your best and keep on trying

Though each mountain high with fear,

God will aid the brokenhearted,

He will dry up every tear.

Rest assured a new tomorrow

Will come through with a brighter hue,

Like the prism in each dew-drop

Making all the wrongs seem new.

~ Chris Zambernard

The Lord is close

to the brokenhearted...

Ps. 34:18

The Good Shepherd

 My Shepherd watches over me

He knows my every need.

Through verdant meadows, pastures green,

surely He doth lead.

All troubled thoughts He gently calms,

my soul He doth restore.

In paths of love and goodness

He guides me evermore.

Through dark the road

Thou art near.

Whither my way,

There's naught to fear,

Thy rod and Thy staff

Comfort me still.

In presence of my enemies

A table Thou dost fill.

With oil anointest Thou my head,

my cup runs goodly o'er.

And surely I shall leave Thy house,

Good Shepherd, nevermore.

~ Walter Kamens

The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want.

Ps. 23:1

Spring Celebration

 When I see the golden glory

As the sun begins to rise

And the splendor of the heavens

In the far-off eastern skies -

When I hear the songbirds singing

As the night turns into day,

With fresh dewdrops for their drinking

From the blossoms when it's May -

When the breeze blows soft and gentle

With the scent of sweet perfume

And the hummingbirds are busy

Feasting fast upon the bloom -

Then, with songs and hymns and praises

To creation's Lord and King,

I, with birds and blooms and breezes,

Celebrate the lovely spring.

~ George R. Kossik

The flowers

appear on the earth;

the time of the Singing

of birds is come.

Song 2:12



Multiple Blessings

 Comfort in times of loneliness,

Blessings in times of sorrow,

Guidance in times of decisions

That we must face tomorrow.

Relief in times of suffering,

Courage in times of fear,

Protection in times of danger,

That may be lurking near.

Peace in a time of turmoil,

Strength in a time of temptation,

Forgiveness in a time of conviction,

Would bring to us such revelation.

Warning in times of indifference,

Deliverance in times we are weak;

Rest in the times we are weary,

These multiple blessings we seek.

Where can we find this guidance?

Why, from our Savior above,

Who always watches over us,

And fills our hearts with love.

~ Albert N. Theel

Roll Call

One day you'll bid me come to You,

Forget the earthly cares I knew,

I'll gather roses while I may

To offer You a sweet bouquet.

I'll teach my heart a song to sing

Proclaiming all the joy You bring

To those who kneel to You in prayer

And find Your presence always there.

I wanted You so close to me -

So much I had to learn from Thee -

By learning to love others, too,

Is what has brought me close to You.

Now I look back on all the years

Recall the laughter and the tears

And You were there along the way

To fill my cup for me each day.

~ Edna Fontaine

 Surely goodness and mercy

shall follow me all the days of my life

and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Ps. 23:6

There is a Gift

There is peace; an inner peace
We cannot understand,
It permeates in a troubled heart
when God is in command.

There is joy; a marvelous joy,
To know we're not alone.
Because the Lord provides the light
into our dark unknown.

There is love; abundant love,
Unfathomed and it's free,
Because our debt for sin was paid
by Christ on Calvary.

There is hope; a blessed hope
Because of God's gerat love,
He's promised us, through His own Son,
A place prepared above.

There is a faith; a limitless faith,
And yet a grain or two
can move a mountain; heal the sick,
There's nothing it can't do.

These are the gifts; God's matchless gifts
That are so freely given,
Come and partake; experience
Your own sweet taste of heaven.

~ Margaret E. Taylor

Why Didn't I?

 If only I could take them back -

the times that I was silent,

though I cared.

Why was my "faith in action"

quite so slack

when others' joys and sorrows needed

to be shared?

There were phone calls that

I could have made,

letters that I might have sent,

countless times I could have prayed,

and precious moments I was given,

better spent.

Forgive me, Lord, for

what I haven't done;

help me become a better image

of Your Son.

Then I won't need to chide myself

and sigh,

"Why didn't I? Why didn't I?"

~ Barbara A. McDowell

Silences



A pouring rain makes melodies

Descending from the sky,

But oh, the quiet sunny days

When clouds move white and high.

The songbirds chirps in early dawn,

Each trills his notes in streams,

But oh, the hours when all is hushed,

And we may dream our dreams.

Some afternoons the trees in winds

Are like soft strummed guitars,

But oh, the stillness of the night

Where we can see the stars.

The rushing wavelets on a lake

Make music's loud release,

But oh, the times of waters calm,

When we may find our peace.

All nature's sounds are beautiful

In water, earth, and air,

But oh, the lovely silences

That call our hearts to prayer.

~ Jean Hogan Dudley

...a time to keep silence,

and a time to speak.

Eccl. 3:7

When I'm Afraid

Everytime I am afraid,

And shadows dim the way,

When peace seems to elude me,

Even when I pray,

When I am tired and weary,

Struggling through each task,

And I can find no answers,

To the questions that I ask.

Then, more than any other time,

I turn to You for aid,

Trusting You to set it aright,

The blunders I have made.

Knowing You will gather up 

The pieces from the floor,

Of disillusion, tarnished hopes,

And lovingly restore

Them to their former glory

Without a crack or seam,

And fill the night with peace so I

May close my eyes and dream.

For when I am afraid I know

It's weakness on my part,

Because through every trial I face,

I hold You in my heart.

Dear Lord, please take into account,

This love within my breast,

That burns for You, and know that it

Is all that I possess.

~ Grace E. Easley

Rest

 Lord - give the sun to warm me,

A shower, my soul, to cleanse.

A light breeze to cool - not stormy,

Those hurt - may I make amends.

May my heart and soul be humble

With Your graces, always blessed,

On the road to You, not stumble

Within Your love find rest.

~ James Joseph Huesgen
 

All Things are Possible

 No burden is too heavy,

No cross too great to bear,

If you let God into your life

And let God into your life

And let Him with you share.

No mountain is too steep to climb,

Though high that it may be,

If you let God into your life

The summit you will see.

No goals are ever out of sight

That you seek to attain,

As long as God is in your life

You will not strive in vain.

~ Harold F. Mohn

...if you have faith

the size of a mustard seed,

you will say to this mountain

"move from here to here,"

and it will move.

Matt. 17:20

Winter Wonder

 The ermine mantle covering earth

Deftly hides the world once more

As shapes and forms begin to emerge

That have never been seen before.

Branches drip with mother-of-pearl

And diamond frost and rainbow makes

As icy castles and sparkling stars

Are mirrored in shimmering lakes.

And in this transformed magic land

Coated with soft and silent snow,

God's creatures leave a tiny tail

That vanishes into woods below.

~ Eva Marie Ippolito

Thou has set

all the borders

of the earth:

thou hast made

summer and winter.

Ps. 74:17



Final Chance?

The soft and gentle ways of life -

Like Seasons of the year -

Become less full of life's contents

As Winter years draw near,

For Winter years bring aches and ills

That burden life with grief

And, only, in God's Grace of prayer

Is comfort and relief.

But, maybe, it is preordained

That life should wane, this way -

To bring us unto powers of God

And Grace of Judgment Day -

A final chance, for you and me,

To prove, with crying heart,

Our trust and love and Christian faith

In all that He imparts.

~ Michael Dubina

When Time is Short

There's so much left unfinished

when its time for us to go,

like the salmon swimming upstream

against the river's flow.

A poem that's left unwritten;

A story with no end;

A song without the music;

A child without a friend.

We do our best to comprehend

what lies for us in store,

but can't help thinking in the end

there always could be more.

So let us all remember

each day by passing day

to lend a hand to others

and help on their way.

For God will smile upon us

when our work on earth is done;

the battle finally over...

the victory finally won! 

~ Karen Taylor

And let us not grow weary

while doing good,

for in due season

we shall reap

if we do not lose heart.

Galatians 6:9



I Can't Go Home Again

 I really can't go home again.

It was so long ago

When I was young and happy there

So free from care, you know.

I surely had no worries then -

Just lived from day to day

And if I had some cause to cry

That swiftly went away.

The old homestead is stooped with age,

The building's in decay

As though it were a hundred years

Since I had gone away.

I passed by there not long ago

And paused awhile to see

The aged house where I was born

And it looked back at me.

Its window-eyes are dimmed with age,

The roof is sagging and

The old house cannot long survive

Without a helping hand.

The garden where Mom's roses grew

Cannot be found today;

The creek's flat stones that formed our walk

Have long been hauled away.

The wooden fence and posts are gone

As are the hedge and flowers

Which Mother loved and for their care

She toiled so many hours.

The old pond is no longer there

Where livestock used to drink,

Where bullfrogs croaked and turtles swam

And where I went to think.

I really can't go home again

But thoughts of yesteryear

Are vivid in my heart today -

Those mem'ries I hold dear!

~ Luther Elvis Albright



Miracle

The Springtime has come,

The Winter is past,

The grip of the cold,

has loosened at last.

Buried deep down,

in the heart of the earth,

The essence of life,

miracle of birth.

The life giving sap,

hears Spring's urgent call,

Faint murm'ring sound

in the trees gaunt and tall.

'Neath the ice of the stream,

swift waters course,

Their strength, increased by

the snow at their source.

~ Lily S. Thomas

Truth shall spring

out of the earth and

righteousness shall look

down from Heaven.

Psalm 85:11

He's Always There

 Whatever be our problems,

Whatever be our pain;

Our Father's loving hand is there,

To strengthen and sustain!

For only God can fathom,

Just what we're going through;

And just because He is our God,

There's nothing He can't do!

So when the storm-clouds gather,

And sun does not appear;

We must recall that God's strong hand,

Is always very near!

~ Sancie Earman King

Cast your care upon the Lord,

He will support you...

Ps. 55:23



What Love Can Do (Inspired by Genghis Kahn, a cat)

 

He was battle scarred from head to toe,

But that's the way most tom cats go.

With dirty fur and bloody ear,

He'd run away when we came near.

 

He tempted fate a time or two

For his nine lives were overdue

And when we found him nearly dead,

He couldn't raise his once proud head.

 

With time and care he came to know

That he was loved from head to toe,

And soon he learned to love us, too,

When his nine lives were overdue.

 

How like that cat we run away

And choose a path that leads astray,

Where troubles fall about our head

Till hope and faith are nearly dead.

 

Then Jesus comes to lift us up,

Restore our strength and fill our cup

That we might see by faith anew

The joy in Him that's overdue!

 

~ Clay Harrison

 

A Friendly Pet

 

God must have put a lot of thought

Into my every day,

He sent me such a friendly pet

To run and hide and play.

 

Her antics of hilarity

Are fun that never end,

And I can count the many ways

She tells me she's my friend.

 

Our pet was such a tiny one

When first that she arrived,

With softest fur and faintest purr

And much to my surprise

 

No one would claim this little one

It seem she had no home,

With pleading eyes and kitty sighs

She promised not to roam.

 

God surely must have sent my way

To keep my company,

This little friend who likes to play

And run and hide from me.

 

~ Katherine Smith Matheney

 



The Sun is a Pleasant Sight

 I opened the door in the morning

And in came God's beautiful sun.

It was dressed as in gold, a sight to behold;

I saw it was second to none.

It illumined the entire kitchen

With its radiant, all-day smile,

And I saw on its face as I stood there

That it come by to stay for awhile.

As it entered, I greeted it gladly;

Now gone was the dark of the night.

'Twas a pleasure to see its bright beauty;

Oh, it was a sunshiny sight.

It dusted its sunbeams upon me

And stayed with me all day through;

Then it left at the evening sunset

To shine on somebody new.

~ Loise Pinkerton Fritz

Truly the light is sweet,

and a pleasant thing

it is for the eyes

to behold the sun.

Eccl. 11:7

Let the Tea Kettle Whistle

Come share a cup of tea today,

We'll chuckle and dismiss

The greasy dishes, dirty floors,

'Cause housework we won't miss!

Let the tea kettle whistle

For there's a bit of perkiness in the air,

We'll take these "tea-filled" moments

And laugh away each care.

Burdens suddenly become lighter

When sharing a cup of tea or two

With a friend who listens to our woes

And helps to chase away the blues.

Again I say, "Let the tea kettle whistle"

And give thanks for the presence of friends

Who pause from the daily routine to visit -

Praise God for each and every blend!

~ Linda C. Grazulis



Take Your Joy from Him

 

 Things will sometimes hurt us,

And people won't be true -

Some will never give to us

The things we think our due!

But whatever happens -

Ne'er let your praises dim;

Raise your voice in thankfulness,

Take your joy from Him!

 

The sacrifice of thankfulness

Is better than to grieve;

Keeps your heart prepared

The better to receive!

Don't close your heart to others,

Still let the sunshine in;

And while you wait for others

Take your joy from Him!

 

~ Lynn Fenimore Nuzzi

 

Looking Beyond

 

 Sometimes we have to look beyond -

Beyond so many things

Perhaps he confines of a room,

Beyond our sufferings.

 

With eyes of faith, we look beyond

The now, with all its fear;

We know a God Who is all-wise

Will one day make things clear.

 

And so, we look beyond ourselves

To what the Lord can do.

With Him all things are possible.

In time He'll bring us through.

 

But until then, we must go on

And pray for strength to cope.

Our heart must never lose its song,

Or ever cease to hope.

 

With gaze that's set beyond the clouds,

We'll keep on pressing on

So thankful that through eyes of faith

We see a brighter dawn!

 

~ Beverly J. Anderson

 



Brave Little Ships

 We go to sea in ships so brave!

Brave little ships 'gainst wind and tide.

We journey long and ride the deep -

Crossing the ocean wild and wide:

But we sail safe as God's aboard,

Leading our ship and ever guide.

Though waves may come and waves may go -

Our little ship will still sail on.

The night will come and strong winds blow,

All is still well at break of dawn

Because our Savior rides with us:

Staying with us though time be long!

And as our ship breasts the briny deep,

Steering from shoals of sin we sees:

What matter ships of some may mock,

We keep our course though longer be.

So sad - their end - a shattered ship!

We, with our Lord, hail victory!

~ Lynn Fenimore Nuzzi

Then are they glad

because they be quiet:

so He bringeth them

to their desired haven.

Ps. 107:30

The Storms of Life

From time to time, the storms of life

must fall upon my way,

 I may be bruised and battered

as I stumble through the day,

For the stormy sea may take my boat

and turn it upside down.

By faith I somehow stay afloat

for God won't let me drown.

Sometimes we struggle to survive

according to His will,

But oh, my friend, how good it feels

to climb atop that hill!

Sometimes the wind's not at our back,

but still we run the race.

Sometimes the night night is long and black,

but still I seek His face.

We can't avoid the storms of life -

there's no place we can hide,

But faith proved a lighthouse

where angels still abide,

For once the storm has run its course,

a rainbow shall appear -

A promise from the Lord-of-all

that He is always near!

~ Clay Harrison



Out in the Country

Oh what a pleasure it is to be

Out in the country where life so so free.

Away from the city with its noise and its throng;

Where all is so peaceful and life is a song;

Where the birds sing so sweetly and all is so fair,

And "Old Mother Nature" has scented the air.

Where the deer and the elk and the bear may be seen

And where all is so peaceful, so calm, and serene.

Where, leaving all trouble and worry behind,

And, communing with nature, true peace one may find.

One may angle for trout in a lake or a stream,

Or else one may sit 'neath a tree and just dream,

Where the trees are so tall and the grass is so green

And "The Greatest of Artists" has painted the scene,

With a choice of colors beyond all compare,

Out in the country... how I long to be there!

Out in the country I long to be

Where all is at peace and life is so free.

Is not life a lot like the streams which we view,

Which though often quite peaceful become turbulent too?

Yet where the deer and the elk and the bear can be seen

All is so peaceful, so calm and serene!

~ Clayton G. Moseley