MY LITTLE LIGHT (UPDATED WITH SCRIPTURE)

IF NO ONE KNOWS THEM,
THEN WHAT'S THE POINT OF FEARS?
IF NO ONE SEES THEM,
THEN WHAT'S THE POINT OF TEARS?
WHAT'S THE POINT OF WRITING
IF NO ONE HEARS?

CRYING, FEARFUL, PETRIFIED, 
 I CAN STILL WRITE.
I OPEN MY SOUL,
I OPEN MY BROKEN HEART
SO YOU CAN SEE
THAT PART OF ME
THAT HURTS,
BURNS,
LONGS
TO BE ACCEPTED,
TO BE LOVED
BY ANYONE.

BUT AFTER SIXTY YEARS
 I KNOW THE ONLY ONE
WHO CAN LOVE ME
THE WAY I NEED,
NAY DESIRE
TO BE LOVED,
NAY ACCEPTED,
IS THE ONE WHO MADE ME.
HIS NAME IS JESUS.
AND I WILL LET MY LITTLE LIGHT SHINE
ALWAYS.

MATTHEW 5:16

IN THE SAME WAY,

LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE BEFORE OTHERS,

THAT THEY MAY SEE YOUR GOOD DEEDS

AND GLORIFY YOUR FATHER IN HEAVEN.

HAPPY (UPDATED WITH SCRIPTURE)

Resting in bed,

my twisted ankle and knee elevated,

separated shoulder in a sling,

grudgingly trying to do what the doctors said.

I don't like being told what to do,

never have.

I have taken one college course in psychology,

and because I got an A,

I believe I have the right to say

that I know me better than anyone else

except for God, of course,

and maybe even my sweet hubby.

I'm cursed with a little girl voice,

which makes me sound rather loopy,

and right here and now I'm begging Jesus for a different voice when He blesses me with my resurrected body.

So to get to the point I was trying to make before I started rambling,

commanded and rather loudly led

 by chocolate, my muse,

which keeps me from stumbling not quite as much

as I do 

having rather large feet, of which I have two,

that never go where I want them to.

They just go wherever instead.

And for a person who is stuck in bed,

and has absolutely no tolerance for pain,

I am, praise the good Lord, blessed.

I have the sweetest husband in the world.

If you haven't had the pleasure of meeting him,

you'll just have to trust me and take my word.

I have food in my cupboard, a warm bed,

I am loved and have the pleasure of loving my sweet little dog, amongst others.

I have a roof over my head,

and a loving woman I am proud to call my 

mother-in-law.

She understands and genuinely cares.

She's patient with my silly rambling

and never seems to tire when I over share.

I have a sweet son who takes care of me when my hubby is at work,

and I have a new church family and a pastor

who prays for me.

If you're feeling sad or blue,

look around you.

You will find happiness

in the smallest of things.

God is everywhere,

He made every thing.

Butterflies,

chocolate,

and angels' wings.

1 PETER 5:7

CAST ALL YOUR ANXIETY ON HIM,

FOR HE CARES FOR YOU.

PS: GOD BLESS YOU AND YOURS!

LOST NO LONGER (UPDATED WITH SCRIPTURE)

ABUSED AND CONFUSED AS A LITTLE GIRL.

I NEVER KNEW WHY.  I NEVER KNEW WHEN.

IT JUST HAPPENED, BLOWING IN LIKE A VENGEFUL WIND.

BUT AMONGST THIS ABUSE FROM EVERYONE AROUND ME,

SOMETHING MIRACULOUS HAPPENED.

JESUS FOUND ME.

I WAS ONLY FIVE,

BUT I KNEW WHAT I WAS DOING.

I CAN STILL REMEMBER WHAT THE PREACHER WAS SAYING

AND WHERE I WAS SITTING.

IF I CLOSE MY EYES, I CAN STILL HEAR THE ORGAN PLAYING,

THE ROPE AROUND MY HEART PULLING.

MY HOME LIFE WAS STILL THE SAME,

MY EARTHLY FATHER STILL ANGRY.

MY MOTHER STILL FULL OF UGLY WORDS,

MY SISTER STILL TAKING IT OUT ON ME WHEN MY PARENTS

WEREN'T AROUND, SOMEHOW FEELING UNWORTHY.

BUT WHEN I WAS FIVE,

PRAISE THE LORD I GOT A NEW DADDY

AND A NEW FAMILY.
GRAFTED INTO HIS TREE.

I'M STILL THE APPLE OF HIS EYE,

AND DESPITE WHAT I DO OR SAY,

HE STILL LOVES ME.

HE ALWAYS WILL

BECAUSE HIS LOVE IS UNCONDITIONAL.

MY DADDY IS INCAPABLE OF HURTING ME.

HE MADE ME JUST THE WAY I AM,

AND I WILL NEVER BE ASHAMED

OF SHOUTING FROM THE ROOFTOPS

HOW MUCH I LOVE MY DADDY.

SO, IF YOU ARE FEELING LOST,

PLEASE GIVE JESUS A CHANCE.

HE ALREADY LOVES YOU,

AND THAT WILL NEVER CHANGE.

MY MOTHER HAS ALWAYS TOLD ME

HOW STUPID AND UGLY I AM,

WITH MY SISTER, OF COURSE, CHIMING IN.

BUT MY HEAVENLY DADDY,

WHO KNOWS THE TRUTH,

CALLS ME 

BEAUTIFUL.

PSALM 17:8
KEEP ME AS THE APPLE OF YOUR EYE,
HIDE ME IN THE SHADOW OF YOUR WINGS.

ECCLESIASTES 3:11-13
HE HAS MADE EVERYTHING BEAUTIFUL IN ITS TIME.
HE HAS ALSO SET ETERNITY IN THE HUMAN HEART;
YET NO ONE CAN FATHOM 
WHAT GOD HAS DONE
FROM BEGINNING TO END.

WHO EVER SAID FORGIVENESS IS EASY? (UPDATED WITH SCRIPTURE)

How can I forgive my mother who has,
 with spitting words

filled with loathing,

called me a drug addict

just because I need to be on pain medicine 
for six herniated discs and fibromyalgia?

How can I forgive my only sister

who has, filled with hate,

mistreated me,
beat me,
lied about me to the rest of the family?

After all of the abuse
fragile me 
has received,
why am I so surprised
that it continues,
no end in sight?

I know that Jesus and the apostles

had it worse.

But that doesn't mean
 that it doesn't cut me through the bone,

into the heart,

blood dripping
down, 
down, 
down,
pooling on the floor.

Jesus felt the same.

The hurt, the pain,

barely able to contain 
the disappointment.

You live your life trying to please others 
with all that you have in you.

And what do you get for it?

Beatings that no one will ever in their lifetime admit.

Cruel abusive teasing for whatever

reason:
resentment,
embarrassment,
disappointment,
clueless.

All I've ever tried to do 
is beg for my mother's approval.
All I've ever wanted is a big sister.

But I know for a certainty
that I am a chosen child of God,
grafted into HIS family tree.

And I know for a certainty
that Jesus loves me
just the way I am,
warts and all.

So I MUST forgive
if I wish to spend eternity 
with the only one
who has ever
truly
honestly
loved me.

And the beatings and the cruel teasing
 will be forgotten.

All of my tears,
all of these many years,
my Jesus collected them in a bottle.

And after all of this,
when I have finished this seemingly endless race,

I will live in eternal bliss.

And no one can ever take that away from me.

Jesus lives in me.

1 JOHN 5:5

WHO IS IT THAT OVERCOMES THE WORLD?

ONLY THE ONE WHO BELIEVES

THAT JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD.

My weakness is His greatest strength (UPDATEED)

Pain.

I deal with it every day.

It's always the same.

It never goes away.

I've never been strong,

I've always been weak.

Just a little scrape

will send me to my knees, make me weep.

So why the chronic pain?

What will I gain?

So I pray.

I pray not for the pain to go away,

but that my weakness will give Him glory

and that I will stay

faithful to His will for me

not matter the agony

I face

every day.
I give God all the glory.

Corinthians 12:9 - For 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 about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.

Forgiveness is love (UPDATED WITH SCRIPTURE)

We need to forgive those who are mean to us,

and this forgiveness can only come from love.

But only the love

that comes from up above.

We don't have the capacity to love them ourselves,

at least the way Jesus wants for Himself.

Real love is pure.

And we can be assured

that real love exists 

when we insist

that we are not able,

cannot be consistent,

with the love that is human,

that comes from our own heart,

unless we've asked Jesus

to be a part.

Love is the answer,

love is the key,

love comes from God above,

not from you or me.

Pure love forgives the unforgivable,

the wretched, the unsaved,

the ones who misbehave.

For we were once like them,

we thought we were without sin.

It can only take the sweet

love of God's grace

to change our hearts,

to make him a part

of everything that binds us to this world,

of everything we read in His Holy Word.

Love is the answer,

love is the key.

And pure love can only

come from God above.

Forgive

as we are forgiven

by the one who created 

earth and heaven.

LUKE 6:28

BLESS THOSE WHO CURSE YOU,

PRAY FOR THOSE WHO MISTREAT YOU.

REJECTED BUT LOVED (UPDATED)

REJECTED BY MY SISTER,

FROM WHOM I'VE ONLY ASKED FOR LOVE,

WONDERING WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME.

BUT IS IT ME, OR IS IT MY FAMILY?

THEN I'M TOLD BY THAT STILL QUIET VOICE

THAT THEY DON'T HAVE THE BLESSING

OF THE HOLY GHOST.

(NOT THAT THEY NEVER HAD THE CHOICE.)

SHE DOESN'T HAVE JESUS,

SHE BELIEVES THERE ARE SEVERAL WAYS

TO REACH GOD IN HEAVEN,

SO I'M THE ONE WHO SHOULD BE SORRY

THAT 
SHE HAS REJECTED JESUS.

I'M THE ONE WHO IS LOVED,

I'M THE ONE WHO HAS BEEN FORGIVEN FOR MY MANY MANY SINS.

I WILL PRAY FOR MY SISTER,

I WILL PRAY SHE HAS THE NEED

TO SEEK
 JESUS CHRIST

AND HIS UNFAILING LOVE.

I KNOW THAT JESUS LOVES ME,

AND THERE'S A REASON FOR MY EMOTIONAL AND PHYSICAL PAIN,

BECAUSE IT DRAWS ME CLOSER

TO THE ONE WHO LOVES ME THE MOST -
MY KING.

JESUS LOVES ME

THIS I KNOW.

FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO.

LITTLE ONES TO HIM BELONG.

WE ARE WEAK,

BUT HE IS STRONG.

YES, JESUS LOVES ME.

YES, JESUS LOVES ME.

YES, JESUS LOVES ME.

THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO.

PLEASE DON'T LET THE STONES CRY OUT, CUZ THAT WOULD CREEP ME OUT (UPDATED WITH SCRIPTURE)

Acknowledge Jesus,

don't be afraid

to shout out His name.

He IS a loving God,

He does not want any of His children to perish.

So always praise His name in worship.

For there is a separation from God

for eternity,

which just makes me sorrowful and sad.

How can you live

without the Holy Ghost,

the living God,

Jesus Christ?

No matter what you do or say,

as long as you are here on earth,

you can repent and pray.

But there will be a time for all of us,

it could be today,

it could be tomorrow.

So while we have time,

happy or in sorrow,

the world desperately needs to hear the story

of God's forever love

from above.

He lives inside of you,

He lives inside of me

So while we have the chance,

We need to share the fact

of eternity.
Praise God before the rocks cry out!

LUKE 19:40

"I TELL YOU," HE REPLIED. "IF THEY KEEP QUIET, 

THE STONES WILL CRY OUT."

PROTECTED (UPDATED WITH SCRIPTURE)

I THANK THE GOOD LORD FOR SAVING ME

FROM COLLISIONS, A NEAR ABDUCTING

AND AUTONOMY.

EVERY DAY IS DIFFERENT,

EVERY DAY IS NEW.

EVERY DAY I GET CONFUSED

BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW WHY JESUS SAVED ME
AND GRAFTED ME INTO HIS FAMILY TREE.

MY FAMILY DIDN'T HAVE A CLUE

WHAT TO DO WITH ME

AND MY LITTLE HOBBY-
THIS THING WE CALL POETRY.
BUT GOD SEEMS TO KNOW WHAT TO DO

WITH SOMEONE WHO'S CONFUSED

AND LIKES TO WRITE ABOUT HER LIFE.

SO I SHARE THIS WITH YOU:

IT'S OKAY TO BE DIFFERENT

BECAUSE BEING THE SAME

WOULD BE EVEN MORE CONFUSING,
NOT TO MENTION BORING.

ROMANS 10:11 - EVERYONE WHO TRUSTS IN HIM WILL NOT BE PUT TO SHAME.  

VISIONS AND DREAMS (UPDATED WITH SCRIPTURE)

WE NEED VISIONS AND DREAMS

AND HOLY PROPHECIES.

WE NEED THE HOLY SPIRIT LIKE NEVER BEFORE.

WE NEED HIM IN OUR LIVES,

FOREVER AND EVERMORE.

HE'S THE COMFORTER,

JESUS ON EARTH,
BROTHER, SISTER,

FATHER, HUSBAND AND MOTHER.

WE NEED TO BE FREE TO EXPRESS WHAT THE COMFORTER HAS TO SAY,

NOT TO BE AFRAID.

EXPRESS WHAT GOD HAS FOR US,

SHARE WHAT'S ABOVE, BELOW, AND SURROUNDS US.

SPEAK HIS WORD,

SHOUT OUT TO THE WORLD.

VISIONS AND DREAMS

IS WHAT WE NEED.

1 JOHN 5:5

WHO IS IT THAT OVERCOMES THE WORLD?

ONLY THE ONE THAT BELIEVES 

THAT JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD.

Hang on, it's going to be a bumpy ride (UPDATED WITH SCRIPTURE)

HANG ON,

IT'S GOING TO BE A BUMPY RIDE,

BUT KEEP YOUR STRIDE.

BE PROUD OF WHO YOU ARE,

WISH UPON THE STARS

AND PRAISE THE GOD WHO MADE EARTH AND HEAVEN,

IN DAYS OF SEVEN.

WELL, HE RESTED AT THE LAST,

SO KEEP SUNDAY BLESSED

AND GO FELLOWSHIP WITH OTHERS,

GET THE SUPPORT YOU DESIRE AND NEED,

OR PLANT A SEED.

TELLING THE WORLD ABOUT JESUS

WILL GIVE YOU A GENTLE FEELING.

AND KEEP ON KNEELING

IN PRAYER AND SUPPLICATION.

IT WILL MAKE YOU FEEL LIKE YOU'RE ON VACATION

WHEN YOU KEEP IN COMMUNICATION WITH GOD,

WHICH I'M PROUD THAT I'M NOT AFRAID TO SAY

HOW MUCH I LOVE JESUS

WHO CREATED AND KNITTED ME IN THE WOMB,

KNOWS HOW MANY HAIRS I HAVE ON MY HEAD,

COLLECTS MY TEARS IN A BOTTLE

AND FIGHTS MY BATTLES.

AND THERE HAVE BEEN QUITE A FEW

THAT SOMETIMES CONFUSES

BUT KEEPS MY FAITH IN CHECK,

BRINGS ME CLOSER TO MY MAKER,

BECAUSE IT MAKES ME REMEMBER

THAT GOD NEVER SAID LIFE WOULD BE EASY

OR EVEN BREEZY.

HE TOLD ME THERE WOULD BE TRIALS

SO IT MIGHT BE QUITE A WHILE

WHEN I CAN SAY AGAIN

THAT I'M HEALTHY AND HAVE LOTS OF FRIENDS.

BUT THAT'S OKAY

BECAUSE SOME SOON DAY

I WILL BE ABLE TO WORSHIP AT HIS FEET

AND WALK HAND IN HAND DOWN THOSE GOLDEN STREETS

WITH THE ONE I LOVE THE MOST.

BUT FOR NOW I'LL SETTLE FOR THE HOLY GHOST.

JOHN 14:26

BUT THE ADVOCATE,
THE HOLY SPIRIT,
WHOM THE FATHER WILL SEND IN MY NAME,
WILL TEACH YOU ALL THINGS
AND WILL REMIND YOU OF EVERYTHING I HAVE SAID TO YOU.


.

Am I doing enough? (UPDATED WITH SCRIPTURE)

I write about the Lord

and all that He has done for me.

I write about the pain I endure,

and how useless it can be.

But is that enough?

Would others stronger than me

be standing on street corners,

signs ablaze,

standing around for hours without complaint,

proclaiming the love of the Lord?

It's so easy to say to strangers "Jesus loves you,"

then walk away

not asking about their lives.

I meet most people either in the doctor's office

or the Emergency Room,

so you know there is a story there.

But do I take the time to comfort, to emphasize?

Trust me, there are a lot of nurses out there who do not know the meaning of the word.

So if you see someone in pain, if they want to talk (and they usually do), take a minute to be the Jesus in their lives and love them a little.

It doesn't take long to give love.

MATTHEW 5:43-48
YOU HAVE HEARD THAT IT WAS SAID, 'LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AND HATE YOUR ENEMY.' BUT I TELL YOU, LOVE YOUR ENEMIES AND PRAY FOR THOSE WHO PERSECUTE YOU THAT YOU MAY BE CHILDREN OF YOUR FATHER IN HEAVEN.   HE CAUSES HIS SUN TO RISE ON THE EVIL AND THE GOOD,
AND SENDS RAIN ON THE RIGHTEOUS AND UNRIGHTEOUS...

AA\\\\\

Broken Hearted (UPDATED)

I MISS THE PEOPLE IN MY LIFE
WHO ARE NO LONGER WITH US
EITHER BY CHANCE OR CIRCUMSTANCE.
MY ALREADY SHATTERED HEART
IS TORN IN TWO,
BLUE.
I FEEL AS IF I HAVE NOTHING LEFT
TO SAY OR DO.
SO I PUT MY LIFE IN THE HANDS OF MY LORD,
EXACTLY WHERE I BELONG.
I KNOW FOR SURE THAT JESUS KNOWS
WHAT YOU'RE GOING THROUGH.
HE HAS THE ANSWERS.

SO, LORD, PLEASE TAKE THIS DAILY PAIN AWAY
BECAUSE I DON'T THINK
I CAN MAKE IT
THROUGH ANOTHER PAINFUL DAY.
WITHOUT YOU, JESUS,
I AM LOST.

PSALM 4:3

KNOW THAT THE LORD HAS SET APART HIS FAITHFUL SERVANT FOR HIMSELF;
THE LORD HEARS WHEN I CALL TO HIM.