The Invitation poem by Anna Shipton

 

Grandad's poems

 I was looking through Grandad's poems yesterday and wanted to share these 2 excerpts. Thank You Heavenly Father for a goodly heritage. 

"Conflict" A poem by Anna Shipton

"Lord! my soul is burdened By a weight of care,

And my foot is taken in the fowler's snare;

​Darkness gathers o'er me, I shall fall or flee:

Helper of the helpless, Rise and succor me!

Dangers seem to threaten, Tempters' wiles assail;

In Thy light I see them, Yet I weakly quail.

Strange unholy terrors In my bosom rise;

"What distrustful language— Heavy groans and sighs!

Thoughts of sin's defilement Born of faithless mood,

Hosts of unclean devils, guests of hell's dark brood,

Leave me lame and mourning, Blind to seek and trace

All the glorious beauty Of Immanuel's face.

Look, oh, look upon me! See my wounds! and hear

In my soul's veiled chambers, what dishonoring fear!

Withered arms for service, And a palsied frame

That hath scarce a heart-throb At Thy precious name.

Touch me, cleanse me, heal me! Thou didst give me life;

Speak the word, and save me From this deadly strife.

Thine is full salvation, And the gift is free:

Helper of the helpless, Rise and succor me!

Hast Thou cast me from Thee? Well Thou mayst. Ah, no!

Hold me fast, sweet Jesus! Whither should I go?

Should I seek to hide me In some desert spot,

Earth no cavern holdeth Where my God is not.

Could I rise to heaven, Thus by fears oppressed,

There art Thou! Descending To the grave's dark breast,

​Even there Thou reignest; And the shades of night

Open lie as noon-day, To Thy piercing sight!

Wherefore am I thus, Lord? I, who fain would show

To the thirsty pilgrim Where the waters flow;

Where the milk to nourish, Where the wine of home,

Are so freely offered Unto all that come.

Father! may I call Thee Abba—Father—mine?

Dost Thou look upon me, And still own me Thine?

Ah! Thy Spirit shows me Christ! my Priest and King,

Sinless, Stainless, Perfect, Is my Offering.

Look on Thine Anointed; Let my tongue be mute,

While we gaze together On my Substitute.

​Thou art full well pleased With Thy spotless Lamb;

And Thy Spirit tells me What, O God, I am!

Lost, abhorred, and loathsome, Leprous and unclean;

Yet, enrobed in Jesus, I am spotless seen.

Oh, the weight of glory It is mine to share!

Even now He calls me "Altogether fair."

Lo, I see Thee, Jesus, Ransom of my soul!

Hast Thou not redeemed me? Let the thunders roll.

Can the law convict me? Thou hast set me free!

Back, thou wily Tempter, Jesus died for me.

Bend, oh, bend my will, Lord! This—my only aim;

For in light or darkness Thou art still the same.

​Give me, or withhold then, What Thou seest best;

Not upon Thy gifts, Lord— On Thyself I rest.

Did He say, "To-morrow I will hear thee"? Nay!

Full and free the fountain Floweth every day.

Holy Dove, oft grieved, Ere my tears were dried,

To my listening spirit Thy still voice replied.

"Child, My child! be patient: I thy sins have borne;

I have marked the conflict, And the scoffer's scorn;

I have seen the sorrows Of thy broken heart,

And in thy affliction Borne a brother's part.

"Wouldst thou fear the darkness, Didst thou hate the light?

"Would thy sin displease thee, Were thy sin delight?

​Evil would be welcome, Wert thou of the earth:

Child, look up to heaven, Whence thou hadst thy birth.

"Put thy heel on Satan, Draw the Spirit's sword,

Prove thy holy breast-plate, Take Me at My word.

Am I not thy Fortress? Wherefore fall or fly;

Grasp thy palm, rejoicing In My victory.

"'Tis the lowliest conquers; 'Tis by might of love

That the weakest soldier Doth the bravest prove.

Rest thee, weary tremble! Was the strife unsent?

Nay! thy King was with thee: Not a bow was bent,

"But thy Lord who loves thee Guided every dart;

See! they only sent thee nearer to my heart.

​At thine hands upraised Half thy foes withdrew;

Forward! I have conquered, Thou shalt conquer too.

"Child! in Me abiding, Nought thy foot shall move;

Fear not! I will help thee, Mine is changeless love.

Take My yoke upon thee, Learn the way from Me;

I am meek and lowly, Meek and lowly be.

"Take My yoke—I bore it, Lean upon My breast;

I have fought thy battle, Share with me My rest.

Soon the plains of glory Sinless thou shalt tread;

My right hand upholds thee, Rise—be undismayed.

"Trust Me—only trust Me! Wherefore shouldst thou quail?

Can a weapon prosper, Shall a foe prevail,

​'Gainst the Lord's Anointed? He hath set their bounds;

While thy faith, though feeble, Loving-kindness crowns."

I don't know about you, but I thought it well worth reading. 

Self inquiry poem from an Isaac Watts book.

 I came across this in a book by Isaac Watts and thought it quite good. Apparently the Pythagoreans recommended this practice. 

"Nor let soft slumber close your eyes, 

Before you’ve recollected thrice 

The train of action through the day: 

Where have my feet chose out their way’ 

What have I learn’d, where’er I’ve been, 

From all I’ve heard, from all I’ve seen? 

What know I more that’s worth the knowing? 

What have I done that’s worth the doing? 

What have I sought that I should shun? 

What duty have I left undone? 

Or into what new follies run? 

These self-inquiries are the road 

That leads to virtue, and to God. "

"A Little Way"

"A Little Way"

--Anonymous

"A little way! I know it is not far

To that dear home where my beloved are;

And still my heart sits, like a bird, upon

The empty nest, and mourns its treasures gone,

Plumed for their flight,

And vanished quite.

Ah me! Where is the comfort? Though I say

They have but journeyed on a little way.

"A little way! At times they seem so near,

Their voices even murmur in my ear,

To all my duties loving presence lend,

And with sweet ministry my steps attend.

'Twas here we met and parted company;

Why should their gain be such a grief to me?

This sense of loss!

This heavy cross!

Dear Savior, take the burden off, I pray,

And show me heaven is but--a little way.

"A little way? The sentence I repeat,

Hoping and longing to extract some sweet

To mingle with the bitter; from Thy hand

I take the cup I cannot understand,

And in my weakness give myself to Thee.

Although it seems so very, very far

To that dear home where my beloved are,

I know, I know,

It is not so;

Oh, give me faith to believe it when I say

That they are gone--gone but a little way."

I don't know about you but I thought that this was a rather good poem.

Hold on to Hope

"and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.” Then He said to me, “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son." Revelation 21:4-7.

3 people recently challenged me to read the whole book of Revelation in one go. I had never thought to do that before...

The verses above have long been a favourite of mine. When things are seeming difficult to handle, I turn and read the last 3 chapters. It gives me much encouragement to press on; the end will be so wonderful!!

For my friends who are struggling with awful pain, I pray these help you hold on to the glorious hope.

"No more pain or sorrow and tears;

only Glory Forever. 

Hold on to hope, all weary ones;

We'll worship the Lamb together. 

The Lamb who was slain for us. 

Now reigns in Heaven on high. 

So trust in the LORD. He will not forget;

He promised your needs to supply. "

We have the Lord’s promise that life now will be tough, but He also promised that He will strengthen and help us. He will hear and answer our prayers. 

Thank You Heavenly Father for Your lovingkindnesses and Your faithfulness to keep all Your promises. 

Another old poem by William Luff

I found this poem an encouragement.

 Hope you do too! 

Are you eagerly awaiting His return?

I can't grasp how wonderful it will be to see the Saviour face to face, but I know it will be far more glorious than anything and everything else this life brings! 

Garden of Spices by Samuel Rutherford

Samuel Rutherford was born in Scotland in 1600 and he died in 1661. I recently started reading his "Garden of Spices" and wanted to share a couple of the poems found therein.

Some may find the very old fashioned language harder to understand but I think they're worth reading. 

I hope you also find them encouraging. 

Things to remember in2024

Here are a couple of things I want to remember as we head into 2024.

No matter what the coming year has in store for us, we can rejoice in the fact that our Saviour is completely faithful and He holds us securely. We can rejoice knowing we are extremely blessed to be part of His family. 

We belong to Him so we should serve and worship Him joyfully and gratefully. 

He is our Help, our Refuge, our Strong Tower. When we fully trust Him and desire to please Him He will be honoured and glorified. 

He invites us to pour out our hearts to Him.

Scripture promises there will be difficult times ahead but while we walk humbly with Him, He will always be with us, so we need not fear. 

 

I hope you are encouraged by the above quote by J. C. Ryle. 

 

This evening's poem and a George Muller quote that may have inspired the last line

 https://youtu.be/Qyx-7pk3tlY

Having Googled some sections of the poem, (to make sure I wasn't plagiarising), I remembered reading this quote from George Muller. I think it's lovely. 

"The precious Lord Jesus Christ is our friend. Oh, let us seek to realize this! It is not merely a religious phrase or statement, but truly He is our friend. He is the Brother ” born for adversity,” the one who “sticks closer than a brother.” Who will never leave and never forsake us.

How precious even on earth to have a heavenly friend, for this brings the joys of heaven in a little degree into our hearts now. This is just what our heavenly Father desires regarding His children, that they might be as happy as they are capable of being while here in the body. Have we entered into this, that the One who is “altogether lovely” is ready hour by hour, to be our Friend?

When we cannot sleep at night, say to Christ, ” My precious heavenly Friend, wilt Thou give me a little sleep?” When in pain, say, ” My precious heavenly Friend, if it may please Thee, wilt Thou take away this pain? But if not, if Thou sees better that it should continue, sustain, help, and strengthen me, my precious heavenly friend!” When we feel lonely and tired, turn to the precious Lord Jesus; He is willing to be our friend in our loneliness. For sixty-two years and five months I had a beloved wife, and now in my ninety-second year I am left alone. But I turn to my precious Lord Jesus as I walk up and down in my room, and say, ” My precious Lord Jesus, I am alone, and yet not alone, Thou art with me; Thou art my friend; now Lord, comfort me and strengthen me, give to Thy poor servant everything Thou sees he needs.”

Oh, this is a reality, not a fable, that the Lord Jesus Christ is our friend. We should not be satisfied till we are brought to this, that we know the Lord Jesus Christ experientially to be our friend and habitually to be our friend. Just ponder this. Habitually, never leaving, never forsaking us, at all times and under all circumstances ready to prove Himself to be our friend.

He is willing not merely to grant this for a few months, or a year or two, but to the very end of our earthly pilgrimage. David, in Psalm 23 says: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.” Oh, how precious this is. For this “Lovely One” is coming again, and soon. Soon He will come again; and then He will take us home and there we shall be forever with Him. Oh, how precious is that bright and glorious prospect. Here again the practical point is to appropriate this to ourselves. “He is coming to take me-poor, guilty, worthless, hell-deserving me-He is coming to take me to Himself.” And to the degree in which we enter into these glorious things, the joys of heaven have already commenced!"

New Year : some thoughts and a poem

 For many, 2021 has not been a happy year, but rather an extremely difficult one. While there are no guarantees 2022 will be any happier, we who have trusted in the LORD Jesus Christ have the assurance that our life and times are in His hands, and that is the safest place for everything.

 We can rest in His faithfulness and rejoice that our names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. We can remember how He has shown us His goodness numerous times and we should always praise Him for His great mercy and grace, as without these, we would not have survived.

  At the beginning of 2021, I did something  silly (I'll spare you the details so none of you are tempted to try it yourself 😉) which gave me the idea that I might not still be around in 2022. Yet we've reached the final day of 2021 and I'm still here. Yet, none of us know how soon our life may be taken. I hope that I will learn not to take anything for granted, but to be grateful to the Lord for every day He sees fit to keep me alive.

 I'm glad we don't have the ability at the beginning of a year to know all that will happen through it. I'm very glad the Lord invites us to walk with Him, each day, step by step and if we can learn how to do that, we will be greatly blessed. He has proven Himself trustworthy throughout the generations past, and He never changes!  Despite our fickleness and wayward wanderings, the Lord continues to lovingly draw us closer to Himself.

 Hebrews 8:12 says, "For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” How good and kind the Lord has promised to be.

 I'm so glad He has chosen to forgive and forget my sins because I trust Him that His death on the Cross paid the price I owed. Thank You Lord Jesus that You were willing to take my place so I can have a restored relationship with the Holy God!

 I was catching up reading a few devotionals and these verses from Psalm 116 "jumped out" at me. 

"What shall I render to the Lord
For all His benefits toward me?
13 I will take up the cup of salvation,
And call upon the name of the Lord."

Later that evening a dear friend read excerpts from that same Psalm to me, including:

"Gracious is the Lord, and righteous; Yes, our God is merciful. Return to your rest, O my soul, For the Lord has dealt bountifully with you." 

He has truly dealt with me far more bountifully than I even realise! I need to choose every day to remember His goodness and forget the other stuff that would drag me down. 

I'll leave you with a poem, and pray, (whether you have a Happy New Year or not,) that the Lord will bless you. 

The hymn "I asked the Lord" written by John Newton

https://youtu.be/tdDDmDFpgK8

Here is a beautiful rendition of a song/hymn I heard as a poem several years ago.

A poem by Lily Gaynor

Lily was a missionary friend of my Granny. 

It was my privilege to meet her a few times.

I love this poem she wrote. 

Trust and rest, a poem by A. B. Simpson

I came across this poem in a devotional and quite like it so thought I would share, although I'm sure it won't be everyone's style. I'm so glad we can trust our Saviour; He's the only One who is always totally trustworthy. 

Trust and rest in Christ forever,

Lean thy head upon His breast;

Nothing from His love can sever

Those who simply trust and rest.

Trust and rest in hours of sorrow;

Every wrong shall be redressed,

In some happy, bright tomorrow,

If you only trust and rest.

Trust and rest when all around thee

Puts thy faith to sorest test;

Let no fear nor foe confound thee,

Wait for God and trust and rest.

Trust and rest with heart abiding,

Like a birdling in its nest,

Underneath His feathers hiding;

Fold thy wings and trust and rest.

Trust and rest till gentle fingers

Fold thy hands across thy breast,

While the echo softly lingers,

Everlasting trust and rest.

Trust and rest, trust and rest,

God is working for the best.

A. B. Simpson 

A precious truth in poem form.

I came across this and hope it will encourage you as much as it encourages me.

This was written in 1932 by a pastor in Mississippi named A. M. Overton, who had a wife and three small children. His wife was pregnant with their fourth child but when it came time for delivery, there were complications and both she and the baby died. During the funeral service, the preacher officiating the service noticed my grandfather writing something on a piece of paper. After the service the minister asked him about it, and he handed him the paper with a poem he had just written which he titled, “He Maketh No Mistake”

He Maketh No Mistake

"My Father’s way may twist and turn,

my heart may throb and ache.

But in my soul I’m glad I know,

He maketh no mistake.

My cherished plans may go astray,

my hopes may fade away,

but still I’ll trust my Lord to lead,

for He doth know the way.

Tho’ night be dark and it may seem

that day will never break;

I’ll pin my faith, my all in Him,

He maketh no mistake.

There’s so much now I cannot see,

my eyesight’s far too dim;

but come what may, I’ll simply trust

and leave it all to Him.

For by and by the mist will lift

and plain it all He’ll make.

Through all the way, tho’ dark to me,

He made not one mistake."

I'm so glad we can trust Him and rest in the knowledge that He works all things for good, even though it may often hurt terribly at the time. In eternity with the Lord, all tears having been wiped away, we will only remember His great faithfulness.

New Year 2021

 Sorry, I can't work out how to embed this video so you'll have to click the link if you want to listen. It's the Collingsworth family singing "Ever Faithful". I really like it. 

https://youtu.be/u2-cVpltVwA

Resharing this poem found in Great Grandma's remembrance book as I find it so encouraging. 

Today I'm feeling thankful for many reminders of God's faithfulness. 

Years ago we used to sing an old chorus that seems particularly apt for this time:

"How good is the God we adore! 

Our Faithful, Unchangeable Friend! 

Whose love is as great as His power, 

And neither knows measure nor end. 

Tis Jesus, the First and the Last

Whose Spirit will lead us safe home. 

We'll praise Him for all that is past, 

And trust Him for all that's to come. "

None of us know what lies ahead in 2021, but we do know that even when circumstances seem very bad, God is still very good. 

We also know that His return is nearer now than it has ever been before.

Aren't you glad that He's willing to walk beside us every step of every day and one day take us to be with Himself forever?

He is the only One I know of who is always totally trustworthy.

Heavenly Father, I thank You for showing me Your great faithfulness. LORD, please help me to live in the light of eternity, ready to meet You face to face and by Your grace and mercy living a life that brings honour and glory to You. As the world around gets darker, please shine Your light and truth through my life all the brighter. Amen.

Poem quotes to remember

 

"My heart and voice I raise" a "Sacred poem" by Benjamin Rhodes

Hi!
My Dad was trying to remember the words to this hymn last night. I only knew different words to the same tune. I thought he was humming Fairest Lord Jesus! I may have glanced at this hymn before but I didn't know it. I found 5 verses in the Methodist hymnbook and the Redemption hymnal. I found 9 online at hymnary.org, and that had a link to page scans of "A Choice Selection of Hymns and Spiritual Songs.
From this I learned that there are 21 verses recorded!


“A Sacred Poem by Benjamin Rhodes (born in Mexborough, Yorkshire, in 1743, died 1815.

(Part 1)
"My heart and voice I raise, To spread Messiah’s praise: Messiah’s praise – let all repeat:
The Universal Lord, by whose prolific word Creation rose in form complete!

Let there be light – he said- then sullen darkness fled, Obedient to his high command!
And massy orbs above Began to shine- and move- Sustained by His Almighty hand.

Creation’s utmost bound, (how high, or how profound) Declares his Majesty divine:
Thou Everlasting Sire, Thee- shall Thy works admire, and all proclaim the glory Thine.

Man- the supreme of all on this terrestrial ball, in wisdom’s purest gifts arrayed;
From Eden basely fell: To ransom him from hell, - Messiah – suffered in his stead!

A servant’s form he wore, and in His body bore our dreadful curse on Calvary!
He like a victim stood, and poured His sacred blood, to set the guilty captives free!

But soon the victor rose, Triumphant o’er his foes, And led the vanquished host in chains;
He threw their empire down, His foes compelled to own, O’er all the great Messiah reigns!

With mercy’s mildest grace He governs all our race in wisdom, righteousness, and love:
Who to Messiah fly shall find redemption nigh, and all His great Salvation prove.

Hail, Saviour, Prince of Peace, Thy kingdom shall increase, Till all the world Thy glory see!
And righteousness abound, As the great deep profound; And fill the earth with purity.

(Part 2)
In fierce consuming fire shall destined worlds expire! And in his might Messiah rise:
The raging fervent blaze shall lift its voice in praise, While all dissolve in earth and skies!

The mighty Lord of all shall then the nations call – “Ye dead arise, to judgment come:”
The crowds arising see His sovereign majesty, and trembling wait their final doom.

Great day – that shall descry to every wondering eye the secret deeds of day and night!
The sacred volume large its record shall discharge, and bring our every thought to light!

The bold blasphemer there, in rage, and wild despair – In vain would shun impending ire:
Where shall the guilty hide? Or the fierce day abide, The Day of God, revealed in fire?

With pangs unfelt before, Urged by their pain – implore A refuge from tremendous wrath!
Too late! – transfixed with awe, They hear the fiery law condemn them to eternal death!

Bound with relentless chains, they sink beneath their pains, Nor shines one beam of hope from heaven:
With the infernal host, are now forever lost! and down to fiery regions driven.

(Part 3)

Ye happy sons of light, who conquered in the fight, and steadfast to the end endured!
Now view the great reward Messiah hath prepared, and to his faithful saints secured.

In ecstasies of bliss, they see Him as He is, Whose glory fills the eternal Throne:
He bids His servants prove Their Master’s joy above, and be with Him forever one!

City of God, in thee is full felicity: Thy treasures, an unbounded store!
Where- from the Source of Love, The saints, transported, prove, Unbounded joys for ever more!

There saints and angels join in fellowship divine, And rapture swells the solemn lay:
While all with one accord adore their glorious Lord, and shout His praise in endless day.

Salem, secure above, Thy joys when shall I prove, And to thy holy hill attain?
Where weary pilgrims rest, and in thy glories blessed, with God their King forever reign.

May I but find the grace to fill a humble place in that inheritance above:
My tuneful voice I’ll raise; In songs of loudest praise, to spread thy fame- Redeeming Love.

Reign – true Messiah – reign, Thy kingdom shall remain when stars and sun no more shall shine:
Mysterious Deity, who ne’er began to be! To sound thy endless praise – be mine."

I thought it was worth sharing. Hope you're challenged and blessed by it as I have been.

Another poem

I read this poem in Streams in the Desert and rather liked it.

A Psalm of Life

I came across this today and rather like it.

What think you?