Tuesday 31 December 2013

THE BELOVED

I am redeemed
In the Beloved;
The Father has been declared
By the Beloved;
I am to hear
The Beloved;
I am taken into favour
In the Beloved.

Monday 30 December 2013

NO ONE ELSE

No one else has set me free;
No one else secured my heart;
No one else draws me apart:
No one else has died for me.

Some may give a high degree,
Some provide profound advice,
Some give presents of great price:
No one else has died for me.

No one else will hear my plea;
No one else can meet my need;
No one else will balm or feed:
No one else has died for me.

Sunday 29 December 2013

LOVE

The greatness of God’s love
Is that of an ocean
Not a river - grace is
A river sourced in His love.

Friday 27 December 2013

PARABLE

My pain is great, my wounds are sore,
My life bleeds to its end.”
I’ve come to care for you, to pour
Oil on your wounds, my friend.”

I faint, I feel my spirit pine:
My soul is reft by strife.”
My friend, I’ve come to pour you wine
To stimulate your life.”

I have no shelter, can’t begin
The journey to my home.”
I’ll bring you safely to the inn -
There is no need to roam.”

I lie within a world of harm
And cannot be released.”
My friend, I’ll bear you on my arm
To set you on my beast.”

My money and my goods are lost;
I cannot pay a fee.”
Do not despair, my friend - the cost
Has all been borne by me.”

Out of this inn what shall I do?
When I am gone - what then?”
The innkeeper will care for you
Until I come again.”

My Friend - how I shall miss your face!
Why must you go away?”
I’m going to prepare the place
Where, with me, you shall stay.”

Thursday 26 December 2013

THE MAN

The Man who opened the ears
Of the man who could not hear
Was history’s greatest Listener.

The man who anointed the blind man
And brought light into his life
Was the greatest Seer among men.

And of the Man who raised
Dead from the dead it was written
“In Him was life”.

Tuesday 24 December 2013

CHRISTIAN PRIVILEGES

Chosen in Christ before the world began,
Redeemed through the munificence of grace,
Associated with the heavenly Man.

Given the Earnest of a settled place,
Clothed in the worth of One raised from the dead,
Enregistered in an undying race,

United by the Spirit to the Head,
Forming a part of the illustrious bride,
In this dry wilderness refreshed and fed,

Rejoicing in the food which will abide,
Waiting to share Christ’s glory by His side.

Monday 23 December 2013

SWEETNESS

Among computers or washing,
Pens, basins, or branches
There is a Man who will
Bring sweetness.

Among catheters and scalpels,
Even graves and coffins
There is a Man who will
Bring sweetness.

Among saints and angels,
And the splendours of heaven
There is a Man who will
Bring sweetness.

Sunday 22 December 2013

PATIENCE


Because I lock
The door He has to knock;
He has to wait
Because I bar the gate;
Because I wall
Him out He has to call.

Although I mock,
In patience, He will knock;
And He will wait
If my reply is late;
His love will call
When my response is small.

Lord, I unlock
My heart, break down the wall,
Unhinge my gate;
Thou shalt no longer wait
Or knock, or call:
Lord, lead me to Thy flock.

Saturday 21 December 2013

ABILITY

The Man who loves me
Is the Man with the greatest
Love ability.

Friday 20 December 2013

LIGHT

If life around seems grim
With all-embracing dark;
If Christians’ light grows dim
And gutters to a spark
Lift up your eyes and see afar
The shining of the Morning Star.

And mid His faithful saints
The love of Christ gives light
Excluding Satan’s feints
To lead them into night;
Within the heart of every one
Shines gloriously the risen Sun.

His sweetness does not cloy
But makes our spirits full;
He makes our souls enjoy
The principle of rule;
His warmth surrounds with its embrace
Suffusing all our hearts with grace.

And His assembly shines
With God’s own glory’s rays:
The Spirit’s wise designs
Will soon appear in day
But in the night she rules for Him
Whose light towards her is never dim.

Where Light which has no taints
Has once, in beauty, been
Now all Christ’s chosen saints
Are lights in a dark scene:
While patiently His people wait
With variant lights they scintillate.

Thursday 19 December 2013

JACOB

More than a mother's love,
A divine secret,
Moved Rebecca to discern
Jacob was loveable.

"What was torn I have not
Brought to thee", Jacob attested,
The words of a man
Who did justly.

Renamed, after his wrestling,
And his maiming
He, Israel, could walk as one
Of God's nobility.

To approach God's house
- "Put away the strange gods ...
And cleanse yourselves" -
Demanded purity.

After the byways, 
Skewed routes, now
Leaning on his staff,
A true worshipper.

Edinburgh & Anand 11-12/13
Testing the history of Jacob by Phil 4: 8.

Wednesday 18 December 2013

STANDING

The Son of God, who did God’s will,
The Son of Man, who came to die,
The Son of David, Christ, stood still
In answer to a beggar’s cry.

The Man who is the Lord of all,
Who soon will reign in equity,
Stood prisoner in the judgment hall
Of one steeped in iniquity.

He stood as the Victorious One
Within the circle of His own
Bringing His peace since all was done
By which the Father might be known.

Soon He will come to claim His right
And stand upon the sea and land;
All shall be set for His delight
And all shall prosper in His hand.

Tuesday 17 December 2013

LUKE 15

What the shepherd looked for
Was one who would recognise
His voice, one who would follow
His feet, one to enjoy
His pastures, one who was suitable
To be brought to the house.

What the woman sought
Was one who would shimmer to
Her lamp, one who would show
The Master’s face, one to enhance
Value within the house.

And what the father looked out for
Was one who could wear
The best robe with dignity, act
According to the gold ring, dance
Like a son in the sandals. One
With whom, in his house, he could share.