7/18/21 through 7/24/21

 7/18/21 through 7/24/21

Sunday

Here I sit to ponder well

The Gospel words of which I tell.

The shepherd sacrifices food

To feed His lost and hungry brood.

At length He teaches those who seek.

He heals the sick and strengthens weak.

He guides them to a place of rest

In solitude to be refreshed.

In leisure subtleties emerge,

Distractions, and the like we purge

To ruminate upon His word,

And let His love, in us be stirred.

It's there we find what we should do , 

When sitting quietly with You.

When giving You the chance to speak

It's true, the wise are also meek.

Monday

How many signs must people see?

Do those in chains want to be free?

Are we like those upon the shore, 

Preferring slavery as before?

Or do we see, and so believe

That God, Our Lord will soon relieve

All suffering and pain for thee,

And draw you through a parted sea?

Lord, give us strength to follow You

In what You say and what You do .

Give courage to the faint of heart

And let them see the waters part.

So many signs we cast aside

Now blinded by our useless pride,

But on that morn the Son shall rise,

And open all the blinded eyes.

Grant me grace to follow well

When all is bleak and dark clouds swell.

For You have shown oft times before,

You're faithful to the oath You swore.

Far more than safety, freedom sought

Your signs and wonders not forgot.

The truly wise will look and see

Your angels clear the way for me.

Tuesday

"Stretch out your hand.", was Moses told

The pow'r of God you shall behold.

The enemy shall be removed

And love of God be ever proved.

Yet still we doubt His loving care

Surrounding us, but unaware,

We fear the wicked, threatening mob

When trust alone is but our job.

He fights for those He calls His own

Who work to make His wonders known,

And stretching out His hands we see

His vict'ry won upon the tree.

Love overcomes the cross and grave

A love like His will heal and save

Obey, and bear the cross, we must

For vict'ry comes if we but trust.

Wednesday

A scattering of quail around

A bread behind the dew is found.

He grants His people all they need,

On bread from heaven, they will feed.

Some will see His loving care,

While others yearn for slavery's fare.

The former tasting all delights,

The latter, firm reproof, invites.

Look around and you will see

What kind of person you might be.

The two are seen still to this day

Just not quite in the same old way.

His blessings all around are seen

In every place and in between.

While some delight in all they see,

Some never satisfied will be.

Thursday

(Can be sung to the tune of Creator of the Stars at Night)

A healing love in Magdalene

A tenderness before unseen

Who bathed His feet with tears of love,

Beneath the cross with Him above.

She stayed until the bitter end

A faithful and a loving friend. 

She saw the lance that pierced His side,

His final breath, and when He died.

She saw they laid Him in the tomb,

Unknowing three days hence would bloom

The crucified, our risen Lord.

One to be worshipped and adored.

Apostle to Apostles ran.

To Galilee His stated plan.

Now make disciples of all men, 

Repeat the story o'er again.

Friday

My job it is to till the ground,

to hide the seed before it's found

By thieving birds that steal away

The seed that falls on trodden clay.

Remove the stone that blocks the root

From finding depth in its pursuit

So withered not the grain may be

When scorching sun assaileth me.

Cut down the thorn that chokes the word

That clearly now His voice is heard.

So seed can grow and find the light

It needs to bear much fruit aright.

So grant it Lord that I might be

A soil well prepared for Thee.

Receiving all that You have sown,

Both ripe and fruited, fully grown.

At harvest time You find a yield

A hundredfold within this field,

And on the final day I hear,

"Well done, My servant", come in here.

Saturday

In blood the covenant was made

To follow God, what Moses bade.

We shall!  We shall, the people cried.

A faithful love, they testified.

But in the field where seed was sown,

So too, the weeds of sin have grown.

They grow together for  awhile,

Attempting to, good seed beguile.

But in the end the weeds are burned,

And all receive what all have earned.

The empty stalk with chaff is tossed

Amid the fire, among the lost.

How sweet the law of love can be

The faithful saints would all agree.

The seeming loss that love requires,

A greater gain the love acquires.

So see the blood that Jesus shed,

New covenant by which we're fed,

And know that in the end love wins,

And love will conquer any sins. 

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