Blog Archives

GIANTS IN THE LAND 616

5/24/2020

GIANTS IN THE LAND 616

Are there any giants
In the land
Willing to be loyal
And ready to stand
  For that which is
                          trustworthy and true

                          Are there any giants
In the land
                          With souls filled
                           With striking courage
Could one of them
Be you?

                            Are there any giants
  In the land, if so,
                            Rise up, be counted
                            For the challenge
                            Is great
                            And the hours
                           Are few

                            Are there any giants
      In the land
                            Make yourselves know
                            Arise, the fate
                            Of the country
                            Rests in your hands
                            (First published on May 6, 1979,
                           with revisions added on May 24, 2020.)

COMMENCEMENT 2020

5/24/2020

  COMMENCEMENT 2020

                                        For those of you who are about
                                        to graduate we would ask you to...

                                        Learn from the mistakes and
                                        successes of others
                                        Build upon that which history
                                        has show to be good and honest
                                        and true
                                        Be not afraid of the future,
                                        press on, press on
                                        Seek vocations that would
                                        enrich and uplift your fellowman
                                        Defend our freedoms,
                                        decry bondage of any kind
                                        Learn to feed men's minds and
                                        hearts as well as their stomachs.
                                        Set high standards and gracious
                                        examples for others to follow.
                                        And remember, every day of our
                                        lives is a day of commencement

(First published May 23, 2013)
We are well aware that commencements
2020 have been overrun by the worldwide
coronavirus pandemic, but you certainly
will have a tale to tell your grandchildren.
bm. 5.24.2020

SHARE YOUR WEALTH 192

5/15/2020

.

      SHARE YOUR WEALTH 192

                                     "Share your wealth," wrote Wilfred A.
                                     Peterson. "The greatest wealth of all
                                     is the wealth of yourself."

                                     What do I have to offer the world today?
                                     A worn old body that hourly continues
                                     To turn into clay.

                                     What do I have to offer the world today?
                                     No great talents, but say...
                                     We'll light a candle or two
                                     For a stranger or two
                                     With kind words and a wide grin
                                     we make a new friend

                                     What do I have to offer the world today?
                                     When things go wrong?
                                     An encouraging word
                                     A heart filled with song
                                     A friendly handshake
                                    And peaceful thoughts
                                     As we travel along
                                    The open road
                                    Together.

WHAT GETS YOU?

5/15/2020

    WHAT GETS YOU?

                                    Psychologists generally agree that
                                    whatever gets your attention...gets you!

                                    "Every year of my life," wrote Richard Cecil,
                                    "I grow more convinced that it is wisest and
                                    best to fix our attention on the beautiful and
                                    good and dwell as little as possible on the
                                    evil and false."

                                    This is no head-in-the-sand philosophy or
                                    or denial of the negligent or cruel realities
                                    or our society.
                                    We are simply opting for a better way.
                                    One in which the eyes are clear
                                    the voice is soft
                                    the mind alert and
                                    the heart pure

                                    And while it is true that men who
                                    eat carrots, do not become rabbits...
                                    If we continually feast upon that which
                                    is sordid shall we not eventually become
                                    base? Or as Solomon questioned:
                                    "Can a man take fire in his bosom,
                                    and his clothes [and] not be burned?"
                                    (Proverbs 6:27)

                                    Attention, attention...what gets You?

(First published on May 13, 2013)

GOD'S JUSTICE

5/15/2020

GOD'S JUSTICE

God's justice is always skewed toward...
Faith
Hope
Charity
Love eternal
Love everlasting
Courage
Quietness
Calmness
Kindness
Love unfeigned
Family
Friends
Neighborliness
Mercy
Forgiveness
Compassion
Tenderness
All things pure
and holy

(Written on May 14, 2020,
and published on May 15, 2020)

MOTHER'S DAY (1977)

5/9/2020

MOTHER'S DAY (1977)

In all the world
Who may find
A gem so rare
As Mother

The richest coffers
Just don't hold
A jewel so fair
As Mother

In times of trouble
And despair
Who'll love and care
As Mother

Of all the flowers
We have seen
O, none may compare
With Mother

(First published on May 8, 1977)

WE ARE ALL ON THE ROAD TO EMMAUS

5/9/2020

   WE ARE ALL ON THE ROAD TO EMMAUS

We are all
   on the road
   to Emmaus
   All of us
   One by one
While the father's
      Christ
Remains hidden
   Unrecognized
   Unknown
   And ever shall
   Remain that way
   Until he
   The Lord Christ
   Reveals himself
   To us and converts us
To his way, the only way
   To peace, love, joy
   Eternal, and forevermore
(May he break his bread
   With you and for you
This very day,
   For your very soul)
   Amen

  (Written on May 4, 2015)

PROVERBS 3:7,8,9,10

5/3/2020

    PROVERBS 3:7,8,9,10

Be not wise in thine own eyes,
Fear the Lord and depart from
evil
It shall be health to thy navel,
and marrow to thy bones

Honour the Lord with thy substance
and with the firstfruits of all thy
increase
So shall thy barns be filled with plenty,
and thy wine presses shall burst out
with new wine

ABSOLUTELY 240

5/3/2020

ABSOLUTELY 240

"No man," wrote Owens Meredith,
"is the absolute lord of his life."

While in our youth, many of us have
thought themselves to be the total lord
of all our circumstances, always in charge.

As years went by and our responsibilities
grew greater, many of us adopted the
philosophy that "God helps them that
help themselves."

But now, as we have pushed on past
middle age and beyond, we continue to
realize our deepening and enjoyable
dependency on our Heavenly Father.

And, it becomes more evident that our
self-independence may be established at its
finest and highest degree only as we permit
Christ to become the absolute Lord of our
life.

(First published on November 11,1976)

LORD OF ALL 236

5/3/2020

LORD OF ALL 236

"In certain trying circumstances, urgent
circumstances, desperate circumstances,"
wrote Mark Twain, "profanity furnishes
a relief denied even in prayer."

We'd like to paraphrase and re-arrange Mr.
Twain's remarks just slightly, if we could.
(It's a good thing Mr. Twain has passed on,
or he probably would have objected to any
re-arrangement of his words, laced with a
little profanity.

We think from a Christian viewpoint, that
the following would be much more appropriate...
"In even the most trying of circumstances,
prayer furnishes a relief usually denied by
profanity."

When you are discouraging
And your patience flies away
And your troubles drive you
To your knees
Don't bother getting up too soon
Just remain awhile and pray.

Carry all your burdens
Whether great or small
To Him who always listens
And answers every call.
And you will soon discover
That He is Lord of all.

(First published on October 31,1976)