The New Year And New Hope

 

Image credits to commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:
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"The Gate of the Year"

GOD KNOWS

- Minnie Louise Haskins (1908)

And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.”
And he replied:
“Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.”
So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night.
And He led me towards the hills and the breaking of day in the lone East.

So heart bestill: 

What needs our little life  

Our human life to know,  

If God hath comprehension? 

In all the dizzy strife  

Of things both high and low,  

God hideth His intention.

God knows. 

His will Is best. 

The stretch of years  

Which wind ahead, so dim  

To our imperfect vision,  

Are clear to God. 

Our fears  

Are premature; 

In Him, All time hath full provision.

Then rest: until God moves to lift the veil  

From our impatient eyes,  

When, as the sweeter features  

Of Life’s stern face we hail,  

Fair beyond all surmise  

God’s thoughts around His creatures  

Our minds shall fill. 
---------

This poem became popular and caught the attention of many people when Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother) handed a copy of it to her husband, King George VI, and used it as one inspirational quote in his Christmas Broadcast in 1939. God Knows is the original title given by the author but it is popularly known as Gate of the Year.

It has also caught my attention as it was a part of our family devotion before the turns of the year.  (Using some of my devotional pieces from my subscription in  crosswalk is really a blessing, authored by different remarkable Christians who stood by their faith.) This poem is a think tank on what lights can do to move in the darkness, to see what is known, to see what lies ahead this new year..and yet the most that we can do is to sink our hands deeply to God so He would light and lead us into the path of the unknown. 
"He who trusts in the Lord will be exalted," (Proverbs 29:25) Nothing is better if we could light our path by following His words yet there is more than reading it...if we could hold on to Him knowing He wouldn't lead us astray... so whatever the struggles that we have left behind, a new hope for this new year is to keep holding on to His promises, trusting God, and let Him lead us.

And as we make the turn to a new year, a face that needs and sink our hand more deeply into God's hand. Pray for one another that as we embark upon a new year, God will grant us and our family His favor. 

Unto us a Son is given, Unto us a Child was born

Who has heard the real Christmas story? It isn't the fat man in a red suit that we always know giving kids gifts on Christmas eve, it isn't some guys who are singing carol songs and handling you a small, white envelope, it isn't the shopping spree that we do during the 'ber' months making us tired and cash strapped after it...Christmas story is about a young virgin who was engaged to a carpenter and yet even though she conceived a child by the power of the Holy Spirit, the carpenter took her as his wife. It is about a couple who were told by God to go even if the woman is heavy on her pregnancy, asking for a room to stay in and to give birth. Christmas story was about a baby named Jesus, born in a manger, visited and praised by shepherds and wise men from the East. Christmas is Jesus Christ who saves His people from sin. The only begotten Son who was given to us for us to have eternal life

We don't know the exact date of His birth, but one thing is sure... once in this world a Father has given His Son to save us, a child was born in a lowly stable though he is great to give us hope in the face of uncertainty...

#Christmas #Son #God #JesusChrist

The Day It Started Once Again..Does It End Once Again?

The capture of the moment once again repeats itself..after a year and a half. She cherished the moment that they had been together, praying what has been started would be preserved if God wills for it. She did not know what he was thinking about it then.
A year and a half had passed, and a prominent restaurant had been a witness to two people wanting to take another chance..they were eating when the Big sister had passed by, they looked at each other and smiled.. reading between the lines... He accompanied her that time when she was looking for a finer pair of shoes. Soon, the dark sky needs to go... there was this rehearsal for a musical night to celebrate His coming...they went...

..on their way on a hub cab drive he holds her hand seizing the moment to behold her beauty, capturing the time to promise a better stance this time. It started from then on..to cherish once again the time they have shared, to patronize the gift that He has given ..to start once again for a more nurtured stance..asking to fill in all the shortcomings, promising to have given it more importance..it started that day..that day was "today"(click here)...does he remember?

She did not see it coming nor he knew what it is... the turmoil.. they see it ends the moment..does He approve it? or will He cease that moment for a better one and just let this turmoil passes by?..or is it really meant for them to unhold and let go of each other?..nobody knows..only He knows what His plans are for them...

                         

Because of Who You Are ...

image credit to morethanuseless.com

When you look into the cottony sky, the beautiful landscape of hills and mountains, the shimmering sunlight of the sea, the awesome colors of leaves and flowers, and the glittering stars of the night..you might ask..what a Great Hand has created these things... When you see and hear the different animals, when you feel the warm embrace of your kids, the loving touch of your mother, the protection of your father..you might say...what a Wonderful privilege has been given to us...

Have you asked who you are to see and feel all of these things?.. Have you been wondering that with all those trials, pain, and sufferings, you still managed to get up and be someone you dreamed of?..

Watch, hear, and think of what this song is saying...

Video Credits to the owner and Casting Crowns

This song is like a prayer..with all those things around us, those people who have hurt us, those trials that make us fall..there is One Hand that will catch us..no matter what or who we are..without Him..we're like a flower quickly fading, a wave tossed in the ocean, a vapor in the wind..here today and gone tomorrow. We are nothing..but because of Who God Is..we are someone..someone His...
Who am I? .. God said, You are mine. "I am yours, God, and whom shall I fear?"..what a wonderful assurance that whatever we had done, because  He is God, He loves us and will be by our side...and God's promises never change...

Breakdown

If in your own little space, in your own limited time, nobody knows what is happening inside. Every single day, pain seething in, body aches, unable to move. The desire to move and go, to do things faded away. Failure to function normally, it is what breakdown is all about. It is the complete loss of physical or mental or emotional spark and energy. A breakdown could be the effect of stress and the inability to cope with it, anxiety or depression. 

You would think closing your eyes is the next best thing to do, but sleep is far from over. Too much, too much... where you go, it haunts, bit by bit it consumes into our every being. Letting it out by crying, still, the pain seethes in...

Talking it out to a friend would help..never wanted to be alone yet loneliness halted your lips to share the pain, never wanting to open the long infected wound...The state of being here..the only refuge is God who will pick up the bits and pieces of what you are undergoing. 

The Promise

These are the promises that God has given us and in turn can be our guide to love, to guide, and to say to our spouses. Love them as God loves us unconditionally.

1. He has promised He will never leave you. Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. (Hebrews 13:5)...say:" Dear, I promised not to leave you just as God will never leave me.."
Can you say this to your spouse, and truly mean it as God means it toward you?

2. He is always thinking only the best about you. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. (Psalm 139:17-18)...say: "Dear, I am always thinking only the best about you!"
Can you say that your mind is always filled with only good thoughts about your spouse?

3. He is gentle toward you when you’re broken. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”  (Psalm 147:3) ..say: "I will be gentle toward you if you're broken.."
Are you gentle toward your spouse even when he/she is angry or unlovable – which is how he/she often responds when he/she is hurt?

4. He promises nothing will ever come between the two of you. (Nothing) will be able to separate us from the love of God... (Romans 8:39) ..say: Dear, I promise nothing will ever come between the two of us.."
Are there any conditions or exceptions in your mind when it comes to loving your spouse?  Is there something in the back of your mind that he/she could do that would end it for the two of you? God holds none of those reservations about you. He has promised nothing – that includes nothing you can do – will ever come between you and God. Can you say the same to your spouse?

5. He delights in you, quiets you with His love, and sings over you. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing. (Zephaniah 3:17)...say: "Dear, I delight in you, quiet you with my love, and sing over you.."
Can you delight in your spouse and rejoice over him/her, simply because of who he/she is – one who is loved by his Heavenly Father and by you? Think about the joy and comfort you have, knowing God feels that way about you. Now, what would it add to your spouse’s life if he/she knew you truly delighted in him/her?

As I am typing all these, I am thinking if I could do that, and thinking if he could do that. Easier said than done, but with a determination to save my long ailing marriage and with God beside me, I pray that it's all done. I am holding on to what God said..what He has joined together, let no man separate. It is my decision to love him even before we got married, still, do when things get rough. Maybe he didn't know that even with his imperfections I have love.
God has taught me many things, the hard way. Nobody knows. I may be seen as strong but it is because I have God and He is with me since the time I was born. I never questioned God for everything He has done, it is because God has given us..me..something ..a gift.. to conquer it all, to serve our purpose.
I assure you guys, God will never give us what we cannot bear and it is the other way around, God has given us those trials because He knew we could surpass it through the gift, the skills He has given us. I just do hope to inspire everyone who reads it...(",) May God bless you...

Acknowledgment to http://www.crosswalk.com

Scream

I'm Tired of injustice, I'm Tired of the schemes, it's kinda disgusting. What does it mean? Kicking me down I got to get up. As jacked as it sounds, the whole system sucks. Peek in the shadow, I come into the light. You tell me I'm wrong, then you better prove you're right. You're sellin' out souls but I care about mine. I've got to get stronger, and I won't give up the fight.

With such confusion does it make you wanna scream? You're bash abusin' victimize within the scheme. You try to cope with every lie they scrutinize. Somebody, please have mercy 'cause I just can't take it. Stop pressurin' me. Just stop pressurin' me. Tired of you tellin' the story your way, it's causin' confusion, and you think it's okay. You changin' the rules while I keep playin' the game. I can't take it much longer I think I'm a go insane.

With such confusion, does it make you wanna scream? You're bash abusin' victimize within' the scheme. You find your pleasure scandalizin' every lie.

Oh, Father, please have mercy 'cause I just can't take it.

Does it sound and look familiar?.. This is an excerpt from Michael Jackson's song. He had composed this song due to pressures he had been into by some entertainment news media. Having the feeling of injustice and disgusting schemes. The troubles and the pain he had undergone made him wanna scream. 

Though we have the same sentiments, our causes differ. It is rooted in an experience, in my present state as someone. The schemes, the injustice, the pres sure..where will it end? Will I stay longer keeping up the fight or let it go? When will be the right time to scream to stop it? How to let it burst out for them to know you're hurting??

Keeping it to yourself...being silent, doesn't really mean you're approving the injustice nor the scheme.. being silent, doesn't mean you're being quiet..scream does not necessarily mean words and sounds to shout out...silence is a loud scream...