LETTERS OF ENCOURAGEMENT- In the Spirit

Lord…
I have been fearful!
I have been so afraid
to live my life…
to accept reality
as it really is.
How I wished that
it would be different,
that it would be something other
than what it is.

I shut my eyes,
and when I open them…
Reality is still the same.

I hold my nose,
holding my breath…
just about to jump in…
take the deep plunge…
Wait!
I am afraid!

The external world has not changed.
Time is passing by.
Tick. Tick. Moment by moment,
time passes.

Some people grab
quick, impulsive moments…
and make rash, impetuous decisions
- but not I!
No, I wait.
Afraid to decide.
Hoping everything would go away…
Maybe, if I held my breath
long enough!
And that’s
the greatest worry…
You can only live life
by taking the deep plunge.
You’ve got to get in –
knee deep
into all the dirt and grime…
waist deep
into all the filth…
and by the Grace of God
He will pull you through.

We have no control.
Absolutely none!

Time was ticking
even before we were born.
And we are already
caught in the swirling tide!
We are forced
in to this life.
We had no choice.
Our parents had us!
Their actions precipitated
our being here!
And our lives lie ahead
until the day we physically die!

We can’t stop death!
It comes quietly, silently, inevitably.
Yes, like a thief in the night!
Death – tries to rob us of Life!

Yet, another irony!
God’s Gift of Eternal Life
defeats Death!
God gives us Life –
His Spiritual Life!
He gives us the strength
to go forward in our mortal lives everyday.
He gives us the courage
to face physical suffering and Death!
And He gives us a security
in the knowledge
of that Eternal Life
here on earth right now!
It is through the Spiritual Life
we experience right now that
we can feel His daily ministering
to our spirits!

O God…
how I have to trust You!
How I have to learn to let go!
I have to take
that deep plunge!
Learn to jump…
soar through mid-air…
and know that I am NOT going to fall
BECAUSE of YOU!

You are here!
I believe in You.
I trust in You.
And if I don’t like the look
of the way ahead,
I know I can come through –
WITH YOU!

Yes, we have some choices in Life.
You gave us guidelines
on how to live our lives.
It is when we sin
that we are required
to bear consequences.

If we listen,
and follow the well-lit path,
we shall come through.
Sometimes, we create pain
for ourselves
when we choose to sin.
Usually that pain
affects others in our lives.
No action is isolated.
Every action affects ALL.
The World bears
the consequences of Sin.
We see it in overcrowded jails,
in poor, unsanitary living conditions,
in deadly famines and incurable sicknesses,
in riots and wars,
and violent death!

Why don’t we listen?
Why don’t we use
our God-given ears
and eyes?

Can’t we see
how we totally
destroy each other?

God,
why can’t we
just obey You?
It seems
that life could
really be so very easy,
and we make it so very hard.

8.10.93

O God,
I love You this morning!
I could sing Your praises all day!
I feel so loved,
so totally complete...
such peace,
and a quiet joy...
I wish every day was like this!
I wish every moment
of my life was like this!

And it can be.
You are
in my Heart
all the time.

'IN THE SPIRIT' - to page 23

'INDEX'