WITNESS

3-1-13

THE GATES OF HELL

You have heard the expression

“A living hell”

I have---and at times

During this life

I have felt

Like nothing could be worse

But is hell a real place

The hereafter

Between health problems-financial problems

And relationship problems

Sometimes I feel like

Nothing could ever be worse

Than this place

DO YOU EVER FEEL THAT WAY?

How do you think Job felt

Do you think that he felt

That wicked people

Sometimes go unpunished

Do you think

He ever felt like

No place could ever be worse than this place

JOB WAS ALIVE

What if our job is

To bring a little bit of HEAVEN to earth

Murder, rape, sexual child abuse

Fraud---bilking our seniors out of their last pennies

If there is a place worse than this

I KNOW this

I don’t want to be there

This place can be bad enough

In Matthew 13---Jesus tells us this story,

“The kingdom of heaven

Is like a mustard seed

Which a man took and planted

In his field

Though it is the smallest

Of all your seeds

Yet when it grows

It is the largest of garden plants

And becomes a tree

So that the birds of the air

Come and birch in its branches”                                                  Matthew 13:31 & 32

I am NOT trying to say

That there is no hell

I KNOW BETTER than that

I’m just saying

What if it is our job

To plant a seed

While we are here on this earth

And let it grow

In to a little bit of heaven

Our world is under attack

Our country is under attack

Out families and children are under attack

And God, Christ, and our churches

Are under attack

From evil forces

Let us all PLANT some seeds

And watch them grow

“And I tell you

That you are Peter

And on this rock

I will build my church

And the gates of hell

Will not overcome it”                                                  Matthew 16:18

Robert P. Wallman

1-23-12

Ps        WITNESS       3-1-13

WITNESS

2-28-13

CARRY IT TO COMPLETION

For each

And EVERY ONE of us Christians

Our mission-our job

Is the same

To bring some measure

OF GOD’S LOVE

Of Christ’s life

Alive in some way

In today’s world

For ourselves

And if we are

BLESSED with the opportunity

For someone else

God BEGAN a work in you

At Baptism

And will carry it on

To completion-if we let him

“I THANK my God

Every time I remember you

In all my prayers

For all of you

I always

Pray with joy

Because of your partnership

In the gospel

From the first day

Until now

Being confident of this

That he who began

A GOOD WORK in you

Will carry it on to completion

UNTIL THE DAY

Of Christ Jesus”                                                                                Philippians 1:3-6

God began

A work in you At Baptism

Maybe you

As I did

Got lost along the way

In your teens-or twenties

Don’t worry

It is common

It is called growth

It is called maturity

Maybe you

Reconfirmed your vowels

From Baptism

As a baby

Or maybe you

Were born again

And recommitted your life to God

For each of us

Our journey is different

What is common

Is that

We are all

On a journey

And we all

Have a personal relationship with God

(If we choose to)

GOD BEGAN

A good and perfect work in you

And GOD WILL

Carry it on to completion

“The fear of the Lord

Is the beginning of wisdom

All who follow his precepts

Have good understanding

To him belongs eternal praise”                                                                    Psalm 111:10

“The fear of the Lord

Is the beginning of knowledge

But fools despise wisdom and discipline”                                                 Proverbs 1:7

God began

A good and perfect work in you

God will

CARRY IT ON TO COMPLETION

And we know

He will carry

That perfect work in us

THROUGH LOVE

“There is

NO FEAR IN LOVE

But perfect love

DRIVES out fear

Because fear

Has to do with punishment

The one who fears

Is not perfect in love”                                                                       1 John 4:18

Just love baby

JUST LOVE

God will

COMPLETE HIS WORK IN US

JUST LOVE

Robert P. Wallman

10-25-12

Ps      WITNESS      2-28-13

WITNESS

2-27-13

THE DEBT

We all have financial debt/obligations

In this world

Debt to pay off our houses

Debt to pay off our cars

Our student loans

And many other types of debt

Our Lord and Savior---Jesus

Had a debt to pay off too

The debt of the selfish choices

That we make

And the cruel things we do to one another

The coldness, the indifference, the ingratitude,

The luke warmness, and ultimately rejection

The rejection of God and the rejection of others

In the way that we live our lives

Just as

We have to pay off our financial debts

Jesus chose willingly and freely

To pay off our selfish sinful debts

Otherwise known as the CROSS

How willing are you

How willing am I

How willing would you be

To pay off the debt

Of a family member

Of a friend

Of a stranger---of someone

That you don’t even know

That is what our Lord and Savior

Did for us

Stepped forward

And paid off

The debt of our sins

One difference

We are people

He does know---and know intimately

For he

Created us out of nothing

Knows each and every thought

That we have ever had

Knows each and every thought

That we ever will have

Unfortunately for many of us

We do not know him

Or even

Attempt to know him

WHY

Because we are his children

We are

CHILDREN OF GOD

He loves each of us

With a never-changing

---a never-ending love

An INFINITE LOVE

A love that we human beings

Sometimes do not understand

“Let NO DEBT remain outstanding

Except the continuing DEBT

To love one another

For he who loves his fellowman

Has fulfilled the law”                                                              Romans 13:8

“Love your neighbor as yourself

Love does no harm

To its neighbor

Therefore love

Is the FULFILLMENT of the law”

If we do ALL this---my friends

Our debts are marked---PAID IN FULL

Robert P. Wallman

9-26-11

Ps       WITNESS 2-27-13

WITNESS

2-26-13

LIVING STONES

It seems sometimes

This life is set up

For us to stumble

Stumble and fall

Stumble on our health matters

Stumble on our financial matters

Stumble in our relationships

“Though he stumble, he will not fall

He will not fall

For the Lord upholds him

With his hand”                                                             Psalm 37:4

Sometimes we not only stumble

Sometimes we actually do fall

Jesus falls the first time

But he got back up

How about us

Are we going to get back up

“For to his angels

He has given command about  you

That they guard you

In all your ways

Upon their hands

They shall bear you up

Lest you dash your foot against a stone”                                      Psalm 91:11-12

We may stumble again

Maybe even fall a second time

Jesus did

Actually fell a second time---but he got back up

How about us

Are we going to get back up

And as angels hold us up

We are to help others,

“We who are strong

Ought to bear

With the failings of the weak

Each of us

Should please his neighbor

For his good--- to build him up”                                                      Romans 15:1&2

Even with the help of angels

Even with the help of others

We may fall yet again

Jesus did

Jesus fell for even a third time

But his Father lifted him

One more time

To live with him for ALL of eternity

Success in life

Is getting back up

One more time

Than we get knocked down

God will

Bear you up

The angels

Will bear you up

Lest you dash your foot

Against a stone

“The stone

That the builders rejected

Has become the cornerstone”                                                           Psalm 118:22

“As you come to him---the living stone

Rejected by men

But chosen by God

And precious to him

You also---like living stones

Are being built into a spiritual house                                  

To be a holy priesthood

Offering spiritual sacrifices

Acceptable to God through Jesus Christ”                                           1 Peter 2:4 & 5

By staying connected to God

By believing in Christ

Though we may stumble

Though we may fall

We---as believers---will be

TRANSFORMED INTO LIVING STONES

Robert P. Wallman

9-11-11

Ps        WITNESS       2-26-13

WITNESS

2-25-13

A LIVING SACRIFICE

Christ lived a perfect life

He died a shameful death

But because he was perfect

God brought him back to life

Proving once and for all

THE SPIRIT OF GOD

Is in fact

THE WORDS OF LIFE

The early Christians

Died for the Spirit of God

And for the Spirit of Life

But I believe

That TODAY

God is asking us

For a different kind of sacrifice

He is asking us

To be a Living Sacrifice

“Therefore, I urge you

In view of God’s mercy

To offer your bodies as a living sacrifice

Holy and pleasing to God

This is your spiritual act of worship

Do NOT conform any longer

To the pattern of this world

Bu be transformed

By the renewing of your mind”                                                        Romans 12:1 & 2

There is a saying that goes something like this

“Do all the good you can

For all the people that you can

For we shall pass this way

JUST ONCE”

“I am the God of Abraham

The God of Isaac

And the God of Jacob

He is NOT the God of the dead

But of the LIVING”                                                                            Matthew 22:32

“If anyone is thirsty

Let him come to me and drink

Whoever believes in me

As the scripture has said

Streams of living water

Will flow from within him”                                                                 John 7:37

Chances are---at least in America

You won’t have to die for your faith

But I urge to live for your faith

FOR THE SPIRIT OF GOD
THAT LIVES IN YOU

Robert P. Wallman

6-16-11

Ps      WITNESS       2-25-13

“The SACRIFICES of God are a broken spirit

A broken and contrite heart

Oh God-your will NOT despise”                                                Psalm 51:17

WITNESS

2-24-13

I AM SO BLESSED

The GREATEST MIRACLE

That I ever did see

Was the one

GOD DID WORK inside of me

BLESSINGS come

Blessings go

But God

Is in my heart to stay

This much I do know

I AM SO BLESSED

Material blessings-spiritual blessings

SEEK YE FIRST

The Kingdom of God

Love God

And love others

“If you pay attention

To these laws

And are careful to follow them

Then the Lord Your God

Will KEEP his covenant of love

With you

As he swore

To your forefathers”                                                    Deuteronomy 7:12

Seek ye first……..

“Seek ye first

The Kingdom of God

And his righteousness

And all things

Will be given to you

As well

Therefore

Do NOT worry about tomorrow

For tomorrow will worry about itself

Each day has enough trouble

Of its own”                                                            Matthew 6:33-34

I AM SO BLESSED

36+ years

Of a SECOND CHANCE AT LIFE

ALL these family memories

ALL of these fantastic friends

What did I do

To deserve it-NOTHING

All I do

Is try to

KEEP MYSELF ALIVE

As healthy as possible

And love God

And love others

As best as I can

God has BESTOWED on me

Many many blessings

Through family and friends

YOUR FRIENDSHIP IS VALUABLE to me

AND I LOVE YOU

In a world

That values materialism-

I offer nothing

And I say thank you

To you

For what you have done

For stepping up

And keeping me going

At a time

When MANY have forgotten

About God in this world

It is important to remember

SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS

Are EVERY BIT as important

“From the FULLNESS

Of his grace

We have ALL received

ONE BLESSING AFTER ANOTHER

For the law

Was given through Moses

GRACE AND TRUTH

Came through Jesus Christ”                                                     John 1:16-17

LOVE GOD
AND LOVE OTHERS

“SEEK YE FIRST

His kingdom and his righteousness

AND ALL THESE THINGS

Will be given to you as well”

I AM SO BLESSED

Robert P. Wallman

2-14-13

Ps        WITNESS        2-24-13

“I will BLESS them and the places surrounding my hill

I will send down showers in season

There will be showers of BLESSING”                                              Ezekiel 34:26

WITNESS

2-23-13

BETRAYAL---

One Last Chance

Imagine this

You are

An itinerant preacher

Living 2000 years ago

Preaching the Word of God

You basically have 72 followers

12 very close ones

The one

That you trust the most

The one

That handles the money that you use

To help the needy and the poor

Is stealing---and you know it

You know

He is going to be your downfall

You know

He is going to take you down

Yet Your Father---God

Tells you to give him another chance

“Father

If it is possible

Take this cup from me

Yet not as I will

But as you will”       Matthew  11:39

One last chance for friendship

One last chance for love

Please take it Judas

We can live as one

“Yet not as my will Lord

Your will be done”

What about us Dear Lord

When we turn away from you

To follow our selfish needs of this world

We know you are always waiting for us

With one more chance

What about us Dear Lord

When our friends let us down

Help us to have the courage

As you did with Judas

To give them one more chance

One last chance for friendship

One last chance for love

Not my will Lord

But yours

Your will be done

After all the time

That Judas had spent with Judas

He couldn’t accept him

Like Peter and the others

Judas his heart hardened

By the choices he had made

Was closed

Sold his friend

For 30 pieces of silver

Sold out his friend’s love

Hung himself in Potter’s field

Finally realizing what he had done

Lord

When others betray us

In this world

Help us to have the spirit of forgiveness

That you had for Judas

One last chance for friendship

One last chance for love

“Not my will Lord

But Yours

Your will be done”

ONE LAST CHANCE FOR LOVE

Robert P. Wallman

4-19-11

Ps        WITNESS        2-23-13

“If you argue your case with a neighbor-do NOT BETRAY another man’s confidence”        Proverbs  25:9

WITNESS

2-22-13

WHAT KIND OF WATER

Picture this:

You are a young or middle-aged woman

At the water cooler

Of your office

Getting a drink of water

A young man comes up

And approaches you

In addition

This young man

Is not the same color, race, or religion

As you

The man

Proceeds to tell you

About a different kind of water

“If you drink the water

I give you

You will

Never be thirsty again

And you will have

Eternal life”

You look at this man

Like he was crazy

And think to yourself,

“What did he just say?”

You ask

For some of this water

And the man replies,

“Go call your husband”

You reply

“I have no husband

This man says, “I know”

And proceeds to tell you

About every significant relationship

That you ever had

In your life

At this point

You take a step back

You recognize,

“This is no ordinary man”

You think to yourself

This man is a prophet

And say,

“I know the Messiah is coming”

The man says,

“I who speak to you

Am he”

This man Jesus

Tells the woman

NOT to tell anyone

What he said and did

Of course she does

What would you do

Better yet Lord

Please tell us

WHERE WE CAN FIND

THIS LIVING WATER

Robert P. Wallman

3-23-11

Ps        Based on John 4---where Jesus meets the Samaritan woman

            At the well

WITNESS        2-22-13

WITNESS

2-21-13

HOME OR HOMELESS

We all have homes

RIGHT?

A place to lay our head down

At night-and a roof over our head

WRONG

For anywhere

Between 600,000 and a few million people

ON ANY GIVEN NIGHT

They are going to bed

WITHOUT a roof over their head

And food on the table

(* the actual number-IN AMERICA-

Is difficult to ascertain for various reasons)

In fact,

I have a couple of friends

Who are homeless

And a couple of more

That might be on their way there

There is one thing-though-

That we can ALL agree on

AT LEAST those of us with FAITH

And that is our home

IS WITH THE LORD

“One thing

I ask of the Lord

This is what I seek

That I may dwell

In the house of the Lord

ALL the days of my life

To gaze upon the beauty

Of the Lord

And to seek him

In his temple”                                                               Psalm 27:4

And we KNOW

That Jesus identifies with the homeless

For he once said:

“Foxes have holes

And birds in the air have nests

But the Son of Man

Has no place to lay his head”                                                          Matthew 8:20

So we know that Jesus

LOVES THE HOMELESS

EVERY bit as much

As he loves you and me

PROBABLY more so

For we know

Jesus was a wanderer

And a teacher

And probably had NO HOME

Of his own

The number one reason

For homelessness is poverty

And anyone could wind up there

With a couple of bad breaks

A LOST JOB-a chronic illness

Etc., etc., etc.,

And we know

Jesus identifies with the poor:

“For I was hungry

And you

Gave me something to eat

I was thirsty

And you gave me

Something to drink

I was a stranger

And you invited me in

I needed clothes

And you clothed me

I was sick

And you looked after me

I was in prison

And you came to visit me”                                                          Matthew 25:35-36

And we will say

“When did we do this Lord?”

And he will say,

“I tell you the truth

Whatever you did

For one of

The least brothers of mine

You did for me”                                                                          Matthew 25:40

This poem

Is for my friends

Who are homeless

And ALL people

Who are homeless

For we know,

“There but

For the GRACE of God

Go I”

And we HOPE AND PRAY

ONE DAY-we can all say:

“Surely GOODNESS AND LOVE

Will follow me

ALL the days of my life

And I will dwell

In the house of the LORD-FOREVER”                                                         Psalm 23:6

Robert P. Wallman

2-16-17

Ps        WITNESS        2-21-13

WITNESS

2-20-13

Fishers of Men

Come one

Come all

Come all you fishermen

Come one

Come all

I will make you

Fishers of men

Come Simon and Andrew

Come John and James too

Come all you others Apostles

And I will make you

Fishers of men

153 kinds of fish

In this world

One for every man

One for every woman

One for every race, religion

And nationality in this world

Come one

Come all

I no longer

Call you fishermen

I call you fishers of men

You in the 21^st century

You devout men and women

Of this world

The work is not over yet

I call on you too

And I will make you

Fishers of men

Spread the word of God

In this world

Spread God’s love

To every man, woman, and child

Spread your love all around

God’s work is not done yet

Come one/Come all

And I will make you

Fishers of men

In Jesus’ name—we pray

Robert P. Wallman

1/24/11

Ps        WITNESS        2-20-13

Dear Lord, please help us to spread your love, your forgiveness, and your

            Kindness all over this world

“Come follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men”

At once-they left their nets and followed him”                                              Mark 1:17-18

“Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore

It was full of large fish-153- but even with so many-the net was not torn”             John 21-11

WITNESS

2-19-13

TALENT AND BOASTING

We ALL have talent

Some kind of talent

Oh YES you do

Oh yes I do

And we are

To use that talent

Consider the parable of the talents

Discussed in Matthew 25

“Again-it will be

Like a man

Going on a journey

Who called his servants

And entrusted his property to them

To the one

He gave five talents of money

To another

Two talents

And to another one talent

Each according to his ability

Then he went

On his journey”

But this parable

Is not about money

It is

About OUR relationship to God

And to others

The man who was given 5

Made five more

The man who was given 2

Made two more

And the one with 1

Dug a whole

And buried his master’s money

To the first two

The master replied

“Well done-good and faithful servant

You have been faithful

With a few things

I will put you

In charge of many things

Come and share

Your master’s happiness”

And to the one

Who buried his talent

He said,

“You wicked lazy servant

So you know that I harvest

Where I have not sown

And gather

Where I have not scattered seed

Well then

YOU should have put my money on deposit

With the bankers

So that when I returned

I would have received it back

With interest”

Well I want

To share in my master’s happiness

And I

Do not want to be called “wicked” and “lazy”

HOW about you?

And if I

Am lucky enough

To have any success

I want to

Boast ONLY in the Lord

For ALL talent

Comes from him

“My soul will boast

In the Lord

Let the afflicted hear and rejoice”                                                      Psalm 34:2

I will

NOT speak of my talent

I will boast

ONLY in the Lord

“Therefore

As it is written

“Let him who boasts

Boast in the Lord”                                                                     1 Corinthians 1:31

It is not I

It is him (God)

And it is NOT me

It is we (all)-it is us

“For it is by grace

You have been saved

Through FAITH-and this not from yourselves

It is the GIFT OF GOD

NOT by works

So that NO ONE can boast

For we are

God’s workmanship

Created in Christ Jesus

To do good works

Which God prepared

In advance

For us to do”                                                                        1 Corinthians 2:8-10

USE YOUR TALENT

And remember

It is not I or me

But it is-it is-HIM AND US

Robert P. Wallman

11-21-12

Ps        WITNESS        2-19-13

LOVING THE AGED---Our length of life

“The length of our days is 70 years---or eighty

If we have the strength

Yet their span is but trouble and sorrow

For they quickly pass---and we fly away”                                     Psalm 90:10

We ALL want to live a long life

The psalms tell us

Our life span is 70 years

80 if we are strong

But I suggest to you

It is not the quantity of years

That is important

But the quality of our lives

While we are here

To me---quality of life means

The love that we give and receive

Both from and to God

And from and to others

Particular the older people and children

“Do not cast me away

When I am old

Do not forsake me

When my strength is gone”                                                                     Psalm 71:9

My parents taught me to

“Respect my elders”

But I dare say

That, in general

Our world leaves a lot to be desired

In that respect

“Is not wisdom found among the aged

Does not long life bring understanding”                                                   Job 12:12

And so Lord

As our lives quickly pass

And our lives fly away

We pray for a new respect for the elderly

And for the youth of our nation

And our world

“Gray hair is a crown of splendor

It is attained by a righteous life”                                                             

RESPECT THE AGED AND THE ELDERLY

They have earned it

Robert P, Wallman

5-11-11

WITNESS

2-17-13

THESE HARD HEARTS

Have you ever run up

Against a hard heart

A heart that no matter what you say or do

You just can’t penetrate

I have

Too many times to count and enumerate

That is the nature of this world

The nature of people

Probably always has been---always will be

Moses ran up against

The hardest of hearts

When he ran up against Pharaoh

In Exodus

God calls Moses

From within a burning bush

And tells Moses

To go to Pharaoh

On behalf of his people---the Israelites

And tell him to let them go

Moses questions God---“Who-who-who am I……..”       ( Moses stuttered )

To go on behalf of my people

And Moses runs into perhaps

The most hardened heart

That ever lived---PHARAOH

Pharaoh’s heart is unyielding

And the Lord

Turns the waters into blood

But pharaoh still refuses---

He has a hard heart

“If today you hear his voice

Harden not your heart”                                                   Hebrews 3:8

The Lord sends a second---a third

And even a fourth plague

Plagues of frogs

Plagues of Gnats

And plagues of flies

But he-Pharaoh is UNYIELDING

HARDEN NOT YOUR HEARTS

Still further plagues come

The death of livestock---

Boils-hail-and even locusts

But Pharaoh continues to be unyielding

The Lord continued to make Pharaoh’s heart hard

Because he wanted

The Israelite people to believe in him

He wanted them to KNOW

That his name is I AM---THE GOD OF MIRACLES

Harden NOT your hearts

“Therefore God has mercy

On whom he wants to have mercy

And he hardens

Whom he wants to harden”                                              Romans 9:18

Finally Pharaoh says,

“Go worship the Lord

Even your woman and children may go with you……..”                     Exodus 10:24

But Pharaoh changed his mind yet again

Finally the Lord

Sent the last plagues

And God struck down

Every first born male of Egypt

But protected

The Israelite first-born males

And the Israelites fled

Finally got away---through GOD’S MIRACLE

The parting of THE RED SEA

And so today---out in the world

When we seemingly

Run into hard heart after hard heart

LET US REMEMBER

How the Lord

AIDED Moses and the Israelite people

And let us know

That if we ourselves are PENETRATED

WITH DEVOTION TO THE LORD’S DIVINE HEART

We too can labor with marvelous success

Like the commercial says---

“Keep your heart open and love will find a way”

“You yourselves

Are our letter

Written on our hearts

Known and read by everyone

You show

That you are a letter from Christ

The result of our ministry

Written NOT with ink

But with the SPIRIT

OF THE LIVING GOD

NOT on tablets of stone

But on tablets of HUMAN HEARTS”                                    Romans 3:2&3

Because GOD IS LOVE

Like Pharaoh---these hard hearts

ARE GOING TO FALL

Robert P. Wallman

1-20-12

Ps       WITNESS       2-17-13

THE SAINT OF WRITERS---Saint Francis de Sales

He was born in 1567

In France

He was very delicate as a boy

And was educated privately

At least at first

Later---

He attended the University of Paris

And studied rhetoric, philosophy, and theology

He became a doctor of law

And opportunities

For marriage and a brilliant career abounded

But he chose

To become a Catholic priest

He became distinguished

Both for his service to the poor

And his preaching

He succeeded

In almost everything that he did

Because of his great love

His great understanding

And his persistent patience and gentleness

His most famous writings were called

THE TREATISE OF THE LOVE OF GOD

And

INTRODUCTION TO THE DEVOUT LIFE

One of his best friends was

Jane Frances de Chantal

Who founded the Visitation order

 Under his direction

And who later became a Saint herself

He was extremely influential as a writer

And in leading souls to self-sacrifice

And to the finding of God’s love

He died in 1622

Was canonized as a Saint in 1665

And declared a Doctor of the church in 1877

His name is FRANCIS de SALES

Robert P. Wallman

1-27-12

Ps                    Francis de Sales feast day is January 24^th---I found great inspiration---

                        In reading the life story of Saint Francis de Sales---and find great

                        inspiration in reading the lives of ALL the Saints

He is the patron Saint of writers

WITNESS

2-16-13

“God’s Way”

God’s way

Is not our way

We need to be reminded

Of this

Over and over again

In the first chapter

Of St. Luke’s Gospel

We see God in action

Two women were involved

One—Elizabeth

Who was to give birth

To John the Baptist

And one—Mary

Was to give birth

To our Lord

And Savior Jesus Christ

And in the book of Kings

We hear the story

Of Elijah

Elijah is tired of living

And scared of dying

And looking for God

Elijah looks for God

In the wind

But he is not there

Elijah looks for God

In an earthquake

But he is not there

Elijah looks for God

In a fire

But alas and again—he is not there

He finds God

In a gentle breeze

Maybe we too

Are looking for

A miraculous sign

And maybe –just maybe

We have already

Seen the sign

The love of our family and friends

The love of our Church

The fact

That we are all

Just there for one another

Elijah found God

In the gentle breeze

I found God

In all of you

That is God’s way

Robert P. Wallman

5/21/10

·          Inspired by the teaching of Father Leo Clifford

Ps        WITNESS        2-16-13

“As for GOD-his WAY is perfect-the word of the Lord is flawless

He is a shield-for ALL who take refuge in him”                2 Samuel 22:31

“ALL the WAYS of the Lord are loving and faithful

For those who keep the demands of his COVENANT”                Psalm 25:10   

“A voice of one calling in the desert

“Prepare the WAY of the Lord-make straight paths for him”        Matthew 3:3

WITNESS

2-15-13

HUMILITY

Do you ever

Stop and think

That the one thing

Our Lord wanted us to learn from him

Was and is to act with humility

Humility

Is the quality

Of being modest and respectful

It is seen as being humble

Or grounded

But how do most of us

Live our lives today

We seek flattery

We seek

The applause of the crowd

And we seek riches

Nothing humble or grounded

In that

“He has showed you-o man

What is good

And what does the Lord

Require of you

To act justly and to love mercy

And to walk humbly

With your God”                                                                              Micah 6:8

That is

Exactly what our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ did

And HOW was he repaid

With a broken body

With a broken heart

And with ALL of his disciples and friends deserting him

But he could do it

For he was GOD

And for that

He is exalted today

But what about us

Poor humans

Will we even make the effort

To walk humbly

Saint Paul

Encourages us to do so

“Live in harmony

With one another

Do not be proud

But be willing to associate

With people of low position

Do NOT be conceited”                                               Romans 12:16

That is exactly

Who Christ was

That is exactly

What he did

And he took much criticism

For WHO he chose

To be his twelve apostles

SO KNOW

That whatever your state in life

WHOEVER you are

That GOD CHOOSES you

Our God

Is not too good for you

The question is

DO YOU THINK

You are too good for God

Know that

God loves each of us

With a special individual kind of love

A little bit hard to believe

A little bit overwhelming

THAT GOD CHOOSES YOU AND ME

And the more humble you are

The more humility

That you have

The MORE SPECIAL you are too God

“Blessed are the poor in spirit

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven”                                                Matthew 5:3

“DO NOTHING

Out of selfish ambition

Or vain conceit

But in HUMILITY

Consider others

Better than yourselves”                                                                Philippians 2:3

NOT an easy thing to do

To consider others

Better than ourselves

Yet that is what Christ did

That is why

He is exalted today

Dear Lord

We pray

Meek and humble of heart

Make our heart LIKE YOURS

Robert P. Wallman

9-26-12

Ps        WITNESS        2-15-13