If you are expecting a trouble-free life, I have news for you: That is not going to happen. Jesus said, “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world,” (John 16:33NLT).
We can take comfort in knowing Jesus is with us until the end, and He has not left us alone. However, we need to trust Him in all things, and that means we will have to push self aside, look to Him, and fully depend and rely on Him. Take heart…Be strong and courageous because our Savior has overcome the World. So put your faith and hope in Him. In all you do and say, trust in Him. Submit and commit yourself to Him, and He will make your paths straight.
PRAYER: When I can’t find my way, “I lift up my eyes to the hills. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, Maker of the Heavens and Earth.”
Heavenly Father, You are my Helper and have not left me comfortless. Thank You for always being here for me and for Your Holy Spirit who guides me into all truth. I know that I can look to you and know You have already gone before me and made a way for me. Lord, be with me as I am putting my hope and trust in You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Linda A. Knowles
Yup! Crumpled paper everywhere! I love writing but the flow is somewhat blocked… And I’m sure that, somewhere in this brain of mine, there are several poems that could be pushed out, but right now I can’t seem to put one metaphor together that makes sense.
God wants to live among His people. He wants to protect them. That has always been His desire since the beginning of time. He desires to commune and have that fellowship with His children. However, His people have rejected Him as their Lord and their God. Those who have claimed God as their own have defiled their own bodies and have exchanged the Most High God for other gods, the creation created by God Himself and the things created by man.
The Church has exchanged what is holy for what is evil and exchanged the truth of God for lies. Rather than seeking the God Who Provides her with all her needs, she seeks after that which is temporal such as power, prestige, wealth, popularity, and the like.
God is not welcomed in most places of worship, and His Word has been dissected and chopped up to the point it is unrecognizable. The Word has been made to suit the lifestyles of the people instead of the people seeing themselves in light of the Word of God, repenting, turning from their evil ways, and humbling themselves before God.
God desires a relationship with His people, but they have kicked Him out of their lives and their hearts. They have kicked God out of their homes and places of worship.
The consequences of their sin are falling on their own heads, and they are blaming God for their suffering. Their choices have them on the broad road to destruction. They are headed to Hell. Their consciences are seared and their hearts calloused.
The anger of God is set against all sinful and wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. They know the truth about God because He has made it obvious to them. The creation clearly shows the invisible qualities of God and so they have no excuse for not knowing God.
Everything is exposed before the eyes of God. He sees all and yet His children don’t believe He sees all they do and hears all they say. They are clever at doing wrong, but they are stupid when it comes to doing what is right. They have chosen death instead of life. They have chosen to be cursed rather than blessed.
To all those who have believed Him and accepted Him, to them, He gave the right to become children of God. Those who do His will and walk uprightly before Him, they belong to Him.
“Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor has sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation. This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, who see Your face.”
“…I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the LORD; let the oppressed hear and rejoice. Magnify the LORD with me; let us exalt His name together” -Psalm 34:1-3BSB
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You, O GOD, are the Lord of all Creation.
You are worthy of all glory, of all honor, and of all praise.
You are my Redeemer, my Deliverer, and Friend.
You are my God, and there is no one else like You.
You alone are the Rock Upon Which I Can Stand.
You are the Sure Foundation,
and You are my Savior.
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May Your name, O GOD, be magnified in all the Earth.
May Your children proclaim Your goodness
and testify of Your enduring faithfulness.
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LORD, I can look to no other,
for You are the One Who Set Me free
through Your redemptive blood
that You shed at Calvary.
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Thank You for giving me life
that I might live for You,
to commune with You,
to worship You.
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May I bring glory to You for You are great
and greatly to be praised.
I exalt You, O LORD, for You are
the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
Above You, there is no other.
You are the Alpha and the Omega,
the Beginning and the End
the First and the Last.
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You are my Strong Refuge,
my Strength,
my Hope,
my Joy.
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My spirit rejoices in You,
GOD MY SAVIOR,
and my soul delights in You Who Calls Me By Name,
The One who is my Portion forever,
The Faithful and True GOD.
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I praise You, O LORD,
for You are the Shield around me,
and You are my glory;
You are the Lifter of my Head.
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Let me always sing of Your lovingkindness,
of Your compassion, mercy, and truth.
To God be all the glory!
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In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
YOU RESCUE ME
Written By Linda A. Knowles
I will praise You in the morning,
And I will praise You in the night,
even when it seems there is no hope in sight;
For You, O God, are my Deliverer,
And You are my Strength;
And You, O Lord, are the One Who Rescues Me
from the hands of my enemies.
“I will praise the Lord at all times. I will constantly speak his praises. I will boast only in the Lord; let all who are helpless take heart. Come, let us tell of the Lord’s greatness; let us exalt his name together. I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears. Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces. In my desperation, I prayed, and the Lord listened; he saved me from all my troubles. For the angel of the Lord is a guard; he surrounds and defends all who fear him.” –(Psalm 34:1-7NLT)
“‘The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ ‘Everyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on.'” -Luke 20:17-18 (NLT)
“In that day he will be your sure foundation, providing a rich store of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. The fear of the Lord will be your treasure.”-Isaiah 33:6 (NLT)
As you walk along the Narrow Road, you may find yourself struggling, but keep your eyes on Jesus. Continue to let Jesus be your Guide. Let the Lord instruct you. He is your Sure Foundation, and when you allow your life to be built upon Him, you will NOT be disappointed. Whatever is holding you back, give it over to Jesus. In Matthew 11:28-30(NLT), Jesus tells you, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank You for allowing me the privilege to be able to come before You. You are the Good Shepherd, and I thank You for being my Guide and my Instructor. You are my Rock, the Chief Cornerstone, my Sure Foundation. Lord, these days are evil and are becoming worse and worse. Give me discernment to know right from wrong. Fill me with the wisdom that comes from You alone. Teach me the Fear of the Lord and how to revere You. Lord God, this world has nothing for me. Nothing compares to You for You are glorious and majestic, worthy of all praise and honor. You are the One I long for. Help me to always see Your Word is Truth. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
“Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, ‘Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed.'” -Isaiah 28:16
“LORD, you know the hopes of the helpless. Surely you will hear their cries and comfort them.” -Psalm 10:17 (NLT)
REFLECTION: “The LORD is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him,” (Nahum1:7 NLT). In this passage of Scripture Nineveh had slipped back to their old ways and was now worse than ever before. Nineveh had reason to be terrified because Nineveh was contending with GOD. The words in this context of this passage may be disconcerting to the unbeliever, but to those of us who believe, it is great comfort. Because we trust in GOD, living for Him, though we may find ourselves in a situation where we feel helpless, remember GOD is sovereign. He is still on His throne, and He upholds you with His righteous right hand. We are not left without hope no matter what the situation, no matter what circumstances we find ourselves in. The LORD is our Helper, our Strong Refuge, and our GOD is so very good.
Linda A. Knowles
“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
“I am your servant; deal with me in unfailing love,
and teach me your decrees.”
Psalm 119:124 (NLT)
YOUR WORDS ARE SWEET
By Linda A. Knowles
Like Mary, O God, let me sit at Your feet
to devour the Words that You speak
For Your Words are like honey on my lips
And Your decrees ever sweet.
Deal with Your servant gently, O Lord,
and teach me Your ways;
That I may listen to all Your commands
to take heed of and obey.
Idols cannot give us life. GOD, however, is the Creator; He is the Giver of Life. “…yet my people have exchanged their glorious GOD for worthless idols,” (Jeremiah 2:11). An idol is anything or anyone that takes away GOD’s rightful place in our lives. To exchange GOD for temporal things is foolishness. Why would we exchange GOD who is the glory and the lifter of our heads (Psalm 3:3) for something else that is incapable of giving us life, for something which fades or withers away, something which eventually breaks (1 John 2:17). Why exchange GOD who is eternal for other things which are not lasting?
“You must not have any other god but me. You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected–even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.” -Exodus 20:3-6
Since we are commanded not to have any other gods but the Almighty GOD then we must take hold of GOD, and cling tightly to His truth for He is our Sustainer (Psalm 54:4) and He is not a man that He should lie (Numbers 23:19). When we love GOD, with our whole heart and soul and mind, we won’t want to hurt or displease GOD. We demonstrate our love for GOD by giving GOD His rightful place in our lives and obeying all He has commanded us to do. First place in our lives is not for anyone or anything else.
GOD alone is sovereign, worthy of all glory, honor, and praise for Who He Is. He is worthy because He is GOD and has demonstrated His love and mercy to us by bestowing His love and His blessings lavishly upon His children. GOD is to be our First Love. Nothing can give us lasting joy except for GOD, and there is nothing that can replace GOD in our lives. We can try to replace GOD in our lives, but that would be breaking GOD’s commands which would displease GOD and cause us nothing but heartache.
“So that I may take hold of the hearts of the people of Israel. For because of their idols, they are all estranged from ME.” -Ezekiel 14:5
“So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinner; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between GOD and the world. Let there be tears for what you have done. let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.” -James 4:7-10
Let’s not pull away from GOD, but let’s be faithful to our GOD and not dessert Him for things which are fleeting. Instead, let’s worship Him in spirit and in truth, giving Him our very best because He gave us His very best, loving Him because He first loved us. GOD is worthy of us following Him wholeheartedly. We should never give Him our leftovers, but give Him all the honor due Him because He is GOD.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, You are Sovereign. There is no other who compares with You for You are glorious and majestic in all Your ways. Forgive me for the times I have put other things before You. I never want to displease You. Help me to always remember that You alone are GOD and You want the best for me. Thank You for allowing me the privilege to be able to draw close to You. Thank You for being mindful of me and for lavishly loving me. Thank You for forgiving me. Because I love You, I will do as You command and walk in Your ways. Guide me into all truth. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Linda A. Knowles
Linda A. Knowles
Stained Glass Confessions 