Finding The Secret

More Than Conquerors
July 2004 Part I

“You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom, and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: ‘If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned.’ The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, ‘I am trembling with fear.’
“But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
“See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, ‘Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.’ The words ‘once more’ indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.” —Hebrews 12:18-29

In our daily lives it is very easy to take God for granted and forget his incredible power. We so often live our lives the way we want to, forgetting that have come not to a mountain that can be touched, but to Holy Mount Zion, home of the infinite Living God! If an animal was to be stoned for touching the mountain on earth, how much more shall we be punished if we take lightly the blood of Jesus, and the way He made for us into God’s presence! God is not some magician here to please our every whim, but the Consuming Fire, who burns the sin out of our lives.

So let this be a reminder of who God is. And let us come to him with reverence and awe, listening to what He has to say. And let us work out His will in our lives, instead of our own!

Awestruck

A blinding streak, a roaring flash,
A nanosecond ripped in two;
The finite infinitesimalness
Of humankind is shoved in view;

As we are cast before our Maker
Our senses now are made acute;
We bow down to the Infinite
Made Awestruck,
Blind and deaf and mute,

The foundry of Consuming Fire,
By scorching power we’re refined;
We, Awestruck,
Wait His will in silence,
We cannot comprehend His mind;

He lives outside the realm of time,
He’s the Beginning and the End,
And, Awestruck,
We have seen His love
As He declares that we’re His friends!

—Benjamin Graber

The Fire of God

Once God lived in a temple
For His people to see Him burn,
They were afraid
Of this place He made
The Holiness of God to learn.

Now God has another temple
As His temple there to burn—
Are we afraid
Of this new heart He made within
The Holiness of God to learn?

Who am I to be a temple
A place for GOD to burn,
As I let me go
So that he will show
The Holiness of God to learn?

Oh Lord, make of me combustible
So You can burn in me,
To be a place
To show Your Face
The Holiness of God to see.
Soft Whispers from
Derry’s Heart Poems
© 2004 used with permission
heartwhispers@iinet.net.au

Thundershout

The brilliant web of silver thread
Fingers flashing clouds—
I hold my breath and tilt my head
To catch the thundershout—

The whipping trees and dripping leaves
Flail against the sky,
While lightning touches everything
And illuminates the night—

How many sit and are missing this,
This show, this proud display?
How many fear this glory here
And in houses hide away?

I know that I should go inside,
But I am not afraid
To stand and view the glory You
Majestically have made—

—Joanna Spencer
© Joanna J. Spencer. Used with permission.

The Majesty of God

I cannot comprehend the awesome majesty of God,
Who fashioned the vast universe, and flung the stars in space;
A God who loved and chose me long before the earth was framed,
And proved His love by saving me, and dying in my place.

His greatness is inscrutable, beyond this finite mind,
And nothing in my knowledge can begin to understand
How He with His omniscience guides each stumbling step I take,
And with divine omnipotence holds fast my trembling hand.

How could the great Creator have such patience with this child;
To hold me in His arms, and save each tear that I have shed?
How could He know and care about each little thing I do,
And know my thoughts, and even count each hair upon my head?

To fathom such unbridled love is far beyond my ken,
And to all mortal minds it will remain a mystery.
I can but bow my head in humble gratitude and thanks,
That I will live some day with Him through all eternity.

I asked my God

I asked my God for riches
I thought that's what I wanted
people mock my poverty—
Often times I'm taunted

I asked my God for healing—
I thought that's what I wanted
I prayed most every hour—
My prayers would not be daunted!

And when I saw a sparrow
I felt a nudge from God
Reminding me of His great care
I answered with a nod

Remembering how He cares for
The flowers of the earth
The lush and lavish mountains
Or the awesomeness of birth

God cares for every creature,
Every plant and flower, too
So why on earth let your doubts
Rob His joy for you?

—Greta Cole
© 2004 Greta Cole. Used with permission.

Perhaps

Perhaps I am self-consumed—
Perhaps I cannot see
All the things You’ve ever done
In all Your majesty—

Perhaps I only see myself—
Perhaps I do not know
All the things You’ve ever done
To make the planets go—

Perhaps I think of only me,
But still I do believe
That the sweetest thing You’ve ever done
Is found deep within me—

I am not myself—
I am not me—
This in my heart
Is Sovereignty—

—Joanna Spencer
© Joanna J. Spencer. Used with permission

The Dragon Within

What is this thing within
This heavy feeling of despair,
Is it a loneliness
Or some confusing weight of care.

Am I afraid of what tomorrow holds
Maybe fearing days of growing old,
I want this irksome feeling to hatch out
To sprout its wings and fly
So I can feel contentment inside.
And not be terrified to die.

But could this dragon within
Actually be an implanted desire,
Something to tickle my thoughts
Not to avoid, but to see as a beneficial fire
To make me look and find
That it is God’s Spirit squirming my insides.

So I will come to know His forgiving love
Set free, my heart fills with His truth
The old dragon now transformed,
Re-born into eternal beauty
As by His power I am renewed.
Soft Whispers from
Derry’s Heart Poems
© 2004 used with permission
heartwhispers@iinet.net.au
“God is God. Because He is God, He is worthy of my trust
and obedience. I will find rest nowhere but in His holy will,
a will that is unspeakably beyond my largest notions of what
He is up to.” —Elisabeth Elliot

The Chiefest Among Ten Thousand

When sick of life and all the world,
How sick of all the earth but Thee,
I lift mine eyes up to the hills,
Eyes of my heart that truly see:
I see beyond all death and ills
Refreshing green for heart and eyes;
The golden streets and gateways pearled,
The living trees of paradise.

Oh that a dove’s white wings I had
To flee away from this distress
For Thou art in the wilderness
Drawing and leading Thine Own love:
Wherefore it blossoms like a rose,
The solitary place is glad;
There sounds the soft voice of the dove
And there the spicy south wind blows.

Draw us, we will run after Thee;
Call us by name, the name we know;
Call her beloved who was not so,
Beulah and blessed Hepzibah:
That where Thou art I too may be
Bride of the Bridegroom heart to heart;
Thou God, my Love, the Fairest art
Where all things fair and lovely are.

From north and south from east and west
Thy sons and daughters all shall flock
Who built their house upon the Rock
And eagle-like renew their strength:
How glad and glorious is their rest
Whom Thou hast purged from fleshly scum,—
The long-desired is come at length,
The fullness of the time is come.

Then the new heavens and earth shall be
Where righteousness shall dwell indeed:
There shall be no more blight nor need
Nor barrier of the tossing sea;
No sun and moon alternating
For God shall be the Light thereof,
No sorrow more no death no sting
For God shall reign and God is Love.

—Christina Rossetti

Consuming Fire

We’ve seen the flames which flash around us,
Which scald the heart of sinful man;
We’ve witnessed ore refined through fire,
The dross destroyed through careful plans;

We’ve felt the heat which chases us,
And so, with fear, we humbly came,
Have mercy on our hearts, oh God!
You are the All-Consuming Flame!

The hills are melting in Your presence—
In awe we’re falling on our knees!
The Holy Mountain’s all ablaze—
Our Father, will You hear our pleas?

But at Your feet I now remember
The power of refining fire—
Through discipline You purify,
The singeing tongues but drive us higher,

So burn in me, Consuming Fire,
My selfish humanness to scorch,
Then conflagrate my heart for You,
And let me be a guiding torch.

—Benjamin Graber

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?
Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or
nakedness or danger or sword?… No, in all these things
we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”
—Romans 8:35, 37

If you have any comments or questions, or if you have a poem to share, please send an e-mail to bgraber@neo.rr.com

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