There is always Greater. . .

“That which does not kill us makes us stronger.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche

I am determined to be cheerful and happy in whatever situation I may find myself. For I have learned that the greater part of our misery or unhappiness is determined not by our circumstance but by our disposition.
Martha Washington

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(a new spring pretty at the garden shop / Julie Cook / 2015)

Maybe it’s the sudden sore throat.
Maybe it’s the weight of so much crashing down at once.
Maybe it’s the frustration rising from bewildering encounters.
Maybe it’s watching those you love slowly disappear
Maybe it’s the commute
Maybe it’s the mountain of paperwork
Maybe it’s the realization that things will never be the same
Maybe it’s the uphill battle
Maybe it’s the feeling of being alone in all of this
Maybe it’s the intense sense of missing Mom
Maybe it’s attempting to meet the situation with kindness,
only to have malice spit back in return
Maybe it’s the feeling of defeat and the lack of strength. . .

Yet in the midst of the struggles,
the sorrows,
the frustrations. . .
the one single component which keeps drawing me back,
the one remaining constant in this shifting debacle,
the one ray of hopefulness which keeps me holding on
Is the fact, mind you,
not a thought,
not an idea,
not a theory,
but merely a fact. . .
That there is One who is greater then all things which now rest upon my shoulders
That there is One who is greater than anything that can come my way
That there is One who is greater than anything that walks upon this very planet.
And it is to this One, this single solitary entity, who I will call upon to carry me through.

On the day I called, thou didst answer me,
my strength of soul thou didst increase.

Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
thou dost preserve my life;
thou dost stretch out thy hand against the wrath of my enemies,
and thy right hand delivers me.
The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;
thy steadfast love, O Lord, endures for ever.
Do not forsake the work of thy hands.

Psalm 138:3 and 7-8)

Head on a plate

We are not diplomats but prophets, and our message is not a compromise but an ultimatum.
Aiden Wilson Tozer

Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
1 John 4:1

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(howling winds usher in a foreboding change / Julie Cook / 2015)

Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them. But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves. Then you will trample on the wicked; they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty.
“Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel.
“See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. 6 He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.”

Malachi 4:1-5

Who is this strange man, dirty and crazed?
This man who calls the wilderness home?
He is nothing more than a poor homeless clout.
Perhaps a demon possessed spirit,
who has been driven mad by the winds and rain.

Was he not one of us, born here amongst us?
Was he not raised as us, nestled in our safety?
Who is he to proclaim the word of God?
Yet why do we find ourselves unable to meet his eyes, his glance.

A seer, a visionary, a prophet, a fool.
He talks to the birds, the lizards and to anyone who would give him ear.
“Repent” and “prepare” are the tools of his trade
“Yet look not to me” he proclaims, “for there is one who comes, much greater than I. . .”
“I only point the way. . .”

And the people of the land laughed.
They mocked and pointed, hiding behind bravado and ego.
Yet individually, they each wondered.
They questioned.
They fretted.
They squirmed in their shoes.

His words penetrated to a place no one felt comfortable to visit.
His stare made them feel dirty and wrong.
So they laughed harder and made merry with abandon.
Uncomfortable.
Guilty.
Yet some were compelled to listen, even eventually choosing to follow.

His words relentless, his message never faltering.
Day and night he hammers the same message as if hammering a stake penetrating the souls of the masses.
More people turn, they listen, they follow.
However not all heed his words.
Those in authority grow wary, nervous.
They scream amongst themselves, “Silence the madman”

Plots and schemes are formulated.
An arrest is planned.
Betrayal is at hand.
Recant
Repent
Destroy
Prepare
Lust whispers in the darkness.
Greed reaches out its greasy hand.
Pleasure mingles with pain.
Yet his words remain the same.
“I am not the one whom you seek.
I am not the One.
I am but the messenger.
The one who was sent to prepare the way.
You will see, there will be One greater,
One who you cannot silence. . .”

All as a single head rolls, served upon a platter,
As the people resume their dancing and laughter,
Uneasiness reigns and the demons giggle with glee.
“Repent” and “prepare” swrill upon the foreboding winds. . .