CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS: A WIN OR LOSE SITUATION

A WIN OR LOSE SITUATION

(Eph. 6:10-20, Num. 11:23, Lk. 24:38, I Th. 5:8, I Cor. 9:26, Acts 18:9, Phpp. 3:13-15)

Are you a winner who has no doubt,

That with God all things can be done?

You never grow weary, don’t look back,

Press on ‘til a crown you have won?

As a soldier of God, you’re fully prepared,

With your shield of faith in your hand;

The breastplate of truth is on your chest;

You are ready to take a stand?

Or do you think God’s arm is too short,

That every silver lining has a cloud,

Grow weary when you try to do good;

Are you overladen with doubt?

Do you beat at the air with your fists,

So out-of-shape and unprepared?

Are you unequipped for God’s army;

You won’t even speak--you’re too scared?

If God calls you to a challenge,

Will you do it with all your heart,

Or will you listen to Satan,

And be defeated before you start?

Becky Wall

Do you recognize the war we fight between good and evil in this world? Do you sometimes feel like you/we are winning the war and do you at other times feel you/we are losing?

Following is a song my family of ten sang all the years I was growing up. My poem carries the same sentiments as the song.

ESTHER: FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS

(Esther)

FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS

The king of Persia ruled many lands,

But he also liked to party.

He was celebrating with many one day,

And told them to party hearty.

Queen Vashti had a separate one,

That included only women.

They would be away from the drunkenness,

That was usual among the men.

During the party the king got drunk,

Then gave an order to the queen.

To wear just a crown and parade around,

He wanted her beauty to be seen.

The queen was quite insulted,

So she refused to obey.

The king was so angry he wanted her punished,

He just had to think of a way.

Before acting, he sought advice.

He was told his wife should be banished.

Another should take her place;

After that, the queen just vanished.

One young and beautiful girl,

From every province in the land,

Was made a part of his harem;

He would choose a wife on demand.

In the land lived Mordecai, a Jew;

And one day officials came.

They took his cousin whom he raised;

Esther was her name.

Esther was given seven maids,

For the king liked her right away.

She got the best place in the harem;

She was obviously going to stay.

For a year Esther was beautified,

Then she took her turn with the king.

He liked her best of all,

So Esther would wear the king’s ring.

Meanwhile two officials,
Conspired to end the king's life.
When Mordecai learned of the plot,
He told Esther, who was now the king's wife.

Later on impulse the king commanded:
To his noblemen all should bow.
But Mordecai bowed only to God;
He had made a personal vow.

This angered one of the noblemen;
Haman was the man's name.
He decided all of the Jews should die;
He would treat all ages the same.

Haman convinced the king to agree,
And so his decree was read.
The Jews were to all be killed;
A reward was placed on each head.

Mordecai and Esther had once saved the king,
Yet he didn't remember who.
Haman knew Mordecai was a Jew,
But he didn't know Esther was too.

The Jews were quite distraught;
They were fasting, weeping and wailing.
Some sat in sackcloth and ashes;
Others hearts were failing.

Esther saw that her uncle was troubled,
So she sent a courier to ask why.
Mordecai told him everything:
The Jews were all going to die.

The courier, a eunuch, told Esther,
The king's mercy she should seek.
Esther replied that she feared for her life;
The mere thought made her knees weak.

Mordecai cautioned Esther,
That in this circumstance,
A revolt would occur and her family would die;
This was their only chance.

Like a father he also told Esther,
To refuse would be remiss,
For God allowed her to be the queen,
For such a time as this.

Esther asked the Jews to fast,
And for three days and nights to pray.
She and her maids would do the same;
She would ask the king the fourth day.

She prayed that when she approached the king,
He would not be offended.
She knew her only chance to survive,
Was if his gold rod was extended.

The king was pleased to see Esther;
He wanted her to come.
He offered her anything she wanted,
Even up to half the kingdom.

She didn't tell him immediately;
She asked him to dinner instead.
Haman would be invited;
His last days were just ahead.

While at the dinner party,
Esther mentioned the king's new rule.
And how her family was going to die,
For the king had been played for a fool.

The king got angry and demanded,
"Who concocted this terrible plan?"
Esther pointed at Haman saying,
"That vile Haman is the man!"

Haman had ordered a pole be erected,

On which Mordecai was to be impaled.

But it was his and his sons’ who met that fate,

When his prideful, evil plot failed.

Many events have happened,

In the ancient days of yester,

But to this day the Jews celebrate,

The life-saving Feast of Esther.

Becky Wall

JEZEBEL: A MEAN QUEEN

JEZEBEL, A MEAN QUEEN

(I Kings 19 - II Kings 9)

 Most of Israel’s kings were bad,
Few were considered great.
King Ahab was the worst of all,
He made God quite irate.

Ahab married a foreign princess;
Jezebel was her name.
The daughter of a Phoenician king,
Her wickedness is still her fame.

Jezebel worshiped Baal,
King Ahab built a temple for him.
But God is a jealous God;
And so He was angry with them.

Ahab and Jezebel led the nation,
And idols were forbidden.
God wants no gods before Him,
And their brazen sin wasn’t hidden.

Sure enough, idol worship caught on;
It spread throughout the land.
Jezebel was so faithful to Baal,
That she didn’t fear God’s hand.

Near the palace was a neighbor’s vineyard,
Passed down through each generation.
Naboth was now the owner who,
Was approached by the king of the nation.

“Let me have your vineyard,” said Ahab.
To use for a vegetable garden.
Naboth refused for his ancestors’ sake;
His decline the king would not pardon.

Ahab said, "I’ll give you one better,
Or pay you what it’s worth."
But Naboth still refused the king,
And an evil scheme gave birth.

Ahab didn’t get his way,
So he went home in defeat.
Jezebel asked him why he was sad,
And why he refused to eat.

Ahab told her the story;
She thought that he was weak.
She told him to “Cheer up and eat,
I will get the vineyard you seek.”

She wrote to the elders and nobles,
To tell the people to fast.
Gather them together, she wrote;
It was then Naboth’s fate was cast.

“Seat Naboth where most can see him,” she said.
Her next words Satan would bring:
“Seat two scoundrels opposite him,
Who will say he cursed God and the king.”

The elders and nobles complied;
They showed Naboth no pity.
He was accused of blasphemy,
And was stoned outside of the city.

Jezebel then told Ahab,
“Naboth is now dead.
Go take control of his vineyard.”
So Ahab did as she said.

God sent Elijah to Ahab,
Since Naboth died by his hand.
To say, “This is what the Lord says,
‘You killed Naboth and took his land.’

‘In the place where Naboth died,
Is the place where you will die too.
As the dogs licked up his blood,
The same will happen to you.’

‘You did evil in the eyes of the Lord,
So disaster on you will fall.
Jezebel and your sons will die;
Death will call on them all.’

‘Dogs will eat her body;
And the bodies of the city dwellers.
The birds of the air will feed,
On the dead country fellers.’”

When Ahab heard these words,
He knew God would do what He said.
So he tore his clothes and wore sackcloth,
He was already mourning the dead.

When God saw humility,
He delayed the impending disaster.
But Ahab’s days were numbered,
With fate, God is the caster.

Jezebel Goes to the Dogs

Ahab’s humility didn’t last;
To false prophets he returned.
He hated God’s own prophet;
In other words, God he spurned.

Ahab and the king of Judah,
Joined forces to start a war.
They got advice from false prophets,
Which hurt God to the core.

The king of Judah asked for God’s prophet,
Which only made Ahab mad.
He called for God’s prophet, Micaiah, saying,
“He tells nothing good but all bad.”

The false prophets said “Go to war.
You will surely win.”
But Satan put words in their mouths,
Through a lying spirit within.

Micaiah warned against the war;
He told them to go home instead.
With that, he was put in prison,
Where he was fed water and bread.

So the two kings went to war.
Ahab wore a disguise.
But a random arrow found an open space,
The result of his listening to lies.

They propped him up in his chariot,
As the driver wheeled him about.
The battle raged on all day,
By evening he had bled out.

They washed the chariot in a harlot’s pool,
And in places where Ahab bled,
The dogs licked up his blood,
As the word from God had declared.

Ahab’s son was crowned the new king,
But God had a different plan.
He had Elisha send a prophet,
To anoint another man.

The man’s name was Jehu.
As a commander he was employed.
God told him to destroy Ahab’s house,
To avenge His servants they destroyed.

Jehu went to Naboth’s land,
Where he found Ahab’s son.
He shot Ahaziah through the heart,
While his chariot was on the run.

Then Jehu went near the palace.
The queen knew he’d pass just below,
So she painted her eyes and fixed her hair,
Then watched him from her window.

When Jehu approached the window,
Jezebel began to jeer.
“Who is on my side?” Jehu said.
Then he saw eunuchs behind her appear.

“Throw her down,” Jehu said.
When they did, she was trampled by horses.
The dogs ate all but her skull and hands,
And got rid of her evil forces.

In order to punish her evil deeds,
There could never be enough flogs.
Her death resembled her life;
One could say she went to the dogs.

Becky Wall

MOVIES: THE BIG PICTURE

A blockbuster plays across the screen,

Of the local movie show.

A crowd stood in line for tickets,

Then squeezed into each row.

The dialogue on the movie screen,

A subtle message sends.

The reel of each mind is still turning,

Long after the movie ends.

No moral is found to the story;

In fact, that’s the theme portrayed;

Good is bad, and bad is good,

Is the dominant message conveyed.

The glorified Hollywood values,

Are quickly embraced by youth,

Who do not fully understand:

In the message, there is no truth.

Consider each movie playing:

What message will you find?

What will be projected back,

Through the eye of your mind?

Becky Wall

ROMANS 7 IN RHYME

The Bible contains God’s law,

Which revealed that a sinner am I.

Because of God’s Word, my sins were exposed,

Yet I continue and don’t know why.

I don’t understand why I do what I do;

What I want to do, I do not.

Instead I do what I hate to do.

It is good that the law is taught.

How can it be I who do it?

It is sin in me, no doubt.

For I desire to do what is good,

But I cannot carry it out.

What I do is not the good I want;

The evil I hate I keep doing.

So if I do what I don’t want to do,

Then sin in me is still living.

This is the law at work in me:

Though I want to do good, I sin more.

My inner being delights in God’s law,

But my members are waging war.

On what a wretched man that I am!

I need rescued from condemnation.

Thanks be to God through Christ our Lord;

He has promised me full salvation.

I tried but I couldn’t save me from myself,

Yet the sin was replaced in me.

I no longer do what I don’t want to do;

Christ living in me set me free.

Becky Overturf Wall

BAPTISM: NEW CREATURE FEATURES

Out of the grave of baptism,

Comes a great baptismal feature;

A gift from God will await you,

When you emerge a brand new creature.

His gift is the Holy Spirit,

Who is God in a another form.

He will abide inside you,

To help you know right from wrong.

Christ paid the price, now you’re ransomed,

From bondage to sin and its pain;

Peace that passes understanding,

Is another feature you gain.

Since you’ve been created anew,

In heaven you have a new name.

Your new birth has brought you new life;

Praise God, you are not the same.

Your new heart will sing a new song;

New thoughts will fill your mind.

A new love for life, a new attitude,

New hope in the Lord you will find.

These gifts are available to everyone,

Baptized to become a new creature,

Whose life is truly transformed by God;

Praise God for His new creature features.

Becky Wall

KING SAUL AND THE WITCH OF ENDOR

(I Samuel 28, 31

She didn’t own a cauldron,

And she didn’t have a black cat.

She didn’t ride on a broom,

Or wear a pointy hat.

She didn’t use a crystal ball,

But she was a witch, nonetheless.

For she was a fortune teller,

Whom Saul turned to in distress.

Saul was facing the Philistine army,

So to God he began to implore,

But because Saul had been so wicked,

His prayers God chose to ignore.

So Saul disguised himself,

And from the seer he would inquire.

Though he had previously banned her kind,

He saw his situation as dire.

The witch didn’t recognize him,

But she was still afraid.

She knew that if she were found out,

In a grave she would be laid.

Saul swore by the Lord she was safe,

So she asked who to call from the dead.

Saul’s reply was "The prophet Samuel,”

Whose grave was now his bed.

“Why do you disturb me?”

Samuel said as his anger grew.

“God won’t talk to me,” replied Saul;

He asked Samuel what he should do.

Samuel retorted, “You had been warned;

Yet you made God your enemy.

And furthermore, since you didn’t listen,

Tomorrow you will be with me.”

So Saul went into battle,

With no more help from the Lord.

His sons were killed and he was wounded,

So he fell on his own sword.

Saul was the first of many kings;

Most kings ignored God’s will.

And so throughout generations,

God’s prediction they would fulfill.

For, most kings oppressed the people,

And they greedily sought their own gains.

But God’s people still followed the kings;

They forgot Who really reigns.

Becky Wall

Unfortunately, many rulers fall prey to Satan's temptations as they gain power and money. They fail to seek their answers from God and they're not obedient to Him. This is something for us to remember in the voting booth.

CONSIDER THE ANT, YOU SLUGGARD

CONSIDER THE ANT, YOU SLUGGARD

(Prov. 6:6-11, Prov. 20:4, Prov. 21:25, Prov. 23:13, Prov. 26:13-16, 

Prov. 30:24-25, II Thess. 3:6-15, Heb. 6:12, Eph. 4:28)

The lazy man is a sluggard;

He spends a lot of time smirking,

For when everyone else works hard,

He is hardly working.

A sluggard cannot be trusted,

To do what he says he will do.

His excuses are wild, his words are charming,

All the while he’s ignoring you.

The sluggard is very wise,

But only in his own eyes.

He thinks that people are fools,

And that they believe his lies.

The lazy man can’t keep a job;

He is often shown the door.

So, when a man’s hands are idle,

He and his family live poor.

He doesn’t plow in season,

But checks for a magical crop.

He fears a lion or a murderer,

Making any excuse to stop.

The sluggard arrives to work late,

And is always the first to leave.

And that’s if he has a job at all,

Because work is his pet peeve.

He'd do well to consider the ambitious ant;

That works though it never gets paid.

No one tells it what to do,

Yet the “groundwork” always gets laid.

Becky Wall

Proverbs 6:6-11 6 Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!

7 It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, 8 yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest. 9 How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? 10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest—11 and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man.

Proverbs 18:9

One who is slack in his work is brother to one who destroys.

Proverbs 20:4

3 Sluggards do not plow in season; so at harvest time they look but find nothing.

Proverbs 22:13

The sluggard says, “There’s a lion outside! I’ll be killed in the public square!”

Proverbs 26:13-16

A sluggard says, “There’s a lion in the road, a fierce lion roaming the streets!” 14 As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed. 15 A sluggard buries his hand in the dish;

he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth. 16 A sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven people who answer discreetly.

Proverbs 28:19

Those who work their land will have abundant food,

but those who chase fantasies will have their fill of poverty.

Prov. 30:24-25

“Four things on earth are small, yet they are extremely wise: Ants are creatures of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer...

Hebrews 6:12

We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith

 and patience inherit what has been promised.

II Thessalonians 3:10b

“The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.”

Ephesians 4:28:

“He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.”

#workethics #labor #lazyworker #sluggard #daydreamer #nonparticipanthusbandandfather

Links:

https://beckyowall.blogspot.com/2015/01/a-biblical-guide-to-employer-employee.html

https://beckyowall.blogspot.com/2015/01/the-terminator-and-terminated.html

https://beckyowall.blogspot.com/2013/07/solomon-addresses-subject-of-labor_15.html