Rich And Poor

The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up.
1 Samuel 2:7

"Since much wealth too often proves a snare and an incumbrance in the Christian's race, let him lighten the weight by 'dispersing abroad and giving to the poor'; whereby he will both soften the pilgrimage of his fellow travelers, and speed his own way the faster."

Toplady, Augustus

The 12 room house is too small, the cadillac is two years old;
The maid wants more off days, the butlers wants a raise,
And me worried sick about the price of my gold.
While the beggar on the corner pleads his living!

Interest, Dividends are going up on my Stocks and Bonds and on my Bank Account;
but to a man of my stature and my importance
it seems such a piddling amount!

While a widowed mother of
5 children, destitute, homeless,
moans, "Is this life?"

But the Master of Old, had neither
silver nor gold, no place to lay his head,
Boats, hilltops, the wilderness his pulpits,
a manger his only known bed.

Such as he had he gave unto man,
All things in his hands for the giving,
peace his goal, the Savior his role,
Set the perfect example by his living;
While those will, may say,"Here is life!"

by
James Gargus

Hide And Seek

And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day,... hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?" Genesis 3:8-9

I have been living in this house almost since the day I was born.

At times, these walls have seen me happy, other times it has seen me torn. They've had a front row seat to the breaking of my heart.

I remember running down the hallway with my brother playing hide and seek.

I didn't know I was searching for You, Heavenly Father, to notice me.

Sometimes I felt alone and undiscovered as children at that age often due.

I felt alone in a crowd, when I was really seeking You.

I want answers from You.

I ask,"Why do love ones have to die?"

No answer. I seek but never find.

The answer speaks to my heart of why and then I see You.

I see You, and I am the thorn in Your crown.

I see You, and I am the sweat from Your brow.

I see You, and I am the nail in your wrist.

I see You, and I am Judas' kiss.

See now, I am the man who yelled out from the crowd for Your blood to be spilled on this earth shaking ground.

And then, I turned away with this smile on my face, with this sin in my heart, trying to bury your grace, as I am the stone rolled in front of Your tomb.

Yet, in spite of this, alone in the night, I still called out for You and ask, "Why?" I am so ashamed of my life and the reasons I doubt.

By this I am stilled.

In that moment, I feel a gentle breeze on my face carrying Your answer to me.... "Trust child, I love you anyways." by Lance Gargus

Lance, The Light Spear

But one of the soldier's with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came out blood and water.
And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.
John 19:34;37Lance, the name means latin for,"a light spear." This spear was a tool of war and used in many ancient armies. A weapon of choice for Rome's army at the time of Christ. Cassius as he is called by some historians or Longinus by others was the one according to tradition who pierced the side of Christ. As he was on the cross, the soldier took the lance and jabbed it into him to make sure he was dead. Blood and water flowed from his side healing the soldier of an eye illness. He later became one of the early converts.
Now the "Holy Lance" or "Spear of Destiny" as it's been called has gone through many hands. Some claim whomever has ownership of it that their army can't be defeated. So many rulers and leaders have sought the lance. However,scholars have debated it's authenticity. Others still consider it a holy relic.
I think we all have missed the point. Though it was just one person who pierced Christ's side, why does it say,"They shall look upon him whom they pierced."?
We all held that spear, everyone of us. My name makes it especially clear to me, Lance, or logche as it is known in Greek. I pierce his side everyday. I relive that moment when I fail my Lord. My sin wounds him. Driving into his side deeper each time. The sin seperating me from him, trying to make him dead in my life. So blind this sin makes me. Just as the soldier was losing his eyesight, my failings blind me a little more.
In the midst of his sacrifice, I put in the final insult. How could he love someone who does him so wrong? Yet, love flowed from his wounded side; healing me of my blindness, restoring my sight, helping me to see. Blood and water washing over my face to light eyes long kept in darkness. Some how my shortcomings lead me back to the cross. And I fall upon my face to behold the true extent of the damage I do to my king. Hanging there for all the world to see my shame. I drop the spear from my hands. Sick to my stomach of what I have done. Wondering and trembling at a love so amazing. Tears, moans, cries cannot express the suffering I have caused him. These hands held the lance that not just pierced his side but his heart.
God, have mercy upon me. I am resposible for the jabbing of your son's side. He asks You to forgive me and You do. This love I cannot comprehend, nor wrap my mind around. All I know is that my sacrifice is small compared to His.
Jesus, as my body is broken through the years of my soul searching, and as the pain comes on with the wear and tear of time. May this be an offering of love to You.
Amen.by
Lance Gargus

Don't Worry Son, It'll Be Alright

Therefore I tell you, do not worry....
Matthew 6:25



"The branch of the vine does not worry, and toil, and rush here to seek for sunshine, and there to find rain. No; it rests in union and communion with the vine; and at the right time, and in the right way, is the right fruit found on it. Let us so abide in the Lord Jesus.”



Taylor, Hudson



Down our long, dusty gravel driveway I walked. The sun's beams were shining through the treetops. I was cool from the autumn breeze that rustled the leaves on the tree branches. Standing and waiting for the bus. My first day at a new school. I didn't want to go. My stomach was in knots. I set out for that long walk to the end of the driveway. With tears in my eyes and not knowing what to expect, I dug in against my mother about getting on the bus. Daddy took me by the hand, bent down, and lifted me up to talk to him. He reassured me with these words,"Don't worry son, it'll be alright." I believed him and off I went to school.
At a teenager, I wanted to do my own thing so I set my mind to it. Along that broken road I wanted to be wild and free. In the process, I said some hurtful things at times to my father. In my will to create my own independence and identity, I left carnage in my wake. In my quest, I got into jam after jam. Always escaping by the skin of my teeth. Jumping in before I thought anything through. And through it all, he stood. Knowing alot more of what was going on than I thought I was keeping secret. Always when I had to face the music, to be the better man he wanted me to be, he waited patiently for me to come around. Not wanting to talk about it, he waited on me. Patting me on the back, I sat there slumped over and lost in my thoughts. With the look of despair on my face,I felt noone understood me. And with these words he let me know someone cared, "Don't worry son, it'll be alright." Leaving his door open, he let me know he was available to talk. I may not have always liked his advice, but he always had a sympathtic ear to listen. Though in later years, I came to realize how right he was.
And so the years grew and I settled into a family. As my time with him became more limited, I longed for more moments with him. Obligations and commitments kept me busy, I squeezed every spare chance I had to discuss what life was throwing at me. Life finally threw me the ultimate curve ball. I held his hand as his life slipped away over the weeks in the hospital. Night slipped in and he was doing like he always did. Reassuring me with the same words I heard my whole life,"Don't worry son, it'll be alright:" " How can he be so sure? How does he know?" these questions filled up my mind. All these years I heard these words, but never truly understood the message. With a simple jesture, he put those words into perspectice. Taking his hand, he simply pointed up.

Even after his passing, his words stayed in the back of my mind. Until the moment I was standing in a delivery room, I was amazed at the cries of newborn life. The doctor took my son, and placed him in my hands.Tears welling up in my eyes, he looked up at me with his big blue eyes. Placing him on my shoulder I reassured him,"Don't worry son, it'll be alright."
by
Lance Gargus