Month: January 2019

Have no fear

Ruth Kirk

Have no fear of fire and earthquake, 
Nor the rising tidal swell –
I am with you, and I love you;
Trust in me; all will be well. 

Have no fear of drought and famine,   
Nor the plague that makes life hell –
I am with you, and I love you;
Trust in me; all will be well. 

Have no fear of man’s betrayal, 
Nor the falsehoods people sell –
I am with you, and I love you;
Trust in me; all will be well. 

Have no fear of persecution, 
Nor the lonely prison cell –
I am with you, and I love you;
Trust in me; all will be well. 

Have no fear of war and bloodshed, 
Nor the blast of bomb and shell –
I am with you, and I love you;
Trust in me; all will be well. 

Have no fear of signs from heaven,  
Nor the stories some will tell –
I am with you, and I love you;
Trust in me; all will be well. 

Hurry, Lord! Take back my spirit;
Carry me to where you dwell –
You love me, and I love you, Lord;
We are one, so all is well. 

 

References

For the basis of this prayer, see Luke 21:9-36; NLT. 

They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord (Psalm 112:7; NLT).

Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked, for the Lord will be at your side and will keep your foot from being snared (Proverbs 3:25-6; NIV).

Obey me, and I will be your God, and you will be my people. Do everything as I say, and all will be well! (Jeremiah 7:23; NLT).

Then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it (Ecclesiastes 12:7; NLT).

The Lord my God has given me peace on every side; I have no enemies, and all is well (1 Kings 5:4; NLT).

Only one Father

Ruth Kirk

There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him (Isaiah 11:1-2; NKJV).

 

There is only one Father,  
And only one voice;

Only one Saviour,
And only one choice.

There is only one body, 
And only one blood;

Only one Spirit,
And only one love. 

There is only one mindset,
And only one soul;

Only one lifetime,
And only one goal. 

There is only one pathway,
And only one Rod –

For we are all one 
With each other, and God.

 

References 

There is only one God (Mark 12:32; NLT).

There is one body and one Spirit (Ephesians 4;6; NLT).

Have the same mindset as Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:5; NIV).

We have all been baptised into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:13; NLT).

Let love be your highest goal (1 Corinthians 14:1; NLT).

I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me (John 14:6; NLT).

You are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28; NLT).

We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other (Romans 12:5; NLT).

I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one (John 17:22; NLT).

When I die

Ruth Kirk

Lord,

When I die  
My breath will slowly dwindle, 

My thoughts and feelings fade, 
My heartbeat cease;

Then my soul, with joy,
Will leave this body, 

To reunite with you
In perfect peace. 

 

References

In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind (Job 12:10; NIV).

O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, what joy for those who trust in you (Psalm 84:12; NLT).

Return, O my soul, to your rest (Psalm 116:7; NRSV).

Then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it (Ecclesiastes 12:7; NLT).

You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you (Isaiah 26:3; NLT).

We are one

Ruth Kirk

Abba, Lord, I know how much 
You love me,

And I love you, Lord:
Father, Spirit, Son;

So every time 
I fail to love myself, Lord,

Please help me to remember
We are one.

 

References

He loves us with unfailing love (Psalm 117:2; NLT).

I love you, Lord (Psalm 18:1; NLT).

To acquire wisdom is to love oneself (Proverbs 19:8; NLT).

Love your neighbour as yourself (Mark 12:31; NLT).

Whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit (1 Corinthians 6:17; NIV).

Keep on praying

Ruth Kirk

When I lose my way to you completely,
May I keep on praying, Lord, 
With faith. 

When I lose my faith in you completely,
May I keep on praying, Lord, 
With hope.

When I lose my sense of hope completely,
May I keep on praying, Lord, 
With trust.

And when I lose my trust in you completely,
May I keep on praying, Lord, 
With love.

 

References

They have lost their way (Jeremiah 50:6; NLT).

Keep on praying (Romans 12:12; NIV).

Have faith in God (Mark 11:22; NLT).

I will put my hope in God (Psalm 42:5; NLT).

If you are walking in darkness, without a ray of light, trust in the Lord (Isaiah 50:10; NLT).

You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind (Luke 10:27; NLT).

Speak the truth

Ruth Kirk

Father,

May I always 
Speak the truth 
To you in prayer,

With no pretence, 
”Forgetting”,
Or false shame;

And may I pray 
At all times 
In your Holy Spirit, Lord, 

With faith, and hope, 
And love,
Through your Son’s name.

 

References 

We will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ (Ephesians 4:15; NLT).

Pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17; NIV). 

Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion (Ephesians 6:18; NLT).

Three things will last forever — faith, hope and love — and the greatest of these is love (1 Corinthians 13:13; NLT).

Ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it (John 14:14; NLT).

Dreams

Ruth Kirk

Every night, I dream, Lord,
Of my failures;
Failure to be liked,
And to fit in.

Two failed degrees.
No genuine career, Lord;
Failure to be beautiful,
And slim.

Failure as a daughter,
Wife, and mother;
Failure as a grandmother,
And friend.

Failed health, Lord God,
Both physical and mental;
Failure as a person, 
In the end. 

Failure after failure  
In my faith, Lord;
Failure in my thoughts,
And words, and deeds,

So, here I am, now,
Bowing low before you,
With little to give back,
And many needs.

For I amount to nothing;
I have failed you; 
But you, Lord, are the High Priest
Who redeems;

Please fold me in your arms
For evermore, Lord,   
Then I will sleep, protected from 
My dreams.

 

References

Exalt the Lord our God! Bow low before his feet, for he is holy! (Psalm 99:5; NLT).

I am poor and needy, and my heart is full of pain (Psalm 109:22; NLT).

I am nothing but dust and ashes (Genesis 18:27; NIV).

O Lord, you are our Father (Isaiah 64:8; NLT).

So Christ has now become the High Priest […] With his own blood – not the blood of goats and calves – he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever (Hebrews 9:11-12; NLT).

He took the children in his arms (Mark 10:16; NLT).

In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe (Ezekiel 34:25; NLT).

None beside you

Ruth Kirk

Father,
There is none beside you
But the Son, in heaven above.

Jesus, 
There is none beside you
But the Spirit, who is Love.  

Spirit,
There is none beside you
But the Mother of the Lamb.

Mary,
There is none beside you   
But our God, the great I AM. 

 

References

I am Jehovah, and there is none else; there is no God beside me (Isaiah 45:5; DBY).

Since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let’s hold firmly to what we believe (Hebrews 4:14; NLT).

He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love (Romans 5:5; NLT).

As Jesus walked by, John looked at him and declared, “Look! There is the Lamb of God!” (John 1:36; NLT). 

God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM” (Exodus 3:14; NLT).

Abba, Father

Ruth Kirk

Abba, Father, 
I love you;
And, to my amazement,
You love me.

Imma, Mother,
I love you;
And, to my great gladness,
You love me.

Yeshu, Brother,  
I love you;
And, to my delight, Lord,
You love me.

Ruach, Sister,
I love you;
And, to my deep comfort,
You love me.

References, notes, and acknowledgement

You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind (Luke 10:27; NLT).

Many will see what he has done and be amazed (Psalm 40:3; NLT).

He loves us with unfailing love (Psalm 117:2; NLT).

I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content (Psalm 131:2; NIV).

Take delight in the Lord (Psalm 37:4; NLT).

I will send you the Advocate [or Comforter] – the Spirit of truth (John 15:26; NLT).

Notes

Abba means father in Aramaic.

Imma means mother in Aramaic. 

Yeshu means Jesus in Aramaic.

Ruach means Holy Spirit (or breath), in Aramaic, and is feminine. 

Acknowledgement

Many thanks to Wikipedia for these translations.

Never let me go

Ruth Kirk

Oh, my Lord,
I love you so.

Forgive me;
Never let me go 

Until I enter
Heaven’s gate,

Where I will no more
Watch and wait. 

*

Oh, my Lord,
I love you so.

Please help me;
Never let me go  

Until I reach  
Your open door

To dwell in you
For evermore. 

*

Oh, my Lord,
I love you so.

Please hold me;  
Never let me go

Until I fall 
On bended knee,  

To worship you 
Eternally. 

 

References

I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Saviour (Micah 7:7; NIV).

All who live in love live in God (1 John 4:16; NLT).

Worship the Lord in the splendour of his holiness (Psalm 29:2; NIV).