Author: Ruth Kirk

May I walk

Ruth Kirk

💙

1. May I walk, Lord Jesus;
Walk your narrow way.

2. May I eat, Lord Jesus;
Eat your bread of tears.

3. May I drink, Lord Jesus;
Drink your bitter cup.

4. May I know, Lord Jesus;
Know your pains and fears.

5. May I love, Lord Jesus;
Love all those I meet.

6. May I serve, Lord Jesus;
Serve your people, too.

7. May I share, Lord Jesus;
Share your heavy cross.

8. May I be, Lord Jesus,
Always one with you.

💙

References

1. The gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life (Matthew 7:14; NASB).

2. You have fed them with the bread of tears (Psalm 80:5; NIV). 

3. He has filled me with bitterness and given me a bitter cup of sorrow to drink (Lamentations 3:15; NLT). 

4. He took up our pain and bore our suffering (Isaiah 53:4; NIV). 

5. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ (Ephesians 5:2; NLT).

6. Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all (Mark 9:35; NIV).

7. As they led Jesus away, a man named Simon, who was from Cyrene, happened to be coming in from the countryside. The soldiers seized him and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus (Luke 23:26; NLT).

8. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one – as you are in me, Father, and I am in you (John 17:21; NLT).

Trust in the Lord

Ruth Kirk

Trust in the Lord with all your heart.
(Proverbs 3:5; NLT). 

Trust in the Lord,
For his love is so wide.
His light is undying;
His Spirit, our guide.

Trust in the Lord,
For his love is so long.
His peace is unending;
His mercy is strong.

Trust in the Lord,
For his love is so high.
His truth is unfailing;
His tongue cannot lie.

Trust in the Lord,
For his love is so deep.
His grace is eternal;
His healing, complete.

🧡

May you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.
(Ephesians 3:18; NLT).

 

Give us this day (for E.)

Ruth Kirk

Give us this day our daily bread.
(Matthew 6:11; KJV).

Lord, 

Give us this day the energy
To do what we must do,
And all the faithfulness we need
To serve and worship you.

Give us this day the honesty
To say what we must say,
And all the inner peace we need
To thank you, praise, and pray.

Give us this day the confidence
To go where we must go,
And all the strength of mind we need
To bless both friend and foe.

Give us this day the fortitude
To face what we must face,
And all the qualities we need
To spread your truth and grace.

Give us this day the constancy
To bear what we must bear,
And all empathy we need
To listen, mourn, and share.

Give us this day the readiness
To follow, as you bid,
And all the love we need, Lord God,
To live as Jesus did.

🖤

It is the Lord your God you must follow, and him you must revere.
(Deuteronomy 13:4; NIV). 

As we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world (1 John 4:17; NLT).

 

I breathe you in

Ruth Kirk


He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person (Genesis 2:7; NLT).

I breathe you in,
And breathe you out;
Your presence makes me whole.

I breathe you in,
And breathe you out;
One body, and one soul.

I breathe you in,
And breathe you out,
No matter what you send.

I breathe you in,
And breathe you out, Lord God,
Until life’s end.

💛

I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath.
(Psalm 146:2; NLT).

 

In your arms

Ruth Kirk

The eternal God is your refuge,
and his everlasting arms are under you.
(Deuteronomy 33:27; NLT).

 You take us in your arms, Lord God:
Ready to help us do your will.

You hold us in your mind, Lord God:
Ready to help us face each ill.

You keep us in your heart, Lord God:
Ready to help us serve your Son.

You guard us in your soul, Lord God,
Ready to help us live as one.

❤️

God is our refuge and strength,
always ready to help in times of trouble.
(Psalm 46:1; NLT).

I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one –
as you are in me, Father, and I am in you.
(John 17:21; NLT). 

 

Countless faces

Ruth Kirk

There is […] one God and Father,
who is over all and in all
and living through all.
(Ephesians 4:5-6; NLT).

1. One God, with countless faces,
We look at you in all;
But we don’t recognise you, Lord,
Because our love is small.

2. One God, with countless voices,
We hear you every day;
But we don’t recognise you, Lord,
No matter what we say.

3. One God, with countless sorrows,
We meet you everywhere;
But we don’t recognise you, Lord,
Though we believe we care.

4. One God, through countless ages,
We claim to long for you;
But we don’t recognise you, Lord,
No matter what you do.

❤️

References

1. They will look, but not see (Luke 8:10; CEV).

2. God speaks again and again, though people do not recognise it (Job 33:14; NLT).

3. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us (Colossians 3:11; NLT).

I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me (Matthew 25:45; NLT). 

4. The Lord our God is one (Mark 12:29; NIV).

As a deer longs for flowing streams, so I long for you, God (Psalm 42:1; CSB).

When you see what I do, you will not comprehend (Acts 28:26; NLT).

 

 

I can’t see your face

Ruth Kirk

No one has ever seen God.
(John 1:18; NIV).

1. Father,
I can’t see your face;
Instead, I look for Christ,
Your Son.

2. Jesus,
I can’t see your face,
But search for you
In old and young.

3. Spirit,
I can’t see your face,
Though you are living
In us all.

4. Lord, my God,
I see your face!
You wait for me
In everyone.

🖤

Their eyes were opened, and they knew Him.
(Luke 24:31; NKJV).

References

1. Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father (John 14:9; NLT).

2. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us (Colossians 3:11; NLT).

3. The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul (Genesis 2:7; KJV). 

I will pour out my Spirit upon all people (Joel 2:28; NLT).

Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19; NLT). 

The dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it (Ecclesiastes 12:7; NIV).

4. The Lord must wait for you to come to him (Isaiah 30:18; NLT).

We are the temple of the living God (2 Corinthians 6:16; NLT).

There is […] one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all (Ephesians 4:5-6; NLT).

Keep on seeking, and you will find (Matthew 7:7; NLT).

My Father and my Mother (#2 of 2)

Ruth Kirk

He claims me as his own.
(Song of Songs 7:10, NLT). 

Lord,
My Father, and my Mother,
Always whispering each day:
“I claim you.”

Lord,
My Sister, and my Brother,
Always telling me the way:
“I save you.”

Lord,
My Shepherd, and my Lover,
Always calling when I stray:
“I seek you.”

Lord, my God,
There is no other,
Always sighing while I pray:
“I love you.”

❤️

The Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words.
(Romans 8:26; RSV).

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

My Father and my Mother (#1 of 2)

Ruth Kirk

Your unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise you!
(Psalm 63:3; NLT). 

Lord,
My Father, and my Mother,
Always helping me each day:
I praise you. 

Lord,
My Sister, and my Brother,
Always showing me the way:
I bless you. 

Lord,
My Shepherd, and my Lover,
Always seeking when I stray:
I thank you. 

Lord,
My God – there is no other,
Always hearing when I pray:
I trust you.

🖤

I trust in you, my God!
(Psalm 25:2; NLT).

 

I fix my eyes

Ruth Kirk

Look straight ahead,
and fix your eyes on what lies before you.
(Proverbs 4:25; NLT).

I fix my eyes
Beyond this world –
On Christ,
Who shares my life.

I fix my mind
Beyond this grief –
On Christ,
Who shares my loss.

I fix my heart
Beyond this fear –
On Christ,
Who shares my dread.

I fix my soul
Beyond this pain –
On Christ,
Who shares my cross.

🧡

I focus on this one thing:
Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us (Philippians 3:13-14; NLT).