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Showing posts from May, 2017

Religion (James 1:27)

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What God the Father considers to be pure and genuine religion is this:  to take care of orphans and widows in their suffering  and to keep oneself from being corrupted by the world. James 1:27       Pure religion, without ritual, without tradition, without the glorification of human ideals. Simple religion, without worldly corruption, without laws to burden, without doctrines to recite. True religion, without status, without earthly reward, without acknowledgement of man. Take care of those who suffer, the widows, the orphans, those who struggle with weights they cannot support on their own and keep your hearts free of the world's influence. copyright 2017 - Donald P James Jr

Flaunting Our Pardons (Matthew 5:3)

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Am I spiritually poor, humble, aware that I am less than the lowest without the blood shed violently on wooden beams? Do I place myself in seats of honor as the adulterated righteous do? Have I been proud of scriptural knowledge, or the menial works I’ve been given skills to perform? The kingdom belongs to those who live in humility, those who know grace in its purest state. The cross embraces the lowly and elevates the sinner to forgiveness. Help me Lord, to be poor in spirit, to be humble, to be washed clean by Your blood without flaunting my pardon in the face of others. copyright 2017 - Donald P James Jr  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CKXXYK9

The Advocate

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   Sent to fill those of faith with strength, grace and inner peace. He is the voice speaking in a soft whisper, permeating the noise of this world. He is sent, a tongue of flame on the heads of believers, Spirit of God, emissary of our Lord. Come to me Advocate, inspire in me a faith  which cannot be crushed. Fill me with the strength of peace and cover me with grace. Divine one, sent as a promise fulfilled, by the Lord of my heart, come upon me, rest Your flight of heavenly wings in the core of my soul. copyright 2017 - Donald P James Jr

John 16:2

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In fact,  the time is coming  when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service  to God. John 16:2 This week I read about death, bombs and nails, and parents waiting for their children to come home after a concert. Life, innocent life, the radical one kills in the name of God. Not the God I know. My God is love. My God embraces my soul. My God offers me peace, a reward for loving, not hating. Yet, the weaving of history shows my God and his God to be the same. Sons of a dessert nomad, we are brothers, each having taken up weapons against the other. I am not innocent, neither are you, of claiming victory in God's name. But there is no reward for killing even the most evil among us, just the anguish of a God who is the essence of love. copyright 2017 - Donald P James Jr

A Simple Faith

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Simplicity, like a child sitting beside the Lord in a sun lit meadow, knowing love overflows from a friend most trusted. There is no question to be pondered, scientific or historic, for faith acknowledges that everything spoken by Jesus is truth. When I was a child my prayer was simple. I knelt in my room and asked God to bless my parents, grandparents and siblings. I would even try stumbling through an 'Our Father'. As a child I knew my prayer was heard, regardless of its flaws. Now, as an adult, I become more complex in my wording and question whether my voice makes its way through the world's chatter. The innocence of trusting God becomes cluttered with our own limitations. Sometimes when I sit and pray I long for the unblemished simplicity of childhood. A beautiful field where dandelions and buttercups bloom. A man sitting in the grass, worn sandals and a beard. When we are children we know him, because the world has yet to taint us, and he l

The Narrow Door (Luke 13:24)

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  To open the door, the narrow door to His peace. I must fit the framework as if it were the mold my body was shaped in. For I’ve tried to be someone who wears a different face rather than being the person who each unique door is designed for. To open the door I must become His child. Seeing His love as the littlest ones among us see His love. I must maintain the innocence of a simple faith, an unquestionable faith, rather than trying to comprehend the mysteries of His existence that are far beyond the reaches of my understanding. To open the door I must become His soldier. A minister of His word and the truth brought before us by His word. I can’t keep the glory of His promise inside my heart, for if kept concealed, in the barren rooms of my selfishness, it will surely dwindle   and lose its spark. copyright 1996 - Donald P James Jr 

Love

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This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. John 15:12 Love, when the world around you deserves less. Be the beacons of light shining into the hearts of those who struggle in darkness. Love, when you have been ridiculed and spoken falsely of. You are the ones who know the Father how can you not treasure His every creation. Love, as the savior loves, from the sinners table and from the cross. Seek out every lost sheep and change their direction. Love, those who despise your name. Love the friend who denies and the one who betrays. Love the soldier who whips and the one who swings the hammer. Love, and you can expect to be loved. copyright 2017 - Donald P James Jr

Blessed Are You (Beatitudes)

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Blessed are you who seek, humble and unassuming, spirits that do not boast. You long to walk down pathways of holiness, roads the world has forsaken. Blessed are you who would never consider themselves holy. You who know your scars and know the texture of the cross redeeming you. Blessed are you who seek, light through the veil of darkness, the sheep lost, the thief to His side, the prostitute whose tears clean His feet. Blessed are the unblessed, those false righteousness condemns. Blessed are you, tired, hungry, thirsty, the prophets spoke your plea and the Father has answered. copyright 2017 - Donald P James Jr

The Way, The Truth, The Life

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Jesus said to him,   “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6  The way, a road with a single lane leading to the desired destination. There may be rocks and ruts to stumble over, but he who walks in the light will not trip. The truth, the prophecy fulfilled by the son, the spoken word of the one sent as a lamb for those who were and are lost. The life, the one spirit filling all who take faith into their hearts and treasure its essence. The strength guiding us along the road, to the destination, eternal. copyright 2017 - Donald P James Jr

A Tear

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A tear falls from my cheek to the body, wounded, anointed in death. For the father of this man loved our sinful world so much that he sent his only child into it, as vulnerable flesh, to die. His tomb is sealed by old men struggling to leave behind rituals of their birth. Lord, help me to awaken to your kingdom, to be born again not of my mother's womb, but of your spirit. copyright 2002 - Donald P James Jr