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Galatians 5:18-20 (A Sermon)

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"The sins of the flesh are obvious.  You know them in your heart.  Because you are led by the spirit, no longer under the law.  Do they need to be listed for you?  Do they need to be itemized?"  He looked over the congregation, took a deep breath and continued with his sermon. "Some are being led astray by the voices of the world.  Celebrities and politicians lead you away from the truth of the spirit.  They are marionettes who dance on strings controlled by their evil desires.  How many babies have been slaughtered?  How many young children have been manipulated to see a world void of God?  How many of you have thought ill of a brother because of the media's fixation.  Do you wear the badge of the world on your arm?  I hear it is gaudy, trimmed in gold.  Or do you wear the badge of the Lord?  The badge stained with dust, blood and splinters of wood." He took a drink from a bottle of water at the pulpit.  There was not a single single sound uttered from the pews

Seeking Signs

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There are signs sought in the sky and upon the earth. You seek them in the clouds or in the leaf fallen from a tree. You seek them in wars or in devastating storms. Just as their was no sign for the Pharisees, there will be no sign for you. If you seek a single moment to change your life, from the path of evil, it will pass you by. Do you not know that not even the bridegroom knows the moment when he will go to his bride. Do not waste your time watching the shades taken on by clouds. Do not despair over the groans of this world. Instead, look to he who sent his son, sent his grace and mercy, and offers you life eternal. copyright 2024 -Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

A Kingdom Divided

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How can you stand, ununited, divided by truth and falsehoods, without reverence for the Almighty? Ruins, every city and household which cannot stand as one will crumble. How can we stand, red and blue, without union to blend our separate colors to purple? copyright 2024 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

From Capernaum to Emmaus & According to John

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Available at the links below.  Amazon.com  From Capernaum to Emmaus Amazon.com  According to John

Water

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River of Life (From the Book of Revelation - Urgell Beatus) Water of life. Water of salvation. Water of Jesus. Water poured out over the altar in the dry lands. No longer symbolic, Jesus is here. "Come to me if you thirst," He calls out to the crowd. Some listen, some quench their thirst on things, some turn away in haste. Blest are those who have ears to hear. Water from the fountain of life, eternal life, offered from the steps of a temple soon to be ruins. Offered from a beam of wood bathed in sacred blood. Offered from the outstretched arms of He who quenches your thirst. copyright 2024 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

This I Am (Come to Me)

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Saint Augustine and Two Angels Adoring the Crucifix - Guiseppe Passeri This I am, the one who sees your distress and offers you a place of peace.   This I am, the one who hears your cry from the wilderness and stands ready to embrace you when you turn back.  Come to me. Take my burden, it is lighter than what the world offers. Come to me. My yoke will teach you, for I am good, I am holy.   This I am, the one who loves you without fail. I am the one you can cling to when all other doors are closed.  copyright 2024 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

Listen

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Where is there ever quiet? If God’s voice was silent, still, I would hear the praise of the saints before the throne. I pause to pray, without words, but with an open heart and a mind that seeks nothing but to listen.   A single bird in a distant tree offers a song for my soul. The wind rustles through the hay in the field, bringing wildflowers to dance. There are no voices to dispel the grace. There’s simply my emptiness waiting to be filled with silence.   Where is there ever quiet? The wind will never completely cease, moving from one place to another, praise will never languish and a song of one note, sung from the branch of an evergreen will never be made silent. copyright 2024 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

Daily Bread (Proverbs 30:7-9)

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Two things I ask of you, Lord; do not refuse me before I die; Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the Lord?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God Proverbs 30:7-9 "I have these needs," she says. "I need an abundance of things.  My closet is full.  My pantry is stocked.  And yet, if I really think about it, I'm not happy.  I've recently discovered this about myself.  I don't know how to change.  I don't know where I should direct my life.  I feel that my world is cluttered... a mess." The listener sits back in her chair.  The woman across the room is crying out for help.  The listener knows she is limited to the wisdom God will pour out.  She prays silently and speaks firmly. "Things. Stuff." The listener begins, "It burdens your soul.  You cannot find happiness when you see

Lilies

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He mentioned them, flowers, just as he did sparrows and ravens, and I have read these words a hundred times and never gave my life to the truth.   He cares for things which lack importance in my daily quest to establish myself in the world He has promised.   Still, He cares. And He tells me to take note. He instructs me to listen to every lesson He’s taught.   If He cares for Lilies, dresses them in more beauty than any king, if He cares for the sparrow, or the raven, and gives them plenty to eat, will He not care for me, will He not divide bread and fish for me? copyright 2024 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

The Co-Worker's Desk

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He sat at the desk and pulled out the top drawer to his right.  Pens, pencils, a stapler and paper clips, a lifetime, twenty-four years, a fellow employee, a friend.  He’d been asked to perform this task because he and Renny Diaz, Renaldo A, had been friends.  Had been.  The thought seemed to set upon the desk top, like a coffee stain that couldn’t be wiped away.  Just last week, Renny was sitting in this very spot, this chair, smiling broadly when Carla talked about her granddaughter.  That same night Renny had a massive heart attack.  Fifty-eight is too young to die. “I see you’ve been given the task.” A voice spoke from behind him.  He knew it was Carla.  “I kinda offered.” “You guys were close… at least here at the office.” He shrugged. Carla pulled out her chair and sat down at her desk.  As was her habit, she logged onto her computer before doing anything else.  There was a coffee pot just outside the cube.  A fresh cup was the second part of her morning ritual, whi