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Showing posts with the label Songs From the Garden

For the Sake of the Ten

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"For the sake of the ten, I will not destroy it." Genesis 18:32 Sodom and Gomorrah - John Martin -1852 Patience, once more, a query spoken without end, seemingly. Condemnation for the evil ones, but what of the innocent, what will become of them when there are fewer than ten? Patience. The ground has been held in check, by the hand of creation. The earth trembles, awaiting the moment. Those who do not tolerate, or celebrate sin, are few. Patience. Pride in the abominations, staining the Word with slander. Destruction seems inevitable as iniquity is embraced as  holiness. copyright 2025 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

Where Is the Lamb?

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A gift comes. It is offered without condition. You are not forced to take it. The gift will be there tomorrow just as it is today. It is for you. It is for everyone. The wrapping is not beautiful. The bow seems to be stained. Inside there is more than imagined. You have heard about treasure. You have heard about wealth. This gift is even more bountiful. But do you take it? Do you unwrap it? Especially when you feel the damp, stickiness on the ribbon. Are you repulsed by the blood? Are you repulsed by the scars? A gift comes. It is bloodied and scarred. It is bound to wood and bled of life. It is an offering. It is the promised. It is the answer to Isaac’s question. Where is the lamb? copyright 2024 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

The God Who Sees Me

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And he said, "Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going? Genesis 16:8 Bernardo Strozzi - Hagar and the Angel 1603 You are the God who sees me. In my affliction, You stood Beside me on the road to Shur. You reveal yourself when I have run to nowhere. I stand in the desert, a homeless slave. Yahweh, You come and promise descendants, You make a covenant with a slave. God hears, and the child of both nations will be born, amidst blood and hostility. My future is not in the hands of my master, but the arms of my God. copyright 2023 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

Where Are You? (Genesis 3:8)

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  I hide from my guilt, thinking I can hide from You. But You see my iniquities even though, I have covered my flesh.   You call out to me, in the evening of that day, when I have listened to those who speak out against You.   They say I am no less than You and I except their unbelief. They slander Your name and I do not defend the light in my darkness.   Where are you, the voice beckoning through my guilt. I am here, less innocent, less a child. copyright 2023 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

Spirit Over the Waters

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Now the earth was formless and empty,  darkness was over the surface of the deep,  and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.   Genesis 1:2 Spirit over the waters, without shape or form. The created yet to be made. Love, yet to be poured out.   Spirit over the waters, a breath of life, a touch of love and all emptiness is transformed to beauty.   Spirit over the water, deeper than any thought of my own, for You are my God and I am Your created.   Spirit over the waters, the hovering mist of morning cannot define divinity or the absolute beauty of Your face. copyright 2023 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

His Rainbow

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Genesis 9:13 I am putting my bow in the clouds. It will be the sign of my covenant with the world    Good News Translation (GNT) Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society His rainbow sets across the clouds. The storm has passed and good things shall follow. This is a covenant of smiles and not sorrow. He has washed the darkness away, night has been obliterated. You shall, the children of the Lord, walk in the light and breathe air, fresh. He will never draw water over you again. You have no need to drown in you sins, no need to shield yourselves from His face. His beautiful bow of color is spread out over the world. Once again He calls out to the sons of Adam, come in from the darkness and trust in His ways. copyright 2017 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author

Eden (How Lovely is Your Garden)

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  And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden,  in the east,  and there he put the man whom he had formed. Genesis 2:8 How lovely is Your garden. Do we ache for the unblemished beauty? There is not a single creation of man that can stand upright in Your presence. Your waterways of purification reflect trees of endless life. The carpet beneath my feet is never rough all summits of faith have been reached. I long to walk among the flowers and ferns, listening to Your instructions. I will no longer need to read Your thoughts. I will listen with a waiting ear. Eden, that I might walk where You intended me to tread, knowing I could not resist temptation. Eden, the garden You made as my dwelling, lost in my desire to disobey Your word. copyright 2017 - Donald P James Jr https://www.amazon.com/stores/Donald-P.-James-Jr./author