What kind of Father are you?

What kind of a father are you?
Do you deserve the best Dad’s award?
Let me ask you a few simple questions,
To see how you have scored.

Are you selfish or sacrificial?
Do you have a loving heart?
Do you treat your child as special?
What wisdom do you impart?

Are you gentle and giving?
Have you nurtured them well?
Do your children feel encouraged?
Or do they shrink when you yell?

Do you discipline with firmness?
Are you always fair and lenient?
Have you taught them right from wrong,
To make them morally obedient?

Have you been reliable to trust?
Protective and dependable?
Does your child feel your support?
Are you always there, accessible?

Have you been a present Father,
Been there when you were needed?
Or were you absent and reserved,
With their wishes left unheeded?

Are you friendly and forgiving?
Or are you critical and cruel?
Do you parent them with kindness,
That will grow them to be successful?

Are you compassionate and caring?
Do you make your children proud?
Is your relationship strong and open?
Are you always fun to be around?

If you have failed some of these questions,
Take heart, for it is never too late.
Let the love of your Heavenly Father,
Make you a Dad your child will celebrate!

Life is like Rugby

 

I first wrote this poem after watching South Africa win against Scotland in Edinburgh in 2012, but I was inspired to edit it after hearing Mark van Pletsen include some Rugby phrases in his sermon 'Mine' on Sunday at Life Changers Church - Milnerton.

 

Life is like a Rugby game,
You need to play it as a team.
Keep your eyes on the ball,
And play it with self-esteem.

Claim the ball when it’s yours,
Hold it tight so you won’t drop it.
Rejoice when someone scores, 

Celebrate with praise and Spirit.

You can't control the ball's bounce,
Or where the ball will chose to land. 

But play it using God's rule Book,
Even when you don't understand.

 

When you’ve claimed the ball,
Look for an opportunity gap.
But if there’s none, just pass it on,
Don’t let selfishness be your trap.

Don’t let distractions block your view,  

Keep playing strong until the end.
Watch for your every blind-side,
Stand tall when you need to defend.

We all have our special talents,
Some score a try, and can convert.
Some are skilled for drop-kicks,
Whilst others can heal the hurt.

Don’t get weary or lose hope,
Keep sight of your game’s ball,
Be there for support as props,
And play your best in every maul.

God is our Head Referee,
But He never makes mistakes.
He alerts us of our penalties,
And redeems us with retakes.

Our Church leaders at our sides,
Help us to see all of our faults.
All our fouls we hide and mask,
And the opponents that we insult.

Let Jesus be your medic,
To help heal you when you're hurt.
He can teach you the right way to play,
And give you water when you thirst.

So engage your scrums and tackles,
With praise and worship prayers.

For that is how you win the victory,

When caught in the opponents snares.

There’s no such thing as luck,
For the game’s been set in stone,
You decide with which team to play,
For you don’t play the game alone.

Releasing your Offences

Have you been hooked by life’s silent killer
The devil’s easy lure of taking offence?
Do other people’s comments and actions
Always seem to put you on the defence?

These offences are life’s hidden enemy
That we feel so strongly, but cannot see
They steal your hope, destroy your future
And keep you bitter and bound in captivity

You can either be bitter or better
For those roots of bitterness will grow
They deceive us to only see the pain
And stops the Holy Spirit’s flow

When you carry the wounds of offence
You rob yourself of God’s good grace
They will deaden and harden your heart
And block you from seeing your destiny space

Don’t let any offence take a foothold
To make you a puppet to do Satan’s will
Watch out to not pick up any offences
For they each carry a heavy, bitter pill

Offences are not given but taken
The devil uses those closest to you
We cast them into media’s gossip
As our bitter roots fester and brew

It’s time to drop the weight of your baggage
To release and let your offenders go free
To unlock yourself of their robbing power
You need to give them God’s forgiveness key

We are called to pray for and bless
Our offending enemies and abusers
Not just once, but seventy times seven
Even our unfairest, harshest accusers

Increase your faith and not your feelings
Choose to become unoffendable
Stop living your life as a victim
Only with God’s grace is this possible

Stop waiting silently, for their apology
Lay your offence as the foot of the cross
Let Jesus heal your wounded heart
As you show the devil who’s boss!

Inspired by the sermon of Gabe Phillips from Life Changers Church - Milnerton : 

Are you watching this? -  https://youtu.be/8pl9XhRhADg

Life is like a Sentence

Life is a lot like a sentence,
Our name is our capital letter.
Others will get to read our lives,
So the life we write, does matter.

Life is not measured by its length,
But by the value of its content.
It’s not a sentence you are serving,
But was gifted to you as a present.

Our lives may end up long or short,
But they all have the same final end.
There may be commas in between,
When you come to each life’s bend.

Don’t see your commas as final,
For they’re just a time to pause,
A time to reflect and consider,
And to ponder on life’s because.

There is power after every comma,
When you’ve paused well and not quit.
How you write your life’s sentence,
Will be for your children’s benefit.

Live your life with righteous verbs,
Let your words be filled with truth.
Be honest in the words you write,
And share the mistakes of your youth.

Let your nouns always be concrete,
Experience life’s blessings to the fullest.
Don’t allow abstract nouns to restrict you,
From living the life you’ve been promised.

Some lives end with an exclamation,
For those whose lives left a mark.
The words that made their sentence,
Shone the light of Christ’s love in the dark.

Some lives end with a question mark,
Where we are left wondering why.
We may not understand God’s ways,
But He offers us comfort, when we cry.

Will your sentence leave a legacy?
Is your grammar moral and pure?
Let the Bible be your reference book,
To guide you, when you’re unsure.

Write out your life’s sentence in pencil,
But be sure to give God the pen.
For He knows what needs to be written,
To end your life with a pleasing Amen!

Water in the Wildnerness

Is your life dry and dusty from drought?
Are you thirsty and weary throughout?
Do you want to be watered and well?
Then drink deep from God’s Living well.

Don’t blame others for your dryness,
When you’re wandering in the wilderness.
Put a stop to all your feeble excuses,
That keep you from God’s presence.

The enemy is attracted to dry places,
He devours your dry, empty spaces.
Flood him out with God’s healing water,
For therein lies your wilderness answer.

God’s calling you to jump out of your boat,
Not just to walk on the water or float.
But to swim in deep and be fully submerged,
For it’s there that our dry places are purged.

Don’t let doubts and strongholds stop the flow,
Drink deep from God’s word, as you swallow.
His Spirit doesn’t fill us when we’re empty,
Only when we come, admitting we’re thirsty.

Drown your sorrows in His Living Waters,
Listen to God and not the enemy’s talkers.
Like a flood, the Lord’s grace washes us clean,
His Living water protects us, like a vaccine.

Drink of Jesus and you will never thirst,
Let His conquering love make your walls burst.
Open yourself to drink from His fountain,
Drink long, drink deep and drink often.

When you’re drowning in life’s storms,
Defeated by crashing waves that swarms,
Remember God is right there beside you,
It’s in deep waters that you find His rescue.

Let your Pool of Bethesda be well stirred,
By the healing waters of God’s Word.
Let His Spirit lead you beyond the water’s edge,
So He can clean you with His purifying dredge. 

 

God’s eternal waterfall holds great power.
Soak in it deep, under His anointing shower.
Refresh your spirit in His everlasting spring,
Come feel the quenching only God can bring.

Inspired by the sermon of Gabe Phillips – Life Changers Church, Milnerton, Cape Town, South Africa - 

 The Water and The Wilderness

Song to enjoy : Keith & Kristyn Getty - Living Waters - 

 Living Waters

On my knees

 On my knees, I find God’s presence,
On my knees, my heart surrenders.
On my knees, my spirit fills with praise,
For its down here where my will obeys.

On my knees, I feel your loving touch,
On my knees, the pain doesn’t hurt as much.
On my knees, I am filled with your power.
As my heart opens to you, like a flower.

On my knees, my chains are unshackled.
On my knees, my prideful heart is humbled,
On my knees, my pleas and prayers are heard,
As my spirit soars high and my hope is stirred.

On my knees, is where the battle begins,
On my knees, is where I repent of my sins.
On my knees, I find your grace and mercy,
It’s where I run to in every emergency.

On my knees, I feel your forgiveness,
On my knees, my brokenness finds wholeness.
On my knees, is where I need to be,
For it’s down here that God sets me free.

Life is like Litter

 Life is a lot like litter,

We all carry trash from our past.
To avoid the stink of our pain,
We need to discard of it, and fast.

Communities are called to pick up,
Even the litter that’s not their own.
We all need the help of another,
For the job's too hard to do alone.

When we choose to hoard our trash,
And not dispose of our dirty litter.
It will attract the maggots of sin,
And turn our pained trash bitter.

God calls us to give him our trash,
To turn the ashes of them to beauty.
For only He can recycle our pain,
And forgive us when we’re guilty.

Give God our black bags of pain,
Nail them to His cross of freedom.
This will clean and lighten our load,
And give us joy to enter His Kingdom.