You are
Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper
Light in the darkness
My God, that is who You are
After Prayer, Lie Cold
Arise my body, my small body, we have striven
Enough, and He is merciful; we are forgiven.
Arise small body, puppet-like and pale, and go,
White as the bed-clothes into bed, and cold as snow,
Undress with small, cold fingers and put out the light,
And be alone, hush’d mortal, in the sacred night,
-A meadow whipt flat with the rain, a cup
Emptied and clean, a garment washed and folded up,
Faded in colour, thinned almost to raggedness
By dirt and by the washing of that dirtiness.
Be not too quickly warm again. Lie cold; consent
To weariness’ and pardon’s watery element.
Drink up the bitter water, breathe the chilly death;
Soon enough comes the riot of our blood and breath.
C.S. Lewis (born November 29, 1898, Belfast, Ireland [now in Northern Ireland]—died November 22, 1963, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England) was an Irish-born scholar, novelist, and author of about 40 books, many of them on Christian apologetics, including The Screwtape Letters and Mere Christianity.
Hank The Tank And The Cloud Chase
O’Toole and Hank the Tank the wonder dog are really good friends. One thing they really really like is to chase cats. Now, a few days ago O’Toole and Hank the Tank were walking down the sidewalk. O’Toole was whistling things like boys often do and Hank the Tank was sniffing things like dogs often do. Then Hank the Tank looked up and told O’Toole he could smell their friend Miss Kitty the cat.
O’Toole was very happy and asked Hank the Tank – what direction is Miss Kitty the Cat?
Hank the Tank replied – I think Miss Kitty is just around the corner. Come on, follow me.
They both scampered around the corner just in time to see Miss Kitty the cat. Hank the Tank called out and startled Miss Kitty. She jumped on the nearest tree and started climbing.
Now the chase was on. What fun. What now. How can they catch that cat when she’s up in the tree and they’re standing on the ground? O’Toole jumped up on the tree and started climbing. Then Hank the Tank jumped on the tree and started climbing also. Goodness they were having fun. They could see all over the neighborhood. Miss Kitty just got higher and higher in the tree. She was laughing really loud. The cool breeze was very nice. The sun spilled all over their faces. It was so much fun.
When Miss Kitty got to the top of the tree there was no place left for her to go. Hank the Tank and O’Toole were catching up. Miss Kitty would have nothing to do with them catching up with her. Today was her day to be the best climber. So, what do you suppose that cat did?
Well, that cat looked around and there was this beautiful big cloud really close to her. This big cloud was sailing by as carefree as you can imagine. So, Miss Kitty looks back at Hank the Tank, winks her one blue eye, and that cat jumped off the tree and landed right in the middle of that cloud. Miss Kitty sailed away right through the air, sitting on that cloud. Oh my!
Now O’Toole and Hank the Tank were watching this. They were wondering what they were going to do. How are they going to catch that Miss Kitty now?
Just then, another cloud came by and O’Toole said to Hank the Tank — come on, we’re going to get on that cloud.
So, the two of them jumped onto that cloud and they started sailing away after Miss Kitty. But they quickly figured out that their cloud was not moving any faster than Miss Kitty’s cloud.
Well, O’Toole says to Hank the Tank — we are never going to catch the cat this way. O’Toole thinks about it for a bit and makes up a plan. O’Toole says to Hank the Tank — hang your tail over the side of this cloud and wag it like a propeller.
So, Hank the Tank tries it and sure enough, their clouds started moving a little faster and they are getting closer and closer to Miss Kitty. Well, Miss Kitty was worried. What do you think Miss Kitty did? So, Miss Kitty watched them, noticed what they were doing, and decided to do the same thing. Oh my. So, Miss Kitty hung her tail over the side of the cloud and started wagging it like a propeller. Sure enough, she started moving at the same pace that Hank the Tank and O’Toole were moving. Problem solved.
O’Toole said to Hank the Tank — I don’t think we’re ever going to catch Miss Kitty today. She wins. Besides, I’m getting hungry.
Hank the Tank said – me too! And my tail is getting tired, this is hard work.
O’Toole replied to Hank the Tank — well, we’re going to have to get down from this cloud. Do you have any ideas on how to get off this cloud?
So, the two of them are looking around and Hank the Tank sees a kite.
Hank the Tank said — I know, we’re going to use that kite string to get down. When they saw the Kite, the 5:00 factory whistle blew and all the kids in the neighborhood headed home for supper.
Oh gosh! O’Toole steered that cloud towards the kite and latched onto that string. They both just slid right down that string all the way to the ground. Boom!
Then they bumped into the man who is flying the kite. Well guess who it was. Why the Kite flyer was Mister Red-Sea. He lives right next door to O’Toole. So, Hank the Tank and O’Toole talked to Mister Red-Sea about their adventure. Mister Red-Sea thought it was fun to help them find their way from the cloud to their back yard – the promised land of milk and cookies. Then O’Toole and Hank the Tank walked through the door in the fence between Mister Red-Sea’s house and O’Toole’s house. They got home just in time for milk and cookies followed by dinner.
But what are you supposed to happen to Miss Kitty? Well, the cloud that Miss Kitty was riding bumped into a tree and that cat jumped right onto that tree and headed right down to the ground. Wow. Miss Kitty looked over to the left and Miss Kitty looked to the right, she couldn’t see no Hank the Tank and she couldn’t see O’Toole. Just Mister Redsea, her owner. When she got home, she was very happy, there was supper in the kitchen waiting for her.
So, everybody had a real good afternoon, they got home for supper just in time, and they got to see a part of their neighborhood they had never seen before. All was well in the world of Hank the Tank. It was a very good day. The end.
Written by G.Russell Oaks, Published in the Humpty Dumpty Childrens Magazine, April 1953 Adapted for ShalomTalk by Dan, 2024
The Never-Failing God
BY OSWALD CHAMBERS
God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” — Hebrews 13:5
What path do my thoughts take? Do they turn to what God says or to what I fear? “God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’” If I am listening to God, I won’t simply take his comforting words and leave it at that; I’ll build upon them, adding words of my own: “So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid’” (Hebrews 13:6).
“Never will I leave you.” God has promised that he will never leave us—not for all our sin and selfishness and stubbornness. Have I truly let God say to me that he’ll never leave me? If I have, let me listen again. “Never will I forsake you.” Difficulty isn’t always what makes me think God will forsake me. Sometimes it’s the tedium of the day-to-day, of living with no great challenge to meet, no special vision to pursue, nothing wonderful or beautiful to urge me on. Can I hear God’s promise when life is uninspiring?
We have the idea that God is going to do something exceptional with us, that he’s preparing us for some extraordinary feat. But as we grow in grace, we find that he is glorifying himself through us here and now. If we hold fast to God’s promise, we will find that we have the most amazing strength, and we will learn to sing in the ordinary days and ways.
2 Chronicles 21-22; John 14
Oswald Chambers was an early-twentieth-century Scottish Baptist evangelist and teacher who was aligned with the Holiness Movement. He is best known for the daily devotional My Utmost for His Highest
Purpose of Scripture
It has been my observation while browsing Hebrews, the word of God is alive and active to all who are looking for order and guidance in their life. Hebrews 4:12-13 (paraphrased) says — To be sure, we have been aggressively shaped by the Word; for it is sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates deep into our soul and spirit, it seeps through our joints digging deep into our marrow; we have no place to hide, nothing can be tucked away in our thoughts or actions. We stand naked, unable to run or hide, we have been judged. The hidden thoughts and subtle attitudes of our heart have been exposed. Nothing in our life can be hidden from God’s sight (as much as we might like to skulk in the shadows for things we have done). Everything in our life is laid bare before Him so we may give account (NIV). Over the years I have developed the utmost respect for scripture. It is difficult to ignore the Word. You may get fiercely angry at God for calling you out, you may repent, but you will never be indifferent to the message.
I believe that Scripture should have a strong role in our life; we should look to the message for insight and influence, we should look for help to discern right from wrong, we should expect the Word to deliver comfort during times of trouble, define our notions of why we are here, and explain the mysteries of ‘walking with God’. Paul wrote — All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
The fundamental purpose of scripture is to reveal God’s mind to us. Therefore, the Bible is very profitable for teaching. In Scripture we find comments on theism (existence of God), theos (nature, attributes, decrees and works of God), angels (the good ones and the evil ones), anthropology (nature, attributes, and works of man), soteriology (nature, attributes, decrees, and works of Jesus, plus the new covenant), Ecclesiology (community of believers), eschatology (the last days), and let us not overlook prophecy, history, poetry, wisdom, etc. However, I want to be extremely clear – scripture is not exhaustive; it does not comment on every element of knowledge known to man. But, when scripture comments; it is absolutely, forever true.
As God reveals himself, he uses the Word for reproof of the foolish and correction of the misguided. The Greek word for reproof is elegcho, which means to convict, refute, or confute (Thayer’s Greek Lexicon). As we read scripture, sometimes we are convicted by the Holy Spirit for a habit or activity that is not in alignment with the manufacture’s Handbook (scripture). If we read scripture with an open heart, the Bible becomes a set of operating principles to focus our thoughts, conduct, and behavior. The Greek word for correction, used in this verse, is epanorthosis. It means restoration to an upright or a right state; correction, and improvement (Thayer’s Greek lexicon). This is the purpose of the new covenant – restoring and adopting us into the bloodline of Abraham (the family of God) through the ransom.
We are changed because of God’s infusion of righteousness directly into our heart. Righteousness, as used by Paul in this verse, comes from the Greek term dikaiosune which can be defined as faith implanted into man producing gradual movement towards conformity with the will of God (Vine’s Greek Dictionary). We are learning to walk with God, implementing his plan. We learn about righteousness from the Word, God changes our heart, we are infused with his plan.
The bottom line – our Bible is the manufacturer’s handbook. Everything we need to know about God, Jesus, man, salvation, how we got here, and where we are going has been documented in the handbook. What do we do with this handbook? Read. Learn. Repent. Yield. Choose. Proceed. Grow. Love.
I choose Jesus.
James 1:17
Every good and perfect gift…
Walking With God
It has been my observation while reading Ephesians and Micah, the notion of walking with God is a common theme in scripture. Micah asks the question – What does the Lord need from you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8 paraphrased). I noted three key points to his definition. I think we should take a deeper look at Justice, Kindness, and Humility.
Continue reading “Walking With God”
Shalom Talk 