A Soothing Summer Solace Poem

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A Summer Solace Poem for SoothingYou can say the weather is wacky, but it’s not.

It is summer hot and summer is going to give it all it’s got.

July – we all know it flew by.

August is now – we have to “do summer” – we have to try.

I hope to have many times at the beach or at the park.

And oh the wonderful cool warm nights when it is late getting dark.

Because the best way to enjoy summer, I feel.

is to live life – to absorb the riches of summer and to handle what the Lord will deal.

.

In the life we know.

We must go with the flow.

And praising God will be our go.

As praising God must be our overflow.

.

Summer you see, 

will disappear like June, May, April, and July? gee…

Behold today and this summer in its way.

Follow God’s plan and at night just call it a day.

For forever we will be thankful we took today like today.

Amen

Ecclesiastes from wise Solomon who still knew that we are not to God’s level and are so very human… chapters 11-12 NKJV

The Value of Diligence
Cast your bread upon the waters,
For you will find it after many days.
Give a serving to seven, and also to eight,
For you do not know what evil will be on the earth.

If the clouds are full of rain,
They empty themselves upon the earth;
And if a tree falls to the south or the north,
In the place where the tree falls, there it shall lie.
He who observes the wind will not sow,
And he who regards the clouds will not reap.

As you do not know what is the way of the wind,
Or how the bones grow in the womb of her who is with child,
So you do not know the works of God who makes everything.
In the morning sow your seed,
And in the evening do not withhold your hand;
For you do not know which will prosper,
Either this or that,
Or whether both alike will be good.

Truly the light is sweet,
And it is pleasant for the eyes to behold the sun;
But if a man lives many years
And rejoices in them all,
Yet let him remember the days of darkness,
For they will be many.
All that is coming is vanity.

Seek God in Early Life
Rejoice, O young man, in your youth,
And let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth;
Walk in the ways of your heart,
And in the sight of your eyes;
But know that for all these
God will bring you into judgment.
Therefore remove sorrow from your heart,
And put away evil from your flesh,
For childhood and youth are vanity.

Seek God in Early Life
Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth,
Before the difficult days come,
And the years draw near when you say,
“I have no pleasure in them”:
While the sun and the light,
The moon and the stars,
Are not darkened,
And the clouds do not return after the rain;
In the day when the keepers of the house tremble,
And the strong men bow down;
When the grinders cease because they are few,
And those that look through the windows grow dim;
When the doors are shut in the streets,
And the sound of grinding is low;
When one rises up at the sound of a bird,
And all the daughters of music are brought low.
Also they are afraid of height,
And of terrors in the way;
When the almond tree blossoms,
The grasshopper is a burden,
And desire fails.
For man goes to his eternal home,
And the mourners go about the streets.

Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed,
Or the golden bowl is broken,
Or the pitcher shattered at the fountain,
Or the wheel broken at the well.
Then the dust will return to the earth as it was,
And the spirit will return to God who gave it.

“Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher,
“All is vanity.”

The Whole Duty of Man
And moreover, because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yes, he pondered and sought out and set in order many proverbs. The Preacher sought to find acceptable words; and what was written was upright—words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and the words of scholars are like well-driven nails, given by one Shepherd. And further, my son, be admonished by these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is wearisome to the flesh.

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear God and keep His commandments,
For this is man’s all.
For God will bring every work into judgment,
Including every secret thing,
Whether good or evil.​

Picture Fruitfulness in Us, Psalms, Lamentations, Romans, and Ecclesiastes

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Lamentations 3:22-23The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”

It may be early, but it’s summer and early morning we (the cat and I) can go outside. My peas and strawberry plants are reaching fruition in fruiting and the birds are chirping, the cat is happier outside. It is not too buggy yet, I wrapped up with an old sheet for a blanket for protection anyway. Life is good within the small slice of the 6am morning before time marches on. 

The cardinal chirping was clear, there are distinct calls for each bird, was it warning or song? (Many think the cardinals are visits from our family members – well they would be warning us too as well as encouraging us to keep moving forward and be fruitful. Truly the warnings and encouragements of life are to keep moving forward always anyway…)

There are dangers in the world, for birds yes, and for us too. The best warning is to guard against the drain of our fruitfulness, for stresses and unknowns come but we are to stay solid upon the Rock of the Lord’s support and the fertile ground of His enrichment. We need to always grow and grow in all ways – especially in Patience and in Piety. There are times that things work out and other times we have “what ifs?”… and yet each morning is reset as new, there is a time to just pause and pray. This is the time to stop racing thoughts, just work, praise, pray, play, and participate in life. There is a season for everything, like Ecclesiastes 3 recounts – and we are to ask the Lord to help us “number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” – which to me means to strike when the iron is hot, and change directions when it is not!

Proverbs 19:20-121 Listen to counsel and receive instruction, That you may be wise in your latter days. There are many plans in a man’s heart, Nevertheless the Lord’s counsel—that will stand. 

After my fruitful container garden (may not look pretty but it is pretty secured against the groundhog and rabbits) is harvested from strawberries and peas – the early season is done, in a couple of weeks, maybe the tomatoes will be planted, got to still buy those, and maybe my sitting outside will be different again. Life and seasons change quickly. But pray the sun still rises and mornings still come with new mercies and more and different fruitfulness. 

These garden fruits take time to develop and within us, if we picture fruitfulness – we can gain it – by wisdom – and ask for the Lord to lay HIS Fruit upon us for His usefulness of our work for HIM (and ourselves). The fruits of the Spirit (Romans 12) are: JOY, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Generosity, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control. These are all to be applied and accepted with LOVE. That is the harvest of the Lord in us.

Amen 


Solomon laments not always understanding life and surely observes life in Ecclesiastes 3 – but especially he knows that God is in charge – and knows there is a time for everything:

Ecclesiastes 3 NIV

A Time for Everything
There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens:

    a time to be born and a time to die,
    a time to plant and a time to uproot,
    a time to kill and a time to heal,
    a time to tear down and a time to build,
    a time to weep and a time to laugh,
    a time to mourn and a time to dance,
    a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
    a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
    a time to search and a time to give up,
    a time to keep and a time to throw away,
    a time to tear and a time to mend,
    a time to be silent and a time to speak,
    a time to love and a time to hate,
    a time for war and a time for peace.

What do workers gain from their toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him.

Whatever is has already been,
    and what will be has been before;
    and God will call the past to account.

And I saw something else under the sun:
In the place of judgment—wickedness was there,
    in the place of justice—wickedness was there.

I said to myself, “God will bring into judgment both the righteous and the wicked,
for there will be a time for every activity, a time to judge every deed.”

I also said to myself, “As for humans, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals. Surely the fate of human beings is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless. All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return. Who knows if the human spirit rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?”

So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work, because that is their lot. For who can bring them to see what will happen after them?