Good Right Living

Good Right Living Copyright Doug Blair, Waterloo ON, 2018

Approval Hunting Trying so hard To garner the smiles Garner approval And praise all the while Tailoring comments To bless and to gain Be in their praises Applauses to rain.

Quite the play actor 1

And quite the rich plot But honestly Buster A true friend you’re NOT With nothing transparent Nor humble nor kind Nor ready for suffering To grow in Christ’s mind To grow in His passion His promptness to bless His words oft of Heaven And free righteousness.

So please take the gamble And stop the sad game To render true friendship In His holy name.

Duty Free

Oh that’s not a burden You will find here Nice to meet you And to sense your hunger Jesus is a journey And a Pathfinder

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Full of thrills and truth We will help you As we all press on Messed up most of us One way or the other But He doesn’t mind His greatest thrill Is to rescue and enlighten Time after time Giver and Lover That’s our God To the hilt And as you learn this Recognize this humbly You will partake Of His Love Not imitate mind you It is Him within

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The love response Works it all out Fashions holiness With “duty� not even mentioned.

Welcome.

Happily Surrendered

Oh it didn't seem Outrageous Tossing up the clean white flag Letting go Of stubborn self love And good works Just filthy rags.

You had made it seem

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So timely And so right midst Chaos round And your gentle invitation Then the most Inviting sound.

Lord I love you And your mercy And your constancy Whate'er So l rest now In your keeping And surrender every care.

2BShur To be sure One is right with the Father 5

And be rescued From all inner strife Is to cherish The in-dwelling Jesus And inherit His born again life.

And the thoughts Take an odd new direction Peace and love Made the tiller each day And the Bible Now thrillingly timely And a rich dialogue When you pray.

What has come From this wealthiest begging?

What assurance And joy in each trial For the Shepherd Is tending His lambkin And the sun shines Again with His smile.

Oh the devil Attempts to be troubling Throwing guilt And dark thoughts as you go But an empty tomb Quiets the charges He retreats as you Love learn and grow.

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Abundant Life

Jesus said that the Devil/Thief came only to steal and to destroy, but that He had come to give life and that more abundantly. Abundance suggests bank accounts...but in the Oriental sense it means well-being in all areas of the life and community.

Indeed there can be all kinds of poverty...in resources, health, family connection, friendships, handicap, untroubled conscience, lack of inner peace. The list goes on.

For the dedicated believer troubles and challenges still arrive. But the life introduced through the New Birth (John 3; 1 Peter 1) reassures that one is never alone, never without the shepherding and protection of that greatest Elder Brother, never without hope of coming through. In so many ways the by-products are love and peace, and of the Godly kind.

Imagine the gyroscope keeping the big ship stable and safe in all kinds of rough waters.

I am rich in The fellowship of Heaven I have found A new and nobler Sort of wealth It is love Of the kind That Jesus offered And sweet peace With God and others And myself.

(Psalm 128) 7

Hurdles

There’s a training That requires some dark tunnels And some days when Not a single step is clear And the saint is tempted In believing.

Does He know?

Does He care?

Is He near?

And the restless Doubt and tossing Rob the night’s sleep And the Book traversed With tired gritty eyes And the Word of God Seems distant for a season Then the sun comes up!

Blind trusting brings surprise!

And a gentle voice says Child there is no shame here For I knew this training Would obscure the Light But those legs those lungs Now leap the walls of challenge And how you’ve grown in Love While tasting night.

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Crushed Olives

Some most ancient Trees on this quiet slope Beneath is the City Clamouring market booths Noisy mules and camels.

Religiosity.

But occasionally a breeze Of sweet savour Comes downhill And harvested oil Refreshment flavour and fuel.

Tonight He is here Urgent prayers repeated

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For weighty solutions.

Buddies all asleep In exasperation.

Evil’s night at its zenith Paschal Lamb enduring Final examination Before the offering up.

And holy oil will flow.

For the world.

John's Charge

Told me to care for your Mother

A sad will and testament this

And she holding up like a champion

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No soft words, no counsel, no kiss.

And I standing stunned like a youngster

And you hanging naked and shamed

And priests letting out foulest venom

They blaspheme, they mock and defame.

How could Gospel challenge evoke this?

You spoke simple comfort and rest

You healed all the sick and the lonely

Your stories of Heaven the best.

But something now strangely speaks victory

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And mercy for those with no light

Yes Lord I will cherish your Mother

God grant that I comfort her right.

And memories we’ll share of the good times

When you were the balm of the crowd

When we held you forth as Messiah

And missions of help made us proud.

(But days later joy came full measure

And faithful knew Christ had returned

And death lost the tears and the terror

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In Daybreak His passion had earned.)

A Table Before Me Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies.​

This interesting statement is made in Psalm 23, the Shepherd Psalm.

This is God as host preparing delightful things for His flock: A freedom from condemnation​ – The old mess has passed; totally made new and clean by the blood of Calvary. There is no longer the grinding weight of guilt for past stumbling. There is a ready place to go for absolution, should one fall again.

An Elder Brother who identifies​ – There is no temptation that Jesus did not experience during His earth walk. But he withstood all heroically and did not sin. We may be confident that He will ever be the reliable hiding place and counsel when new temptations/trials hit.

A confidence in the Lord’s guidance and protection​ – Our past experiences in the faith tell us that there is no place of greater safety than at the Shepherd’s side. There have been rescues. There have been sunny

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vistas. There have been bowers filled with the song of his creatures. And that wonderful settling sense of His presence even unto death.

Refreshments have come in surprising ways​ – Just when you think you are caught in a hard place without a way of escape, the Lord arrives, and the shadows flee, and the bracing thrill of His availability is like a long draught of cool water. His words of comfort and direction to the inner man have special blessing at such times.

We have the constant sustenance evidenced in the bread and wine –​ Things sanctified, broken and poured out by our Great Rescuer Jesus in order that we might not suffer judgment; things that speak to a world-wide mystical family rejoicing in all of His deliverances and compassions until He returns to take up His throne.

And ​the journey is perilous​ through a fallen world. There are influences close at hand that would seek to defile, defame or destroy.

Although they report to Satan the Prince of Darkness, they are aware of the power and presence of irrefutable Righteousness, and they see evidence of the same in members of the flock. They will be weakened in their resolve, and terrified by the prospect of mercy, recompense and judgment winning the day.

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Gone Out Your faith has “gone out�

Not placed upon the shelf Nor locked behind these walls As if some hoarded wealth Now less congratulation Of saints long known to you But more the invitation For those who find this new For those who hardly look up For answers to their pain For those in drought and thirsty And crying out for rain.

And Christ applauds obedience And gives His Spirit more To saints who heard the challenge And went out through that door Who knows of the decisions And healings soon to come And happy reproduction In this freed family Home.

(1 Thessalonians 1: 8 NKJV)

Prayer Lord and Father, in this life of faith help us to keep short accounts with you; to listen for the check in our spirit against sin and error, and to 15

repent and clear the slate. We have been given so much at such great cost to You and your Son. Let us have that freedom from guilt and from self-consciousness that would otherwise hold us back from sharing our Gospel good news, liberation and purpose. Give us more of your Spirit for ready response and the wisdom that takes right approaches to affirming and converting bruised ones into discipled warriors. In Jesus’ name we pray, knowing that You have heard and have begun already to respond. Amen.

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