Birthday Blessings

 On the morning of my 79th birthday, I paused in front of my refrigerator door to look lovingly at a photo of my sweet mother. 

I thought about how she must have suffered on this day all those many years ago when she was giving birth to her first child. I assume she felt indescribable joy in the midst of the agony that day, as I did years later when giving birth to each of my two precious daughters.

I also thought about how Jesus endured great agony on the cross in order to make spiritual life available to me centuries upon centuries later. 

I thought about how my mother always cared tenderly and faithfully for me as long as she was physically able to do so. 

Jesus is still tenderly and faithfully caring for me.

My mother departed this life during my 63rd year of life. 

But Jesus, who has been with me since before I was born and all the days since, is now sitting at the right hand of God the Father, making intercession* for me, advocating for me, providing all that I need.

How blessed I am to have had a loving mother who endured suffering while bringing life to me. How even more blessed I am to have a Savior who suffered to bring spiritual life to me. How blessed I am to have had both to love me unconditionally and to rejoice over me. 

Reflecting on that prompts me to pause to give thanks for them and for ALL I’ve been given and am being given, including another year of life. May my life honor them and bless others.

*Hebrews 12:2; Romans 8:34

His Life

 

On Palm Sunday, a friend texted me the inspirational graphic shown here. It prompted me to re-read chapters 21-28 in the Gospel of Matthew, which tell how Jesus spent the last week of His life. I was struck afresh at how focused He stayed while knowing death awaited Him.

On Sunday of what is now known as Holy Week, excited crowds lined the road and cheered as He approached the city. But their euphoria and loyalty faded before Thursday. Key leaders who had rejected Him continued to do and say things that turned that fickle crowd against Him and led to His arrest and crucifixion.

Despite the chaos, Jesus chose to stay visible rather than hide out. For example, He went to the temple that Monday. And when He saw people buying and selling, Jesus became so angry that they had made His Father’s house “a den of thieves” that He turned over the tables of the "money changers." 

Even as people plotted against Him, He continued to teach His disciples, to weep over Jerusalem, to spend quality time with those closest to Him, and to pray for them (and for you and me), as well as for Himself. 

During that week, one of His closest disciples betrayed Him.

 Another one denied even knowing Him. 

He was falsely accused. 

The crowd clamored for the release of a known criminal instead of Him, the sinless Son of God. 

He was taunted, tortured, and humiliated. 

As He suffered unimaginable agony, while also feeling forsaken by God, He prayed, “Father, forgive them. They do not understand what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).

As I reflected on how He lived and how He died — fully obedient to the Father, fully willing to give His life so that others may come into a right relationship with God — I thanked God for Jesus. 

I also pondered this question: How closely does my life align with His?

Free to Follow

Excerpted from a column that was first published in the January 2018 issue of Chapel Hill News and Views magazine.

When I turn the pages of a new, large, month-by-month calendar, I marvel at all the freedom I have to choose what lies before me. As of that moment, there are no appointments or tasks written on it. The landscape of the months ahead is like a blank canvas.      

As the days pass, I, like a landscape painter, choose what to add to that wonderful white space. I fill it with appointments and things to do. In the margins, I make notes and scribble phone numbers and other essential information.

Then, when it’s time to turn the page to a new month, I sigh as I see that I’ve already filled in many of the daily spaces. I no longer have pristine pages to marvel at. I no longer am as awed by my freedom to choose. I no longer spend as much time prayerfully considering what God wants me to do with all those days He is giving me as I’d spent between the ending of the previous year and the beginning of the current one.

Instead, I often feel overwhelmed by all the appointments and tasks already awaiting me. And I know that I’ll add more, more, and more as the months move along. With a sigh, I methodically begin to do whatever is on schedule for a particular day.

But this year, I yearn to avoid filling up precious hours with my plans. I long to leave lots of white spaces so that I can be free to do whatever He asks me to do as I talk with Him at the beginning of each day -- and throughout the day, as well.

My desire to remain flexible in order to give His plans priority over mine increased after I read I Come Quietly to Meet You, which is a collection of devotionals written by Amy Carmichael (1867-1951).

Amy’s devotional entitled “Entanglements” helped me realize I am guilty of having too many entanglements, too many worldly things that allure me more than spiritual ones.

After several days of reading and reflecting on Amy’s words, I woke up one morning thinking about the phrase “free to follow.” I eagerly got up and began searching the Scriptures for verses that contained the word follow.

As I read the many references, I realized that the people who were given specific assignments were going about their ordinary tasks when they received the divine call to “follow.”

For example, Peter and Andrew were casting their fishing nets into the water. James and John, along with their father, were mending their nets. Matthew was working at his tax collection booth. (For details, read chapters 4 and 9 in the Gospel of Matthew.)

When Jesus said to them, “Follow Me,” they immediately stopped what they were doing and followed Him, despite their plans for that day.

I pray that you and I will willingly let go of our plans in order to say yes to Him, that we will be free to follow Him wherever and however He leads us.

 © 2018 by Johnnie Ann Gaskill

 

 

While growing up in rural North Georgia, I knew a bit about my local area but naïvely assumed that people and places in the larger world were similar to those in my world.

But after graduating from high school, I moved from the mountains to attend college in the central portion of Georgia that had a very different landscape. Later, my husband and I traveled throughout the United States, Canada, and a few of the Caribbean islands. As we also vicariously traveled around the world through print and audiovisual media, and then the Internet, I gained a greater understanding of what the world is like. To my astonishment, it is so much larger and so much more diverse than the small area where I was born.

That process of exploration and learning reminds me of connecting-the-dots puzzles. The more dots you connect, the more recognizable the big picture becomes. In like manner, I started where I was born and moved on from the familiar "here" to one astonishing "there" after another. The people groups and places I’m continuing to learn about have been there for a long time, despite my lack of awareness. Such gradual illumination fills me with ever-increasing wonder.

Similarly, the Gospel story has been slowly, yet consistently, revealed to me. As a child, and for many years later, I knew little about the Bible, which contains the stories of the triune God and His dealings with all the diverse people living in the physical world He created, as well as how we will live in the hereafter — in the world He also has created and over which He will reign forevermore.

But through the years, I’ve been privileged to learn more of the Gospel story. For example, just recently, I listened as Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth connected even more of the dots in the Gospel story. 

 https://www.reviveourhearts.com/podcast/revive-our-hearts/the-incomparable-incarnate-christ/

Yes, there is more, so much more, to His story than the familiar stories and songs and dramatizations of the birth of Christ on which we focus on at Christmastime. Although that awesome portion of His life is an essential part of the story, it is not the true beginning of His life. He, like God the Father, has always existed and will always exist. Thus, there’s more, so much more, to the story of who He was, who He is, and who He will always be.

Since I’m eager to learn more and more about Him and believe more deeply and confidently in all that He is and does, I benefit from reading the entire Bible, which contains the larger story. As I read and reflect on various passages, including one of the apostle Paul’s prayers that’s found in the first chapter of the book of Ephesians, I receive insights to include in my prayers. For example:

I bow before You -- the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory __ and humbly ask You to give me a spirit of wisdom and of revelation that will provide true and ever-increasing knowledge of Jesus. I ask You to continue to enlighten my heart, so that I will know more and more about You and about the glorious hope and abundant riches Your boundless power and grace give to those who believe in Jesus.

I make these requests not only for myself but also for others. Enable us to know You, the triune God, more and more fully so that we might truly love You and worship You with glad and grateful hearts, always eager to share with others what we have come to know and believe about You.

Thankful for HIM

 

Do you ever ask yourself, Do people like me? Enjoy me? Appreciate me? Or do they keep me around because I help them?

I often ask such questions — and I admitted that one day when talking with a friend. She replied, “I feel the same way!”

A few days later, while reading some of the apostle Paul’s letters to individuals and to people groups, I noticed that he often said things like, “I thank God upon every remembrance of you.” Then, he would mention specific things they had said or done that caused his heart to overflow with gratitude. For example, some had participated with him in his God-given ministry. Some had shown various kindnesses to him and to others.

As I pondered these things, I realized afresh that it’s hard to separate the individual from the things they do since the kind of person we ARE is reflected in the actions we take. Even so, I think everyone longs to be loved for WHO they ARE, for their essence, rather than for what they possess or how they look or the contributions they make, etc.

As I delved deeper into such thoughts, I asked myself, Do I truly love God for who He IS — apart from all the blessings He bestows on me? If He withheld the blessings, would I continue to love Him?

I pray that my answer to both questions is a resounding YES! But I fear that my love for Him might wane if the blessings were to diminish. That seems to be what happened to people whose stories are told in the Old Testament. As long as God gave them what they wanted, they, like spoiled children, stayed near Him, acknowledged Him as their God, tried to please Him ... But if He didn’t do what they wanted Him to do or if He seemed too slow in meeting their expectations, they’d turn away and begin to worship other gods, whom they believed would meet their needs. They didn’t realize that those gods, formed by human hands and made out of earthly things, had no power to help them any more than a glove can act apart from a hand inside it.

I long to love Him and to praise Him for who He IS. I also want to thank Him for all He does, for all He provides. I hope that your heart, dear reader, wants to do the same — and in that order.

Freedom

The July 2025 issue of the monthly newsletter published by the Bible Broadcasting Network (BBN) contains an article written by Carl Redemann, who is the Executive Director of that multi-faceted ministry. 

He began the article with a reference to the long-ago night when General George Washington led a daring crossing of the Delaware River and launched a surprise attack that reignited the American Revolution. 

Redemann writes, “They were not fighting for territory, but for a dream–the dream of a land, where men and women could live freely, speak freely, and most importantly, worship freely.”

Although many of those brave men would not live to see the freedom they were dying for, they fought bravely in the monumental battle that changed history.

But, as Redemann points out, there is another battle with even greater impact. That battle was waged on a hill called Calvary where God’s Beloved Son was nailed to the cross. As the beaten and bleeding Son hung there, He was fighting for freedom for guilty sinners like you and me: freedom from the chains of sin, freedom from the curse of death, freedom from the power of hell itself. As that battle of all battles continued, the sky turned black. The earth shook. With one final breath, Jesus cried out in victory, “It is finished!“

That greatest of all battles for freedom had been won, not by the sword, but by the sacrifice of Jesus.

On Independence Day, may we give thanks for all the courageous men and women who have battled bravely for the cause of freedom. May we be even more grateful for the One who shed His life’s blood to provide freedom from the power of sin, freedom from the penalty of sin, and, ultimately, freedom from the very presence of sin.

Freely Given Gifts

Are you wondering how you’ll afford to buy gifts this Christmas? Are you weary of shopping for gifts for people who have all the stuff they need—and even more?

If so, I hope you’ll find an idea or two in this post that you can use to create memorable gifts for others either in lieu of or in addition to those items you'll place inside beautiful bags or pretty packages.

My daughter Jena said, “There are two wonderful ways to give a FREE gift this Christmas season! Although neither one will cost you a cent, both are life-saving and life-changing: (1)Share Jesus. Tell others about Him. (2)Donate blood, platelets, or plasma."

As I thought about what she’d said, I began to think of other FREE gifts, not as life-changing as those two, of course, but ones that do impact others.

As I pondered, I recalled that author Leslie Fields had reminded the recipients of her email to “give generous words generously.” After reading the examples she provided, I came up with my own words of sincere affirmation, gratitude, and praise. 

A Gift of Gratitude

For example, in a Christmas card I sent to a family member, I wrote, “I'll always be grateful for your being an ‘angel of mercy’ to so many in our family. May God continue to richly bless you and supply strength and wisdom for each kindness.”

A Gift of Encouragement

While talking with a friend who was struggling to handle the financial responsibilities normally done by her husband (who had recently passed away), I said, “I’ve always admired the God-given strength I’ve observed in you as you’ve dealt with previous difficulties. I have no doubt that He will continue to enable you to do the things you think you can’t do.”

A Gift of Praise

In a text message to a grandson, I said, “Thanks for always being willing to help.”

Let’s resolve to give gifts such as these (and countless others) regularly and liberally throughout the year, not just at Christmastime. After all, they’re guaranteed to please any day of the year.

Why?

I’ve often read the story* about the sudden storm that popped up one day when Jesus and His disciples were in a boat on the Sea of Galilee. Although such sudden storms are fairly common on that body of water, they cause great fear as waves, some ten feet tall, batter boats and threaten lives.

Sea of Galilee.
Photo by Arvid Olson from Pixabay

Apparently, the water was calm when Jesus and His disciples set out across the lake. So, Jesus, who surely must have been tired from having dealt with the throngs of people who surrounded Him wherever He went, decided to sleep while the disciples navigated to their destination. However, when the storm raged, they cried out, “Master! Master! We’re going to drown.”

Jesus stood up. He commanded the waves and the wind to quiet down. They did. Much to the relief of the disciples (and those in nearby boats), the lake became as smooth as glass. 

Some translations use these words to state Jesus’ question: “Where is your faith?” But The Message paraphrases the question this way: “Why can’t you trust me?” (See Luke 8:25)

I couldn’t get past those words. They compelled me to stop and ponder the question that demanded an answer from me.

Like the disciples, I know I can trust Jesus. He has done great and mighty things for me--and for others. Yet, each time a new crisis appears, I forget how He has helped me in the past. I fail to realize that He is still with me, still able to do far more than I can imagine, still willing to come to my aid. Thus, I struggle to answer the probing question Jesus asked, “Why can’t you trust me?” (See Luke 8:25)

Am I unable to trust Him or am I choosing not to?

After all, as the song Evidence points out, there is much proof that He is worthy of my trust and has, in fact, proven that again and again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lDvD-O9xhg

* Matthew 8:23-27, Mark 4:35-41, Luke 8:22-25

The Gift

Throughout the year, I listen carefully while talking with family and friends. When they say, “I’d love to have…”, I take note of that. Doing so, along with listing those ideas in places I’m sure to see them, helps me choose gifts loved ones will enjoy receiving on a special occasion.

As I reflect on gift-giving, several Scripture passages come to mind. One of my favorites is found in the third chapter of the New Testament book of Acts. As the story opens, Peter and John are on their way to worship at the temple. When they hear a lame man begging for money, they stop. Peter says to him, “I don’t have what you’re asking for, but I do have what you need.”

Then, in the name of Jesus and with His power, Peter commands the man to rise up and walk. Although the man had been lame since birth, he stands up and begins leaping and praising God for the gift given to him, a gift far greater than the money he had been asking for.

Likewise, our Heavenly Father knows what we truly need and will supply it in His time and in His way. For example, because God knew the people of all time needed a Savior, He sent His Son at the time God had planned. (See Galatians 4.) And, oh, the gifts He brought. Not only forgiveness of sins and the right to become children of God and to enjoy Him now and throughout all eternity but also love, peace, joy, and so much more.  

We may think we want whatever is inside beautifully packaged gifts, but we need a Savior far more. And God has given us one.

Let’s praise Him for that awesome Gift—and for His other wonderful gifts too numerous to count.

Sing On!

When I colored the 4" x 6" card that's pictured here, the words Oh, sing to the Lord reminded me of my sweet Mama. From childhood on, I remember that many times throughout the day Mama either sang softly or hummed her favorite Gospel songs as she did household chores, crocheted, or quilted. 

Even as Alzheimer's eroded her memory, she still hummed many of her favorite hymns. Their words encouraged her. They enabled her to worship and praise God. They reminded her of eternal truths, of God's precious promises, of the assurance of His love, of His presence with her...

Mama did what Priscilla J. Owens (born in 1829) says to do:

Sing it softly through the gloom,

When the heart for mercy craves;

Sing in triumph o'er the tomb;

Jesus saves! Jesus saves!

I want to do likewise. Do you?

Jesus, the Ever-Living One

 Jesus, the Ever-Living One

Before He made the heavens and the earth,

Before angelic hosts announced His birth,

Before His public ministry began,

Jesus was central to the Father's plan.

He came. He loved and served. And then He died.

His shed blood did our forgiveness provide.

Victorious, He arose to life anew,

To give life to sinners like me and you.

Because our Savior lives eternally, 

So shall we if in Him we do believe.

Thus God's Gift will continue on and on

Throughout the ages 'round the heav'nly throne.

All the redeemed will lift up holy hands,

And sing right along with the heav'nly band.

Saints will gladly praise Him for all He's done,

And thank God for the gift of His dear Son.

Jesus Christ, the Ever-Living One.

(c) April 2023 by Johnnie Ann Burgess Gaskill

God Is Still in Charge!

 My heart was heavy as 2022 came to an end. I was thinking about so many dear ones who have problems that are heartbreaking and have no obvious solution. But as my husband and I traveled toward a friend's house on New Year’s Eve, we noticed the sky was a vivid orange near the horizon, making it appear as if a fire raged behind the trees.

My eyes filled with happy tears at the awesome sight before us. I said to my husband, "This reminds me that God is still very much in charge of this world." 

And, indeed, He is. He's in charge of the natural world. He's in charge of every living thing, including the human race. He's in charge of the things that happen and those that don't.

As I reflected on those awesome truths, I recalled these words written by the psalmist David:

But the LORD is in his holy Temple;
the LORD still rules from heaven...

~Psalm 11:4, NLT

Other Scriptures point out that God is in charge, even when we think He isn't. Even when we think He has forgotten about us. Even when we think He is never going to do anything. Granted, He may not resolve the situation in the way we want Him to, but whatever He does will be the right thing.

As we wait for God to act, we can remind ourselves, as did Moses as he was speaking to God's people centuries ago:

Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments.

~Deuteronomy 7:9. NKJV

As we enter a New Year, let's remind ourselves daily to trust God in every situation. As the centuries-old hymn says:

Simply trusting ev'ry day,
Trusting thro' a stormy way;
Even when my faith is small, 
Trusting Jesus, that is all.

...

Singing if my way is clear,

Praying if the path be drear;

If in danger, for him call;

Trusting Jesus, that is all.

...

~Ira D. Sankey, 1876

Listen to (and sing along with) that beautiful song here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVU-bgxjuW8

If we'll trust Him, we can have a happy new year, despite our circumstances. 

‘Tis the Season

The theme for a meeting I attended recently was ‘Tis the Season.

Those words come from  Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly, a Christmas carol written in 1881. However, the phrase ‘Tis the Season didn’t begin appearing in magazines and newspapers until the 1970s.  Now, that phrase is used throughout the year, as in ‘Tis the season for spring cleaning. Or ‘Tis the season for flu and strep throat.”     

Thankfully, ‘Tis the Season is most often used to draw attention to the Christmas season. By filling in the blank following ‘Tis the season______, we can mention whichever aspects we enjoy. For example, ‘Tis the season for giving. ‘Tis the season for decorating. ‘Tis the season for enjoying Christmas lights and music.

But amid all the things we enjoy about the Christmas Season (or the Holiday Season, as many prefer to call it), have we lost sight of the real reason for the Christmas season? Have we gotten so busy with all the shopping and the decorating and the baking and the partying and the singing and such that we have forgotten that Christmas is the time set aside to celebrate the birth of Jesus? Are we so busy that we forget to think of Him, much less talk with others about Him?

A friend of mine has not forgotten Jesus. When she and I talked recently, she told me how thrilled she is to have purchased a manger scene to display inside her home. Why? She knows that when her four-year-old granddaughter visits, the child will ask about the odd-looking components. Then, my friend will tell her granddaughter as much as her young mind can absorb. 

My friend seeks ways to tell her granddaughter (and others) about Jesus. She wants to make sure the child knows about the gift of God’s Son. Therefore, she talks about Jesus in hope that one future day her beloved granddaughter will choose to receive Jesus and invite Him to be her Lord, as well as Savior.

May this current season be the season you and I also love the Lord Jesus and look for opportunities to tell others about Him. Moreover, may we realize that every season is the perfect season to do that. No matter what month it is, may we understand that the present time—whatever the season—is a wonderful time to say, “‘Tis the season to experience awe and joy, to give generously, to praise God for all that He is, and to thank Him for all His amazing gifts, especially the gift of His Son.”

What If…?

 

Jesus said unto him [a Pharisee], Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself (Matthew 22:37-38, KJV).

 

Greatly Loved

Ever since I first heard Fernando Ortega sing How Deep the Father's Love, the words and the worshipful way he sings them have touched my heart. I listen to it often via YouTube. In fact, I recently learned how to set it on autoplay/loop so that I can hear it again and again as I go about my daily duties. 

As I listen, I sing along, for the words express more beautifully than I ever could the thoughts and feelings in my heart. For that reason, I have added that song to the list of the ones I want to be sung during my funeral service. The messages in all the songs I have chosen are, in effect, my "final words" to family and friends who attend. 

I hope the words in How Deep the Father's Love resonate with you, as well. I'm sharing the link to it now because I want you to be blessed by it and because I consider it especially timely as Christians around the world are reflecting on Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday. We're remembering--and giving thanks for--the indescribable gift of salvation Jesus gave us. Because He shed His blood on Calvary's cross on our behalf, we are forgiven of all our sins. Because He lives, we who believe in Him will also live with Him eternally. Because He deeply loves us, we deeply love Him in return--and yearn all the more for our lives to be characterized by love, just as His was.

Click here to listen: https://youtu.be/jKdbN3GiL4E

An Invitation

Dear Reader,

Because I’m being so blessed by a series of messages I’m listening to, I want to share the source with you. I pray that you, too, will be enlightened and inspired by the truths Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth shares about the names of Jesus, names we’ve heard so often but may have limited understanding of their meanings and their importance to us. 

Click here: https://www.reviveourhearts.com/

• When the page opens, click on the three short, horizontal lines in the upper right area of your screen.
• When a pop up menu appears, click Audio.
• Click Revive our Hearts.
• Scroll down.
• Click the graphic that contains the title of the series, that looks like this: 
  
  
  
• Click the individual message you’d like to listen to. They are listed in order, from first to last. 

Enjoy!

God's Great Love

 

Please click here to listen to a beautiful song sung by Fernando Ortega.

Simplify!

Each year, I choose one word to focus on. My word for 2021 was action. Previous words have been love, finish, and focus. 

This year, I’m feeling drawn to the word simplify. Apparently, I’m not the only one. Each day I receive multiple emails on that topic. The bottom line of most of the messages is “Less is more,” an idea I first encountered in Greg McKeown’s excellent book, Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less.

Although I tend to love my stuff and like having an abundance of the things I enjoy, I’m beginning to realize that when I have less stuff to deal with, I have more time to rest, more time to do the things that are truly a priority, and more calmness in my mind, as well as my environment. 

When I say “stuff,” I’m not just talking about things like books, clothes, digital devices, etc. Stuff also includes activities, commitments, hobbies, and so forth. If I wish to simplify my life--and I do--I need to let go of whatever is no longer adding to the quality of my life. 

I’ll keep the essentials (and a moderate number of non-essentials that bring me joy, like notes from dear friends, a meaningful magnet on the fridge, etc.) Although I'll want to keep boxes of perfectly good Christmas ornaments and decorations that I haven’t used in many years, as well as articles and newsletters I’ve saved for years, intending to read them “when I have time,” I'll need to let them go.

Do you want to simplify your life? If so, what will you let go?

Obedience--Despite...

Around 6 a.m. I looked out the floor-to-ceiling windows of the condo my husband and I had rented in Gulf Shores, Alabama. I expected to see the sun slowly appear, as it had on previous mornings, looking like a gigantic orange ball emerging from the watery depths of the Gulf of Mexico.  

A "normal" sunrise!

Instead, all I saw was a long, narrow band of orange on the horizon line that separated the water from the overcast sky. I couldn’t see the sun as it rose higher and higher that morning. Neither could I marvel as its light created pastel colors in the sky. Neither did I have to shield my eyes as the sun flooded the room with brilliant light, as I was accustomed to doing. 

Yet, the sun was there, following its God-ordained path, doing exactly what God created it to do, and adhering to the schedule God had set for it.

Likewise, when God sent His Son to earth at the appointed time, Jesus did exactly what the Father sent Him to do, no matter what people of His day assumed He would. With various words and at various times, He expressed this truth to God the Father: “I have come to do Thy will–Thy will, not My will.” (See Hebrews 10:5-10, Luke 22:42, Matthew 6:10, Matthew 26:39-42, etc.)

Oh, dear reader, may you and I faithfully do what God created us to do despite the “daily-ness” of our work, despite the circumstances that reduce our effectiveness, despite the fact that others often fail to see the good work we’re doing, despite their lack of positive response to it, despite….

Not Alone (poem)

Note: The poem I mentioned in my previous post inspired me to try my hand at writing a poem that describes experiences I've had on beautiful beaches, especially those on the Gulf of Mexico. Please feel free to comment.

Not Alone

 My feet made prints in the wet sand
As I strolled near the ocean's foam.
I marveled at all God had made 
On that island far from my home.

The shorebirds fascinated me,
As did pelicans plunging down
To fill their large, empty pouches
With fish swimming in their playground.

As the breeze restyled my grey hair,
And the sun's rays reddened my face,
I continued on, praising God
For His handiwork in that place.

Sea oats swayed in the gentle breeze, 
And puffy white clouds drifted by.
Seagulls swooped and strutted and shrieked,
While some swimmers toweled themselves dry.

Concerns and fears I’d brought with me
Vanished quicker than morning dew,
As I pondered this awesome truth:
God made me and sustains me, too!

I saw no footprints beside mine,
Yet, I sensed I was not alone.
Awed by His presence near to me,
I praised Him as we journeyed on.
 --Johnnie Ann Burgess Gaskill, (c) 2021
 
[Jesus said to His disciples:]
"I am with you always,
even to the end of the age."
--Matthew 28:20, NLT
 

Photo courtesy of Upsplash