During those times, cleave to the greater plan and purpose ... for there IS a great plan for each and every one of us!
Read on ...
Look at the sky
Tell me what do you see
Just close your eyes
And describe it to me
The heavens are sparkling
With starlight tonight
That's what I see
Through your eyes
I see the heavens
Each time that you smile
I hear your heartbeat
Just go on for miles
And suddenly I know
My life is worth while
That's what i see
Through your eyes
Chorus:
Here in the night
I see the sun
Here in the dark
Our two hearts are one
It's out of our hands
We can't stop what we have begun
And love just took me by surprise
Looking through your eyes
I look at myself
And instead I see us
Whoever I am now,
It feels like enough
And I see a girl
Who is learning to trust
That's who I see
Through your eyes.
Chorus:
Here in the night
I see the sun
Here in the dark
Our two hearts are one
It's out of our hands
We can't stop what we have begun
And love just took me by surprise
Looking through your eyes.
There are somethings we don't know
Sometimes are hearts just need to grow
And there is somehow I'll remember
Underneath the open sky with you forever
Repeat Chorus
“Oh, God,” I cried, “Let me sleep. Let me sleep forever and never wake up!”
With a deep sob, I tried to will myself into oblivion, then welcomed the blackness that came over me.
Light surrounded me as I regained consciousness. I focused on its source: the figure of a man standing before a cross.
“My child,” the person asked, “why do you want to come to Me before I am ready to call you?”
“But haven’t I told you to cast all of your burdens on Me, because I care for you? My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
“I knew You would say that. But why does mine have to be so heavy?”
“My child, everyone in the world has a burden. Perhaps you would like to try a different one.”
“I can do that?”
He pointed to several burdens lying at His feet. “You may try any of these.”
All of them seemed to be of equal size, and each was labeled with a name.
“There’s Joan’s,” I said. Joan was married to a wealthy businessman. She lived in a sprawling estate and dressed her three daughters in the prettiest designer clothes. Sometimes she drove me to church in her Cadillac when my car was broken.
“Let me try that one.” How difficult could her burden be? I thought.
The Lord removed my burden and placed Joan’s on my shoulders. I sank to my knees beneath its weight.
“Oh, take it off quickly! What makes it so heavy?”
“Look inside.”
I untied the straps and opened the top. Inside was the figure of her mother-in-law, and when I lifted it out, it began to speak.
“Joan, you’ll never be good enough for my son. He never should have married you. You’re a terrible mother to my grandchildren …”
I quickly placed the figure back in the pack and withdrew another. It was Donna, Joan’s youngest daughter. Her head was bandaged from the surgery that had failed to cure her epilepsy.
A third figure was Joan’s brother. Addicted to drugs, he had been convicted of killing a police officer.
“I see why her burden is so heavy, Lord. But she’s always smiling and helping others. I didn’t realize ...”
I tested several. Paula’s felt heavy. She was raising four small boys without a father. Debra’s did too: a childhood of sexual abuse and a marriage of emotional abuse. When I came to Ruth’s burden, I didn’t even try. I knew that inside were arthritis, old age, a demanding full-time job, and a beloved husband in a nursing home.
“They’re all too heavy, Lord. Give me back my own.”
As I lifted the familiar load once again, it seemed much lighter than the others.
“Let’s look inside,” He said.
I turned away, holding it close. “That’s not a very good idea.”
“Why?”
“There’s a lot of junk in there.”
“Let Me see.”
The gentle thunder of His voice compelled me. I opened my burden.
He pulled out a brick.
“Tell Me about this one.”
“Lord, You know. It’s money. I know we don’t suffer like people in some countries or even the homeless here in America. But we have no insurance, and when the kids get sick we can’t always take them to the doctor. They’ve never been to a dentist. And I’m tired of dressing them in hand-me-downs.”
Then He lifted out the figure of a small boy. "And this?" He asked.
I hung my head, ashamed to call my son a burden. "But, Lord, he's
hyperactive. He's not quiet like the other two. He makes me so tired. He's always getting hurt, and someone is bound to think I abuse him. I yell at him all the time. Someday I may really hurt him ... "
"My child," He said, "if you trust Me, I will renew your strength. If you allow Me to fill you with My Spirit, I will give you patience." He then took some pebbles from my burden.
"Yes, Lord," I said with a sigh. "Those are small, but they're important. I hate my hair. It's thin, and I can't make it look nice. I can't afford to go to the beauty shop. I'm overweight and can't stay on a diet. I hate all my clothes. I hate the way I look!"
"My child, people look at your outward appearance, but I look at your heart. By My Spirit you can gain self-control to lose weight. But your beauty should not come from outward appearances. Instead, it should come from your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in My sight."
My burden now seemed lighter than before. "I guess I can handle it now," I said.
"There is more," He said. "Hand Me that last brick."
Oh, You don't have to take that. I can handle it."
"My child, give it to Me." Once again His voice compelled me. He reached out His hand, and for the first time I saw the ugly wound.
"But, Lord, this brick is so awful, so nasty, so ... Lord! What happened to Your hands? They're so scarred!"
Then He lifted out the figure of a small boy. “And this?”
“Andrew …” I hung my head, ashamed to call my son a burden. “But, Lord, he’s hyperactive. He’s not quiet like the other two. He makes me so tired. He’s always getting hurt and someone is bound to think I abuse him. I yell at him all the time. Someday, I may really hurt him …”
“My child, if you will trust Me, I will renew your strength. If you allow Me to fill you with My Spirit, I’ll give you patience.”
Then He took some pebbles from my burden.
“Yes, Lord, those are small. But they’re important. I hate my hair. It’s thin, and I can’t make it look nice. I can’t afford to go to the beauty shop. I’m overweight and can’t stay on a diet. I hate all my clothes. I hate the way I look!”
“My child, people look at your outward appearance, but I look at your heart. By My Spirit, you can gain self-control to lose weight. But your beauty should not come from outward appearance. Instead, it should come from your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in My sight.”
My burden seemed lighter than before.
“I guess I can handle it now,” I said.
“There is more,” He said. “Hand Me that last brick.”
“Oh, You don’t have to take that. I can handle it.”
“My child, give it to Me.” Again His voice compelled me. He reached out His hand, and for the first time I saw an ugly wound.
“But, Lord, this brick is so awful, so nasty, so … Lord! What happened to Your hands? They’re scarred!”
No longer focused on my burden, I looked up for the first time into His face. On His brow were ragged scars – as though someone had pressed thorns into His flesh.
“Lord,” I whispered, “what happened to You?”
His loving eyes reached into my soul.
“My child, you know. Hand Me the brick. It belongs to Me. I bought it.”
“How?”
“With My blood.”
“But, why, Lord?”
“Because I have loved you with an everlasting love. Give me the brick.”
I placed my filthy brick into His wounded palm. It contained all the dirt and evil of my life: my sins, my pride, my selfishness, the depression that constantly tormented me.
He turned to the cross and hurled my brick into the pool of blood at its base. It hardly made a ripple.
“Now, My child, you must go back. I will be with you always. When you are troubled, call to Me and I will help you and show you things you cannot even imagine now.”
“Yes, Lord. I will call on You.”
I reached down to pick up my burden.
“You may leave that here if you wish. You see all these burdens? They are the ones that others have left here at My feet. Joan’s, Paula’s, Debra’s, and Ruth’s, and many others. When you leave your burden here, I carry it with you. Remember, My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
As I placed my burden with Him, the light began to fade. Yet I heard Him whisper, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
A peace that passed my understanding flooded my soul. I stood tall and walked back into life.
“Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30.
Copyright 1993 Louise M. Gouge
All rights reserved. Used by permission
Thank you, Louise, for giving me permission to share your beautiful story.
If you would like to email Louise M. Gouge about her lovely writing, you may contact her at Gougers@aol.com
One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole.
Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further.
So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon.
The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.
Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. If God allowed us to go through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us.
I asked for Strength.........
And God gave me Difficulties to make me strong.
I asked for Wisdom.........
And God gave me Problems to solve.
I asked for Prosperity.........
And God gave me Brain and Brawn to work.
I asked for Courage.........
And God gave me Danger to overcome.
I asked for Love.........
And God gave me Troubled people to help.
I asked for Favors.........
And God gave me Opportunities.
I received everything I needed!
May God Bless you with unspeakable joy, not only in the world to come, but in this world also.
May your path be bright and full of light everywhere you go.
May God tell darkness that it must flee at your command.
And, I pray your feet will never stumble out of God's plan.
May the desires of your heart come true, And may you experience Peace in everything you do.
May Goodness, Kindness, and Mercy come your way. And, may you gain Wisdom and grow.
~ Author unknown
A flower of God's design;
But I cannot unfold the petals
With these clumsy hands of mine.
The secret of unfolding flowers
Is not known to such as I.
GOD opens this flower so sweetly,
When in my hands they fade and die.
If I cannot unfold a rosebud,
This flower of God's design,
Then how can I think I have wisdom
To unfold this life of mine?
So I'll trust in Him for His leading
Each moment of every day.
I will look to him for His guidance
Each step of the pilgrim way.
The pathway that lies before me,
Only my Heavenly Father knows.
I'll trust Him to unfold the moments,
Just as He unfolds the rose.
~ Author unknown
