Running Towards The Goal

19, 2-9 SHOWNOTES & COPYRIGHTS (Revised from 18, 2-18), (typo corrections 8/21/21)

All of today’s poems were inspired by the writings of the Apostle Paul.

Paul was a Jewish Pharisee who, as such, persecuted Christians. From the Book of Acts Chapere 9:

9 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” 5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” 7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything. 10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!” “Yes, Lord,” he answered. 11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.” 13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.” 15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” 17 Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength. (NIV)

ONE THOUGHT BECAME ANOTHER (Living In God’s Rhyme, Pg. 75)

He who spoke creation into existence

By his word was one with God.

Watching God’s creation from Heaven

As man strayed he answered God’s call.

Born into his creation he became man.

As one of us he did live

That he might show the way.

To those he loves, his live he did give.

From the beginning he was a blessing

To all of creation, especially man.

Before the beginning, beyond the end

In Jesus we have found more than a friend.

We have found a Savior

Who overcomes our behavior.

This man Jesus as God,

By his life he has saved us.

So we give thanks and praise

For the life God did raise

For the lives Jesus did save

Through the life he gave.

We now have the hope beyond our lives

That it is by God’s saving grace we do strive

To honor and praise the Almighty God

And the Savior Son he does love.

Knowing what lies ahead,

Turning from sin to God instead,

Just as Paul did running toward the goal,

So must I with all my heart, all my soul.

An After Thought (from before)

Amazing Grace, I have been found,

When you spoke, I heard the sound.

Now blessings are all around

And your love knows no bounds.

Through grace

You spoke

The blessings

Of your love

Reflection on One Thought Became Another

As I have written before, when I pray for not just direction, but the words, poems do not go where I thought they would. I had the last two lines of this poem come to me at work. On the drive home I thought about writing stanzas of praise and thanks to God. I was going to call it Random Thanks and Praise. I just thought I hadn’t written enough praise and thanks into my poems lately. The title of today’s poem should tell you what happened.

All of Paul’s writings apply to the world we live in today. He wrote about anti-christs, and false teachers and prophets. He wrote about God’s saving grace that has saved those who believe and confess that Jesus Christ is His Son who lived among us on this earth, living a life free from sin. And I have no doubt that the temptations he faced were on a much grander scale than those I will face. He was offered by His Father as the final sacrifice required for the forgiveness of sins, once for all. He died a unbelieveably horrific death on a cross, a death I deserved, and was buried. After three days he rose from the dead, thus defeating death. He then ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

My friends, believe that, profess that, repent from your sins and accept the grace God has offered us. Paul spent the rest of his life after the encounter on the road to Damascus travelling parts of Asia and Europe, with occassional trips to Jeresulem. His sole purpose was to share the gospel of our Lord with the Gentiles. Anyone who believes, will receive the blessings of salvation. If Jesus can call a sinner like Saul, who sought our believing early Christians, then he can use any of us.

When I started putting the show notes together for today’s podcast I first found the poems I wanted, realizing that they were all influnced by the Apostle Paul. A week or so later when I started to fill in the blanks between the poems, the discussion, The Bible verse and my written comments just kept flowing. His Blessings, they are my rhyme.

OK, on to the next poem.

RUNNING TOWARD THE GOAL (God’s Rhyme, pg. 29)

“All I want is to know Christ

and to experience the power of His resurrection,

to share in his suffering

and become like him in his death

in the hope that I myself

will be raised from death to life.” Phil. 3:10 GN

The race I could never win,

no, not on my own.

I stumble & fall, I sin.

& many times the race seems too long.

But for me, the race has been won.

Following God’s heavenly course,

Jesus, my Savior, His holy Son,

has received all the glory.

Knowing where my life ends

I continue to strive & run

the course Jesus set before me,

hoping that with Him I will become one.

“May you always be joyful

in your union with the Lord.” Phil. 4:4, GN

I must look ahead, never behind,

keep running by the power of His love

straight toward the goal & prize –

God’s call thru Jesus to life above.

As Jesus has done before me to see,

I must follow the course

He so perfectly set before me,

avoiding the obstacles of this human world.

& when I do finally & joyfully arrive,

He will take this weak & mortal body

& like His it shall become alive

in glory by the power of Him who has created all.

“May you always be joyful

in your union with the Lord.

I say it again, rejoice!”

My thought: With Jesus at our side, we will reach the goal, eternity in Heaven in a room He is preparing for us.

WEAKNESS (God’s Rhyme, pg. 132)

"But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for

you, my power is made perfect in weakness,"

2 Corinthians, 12:9, NIV

Paul, the evangelist, an imperfect man,

blinded with insight by the perfect Son,

who lost his strength and became weak,

thus glorifying the Holy Three in One.

I have tried to live with the lie,

to never give in before I die.

I have seen the meek always so weak

and wondered why they would not cry.

No, always a smile

traveling every mile

with heads held high

and never shy

while I put too much stock

in thinking I was a rock

until others saw the bad

and what I never had.

Then one day the sky was bluer,

each and everything looked newer.

It was as if my very eyes

had been shut to the world's lies.

I was never strong,

not even for very long.

There was too much wrong,

it was such a sad song.

Like a newborn baby

I cried for each new breath,

never wanting to rest,

realizing that maybe . . .

No, knowing that I am not perfect,

looking, the mirror did reflect.

There is no strength in my sin,

the race alone I could never win.

I am a sinner,

my life a loss,

but it has been reclaimed for me

by the grace of God, a death on the cross.

Through death and resurrection

I am a new creation.

Accepting His forgiveness,

to the world I can witness.

Made in God's image, molded in clay . . .

yes, in God's image

throughout every age,

it is to Him that we pray.

He knew us before we were,

He knows us today,

He knows us tomorrow,

and still He loves us.

To follow His Son

we must lose the ways,

the ways of this world,

the lies of the days.

And when we accomplish that,

the world will consider us weak.

But know that God is with us,

so who can be against us?

It is then that the slings and arrows,

the sticks and stones, the broken bones,

the sorrows that no one will borrow,

in this race we know His grace.

When we let in Christ's power,

we will no longer cower,

because He is God's Son

and that is sufficient.

"Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about

my weakness, so that Christ's power may rest in

me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in

weakness, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions,

in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am

strong." 1 Corinthians 12:9-10, NIV

May we live so that

by the strength of our salvation,

by the strength of our witness,

through the strength of our weakness

that God, that Jesus

may be glorified.

Reflection on Weakness:

This is something I need to remember, at all times and in all places. But do I? I'm trying.

(Written in 2014)

I love this thought. Once I have Jesus, it is strength that strengthens me. I give up my earthly desires and my failures and give my life to Him. I live in Hs strength when I do this.

I do need to do this more. My prayer is that I let Jesus be Jesus and the Holy Spirt the voice of God that leads me away from sin and into His love, power and grace.

I wrote the next short poem, I promise it is short, after I had found the other 3 poems and saw the relationship they have.

THE GOAL

Our soul and the goal,

Eternally intertwined,

We will forever find

Just how God’s role

In the live we live

Allows us to give

His love to others,

Sisters and brothers.

Before I put the pencil down, these words were written:

As we run our race

In the life we face

We will find our pace

And know our place

Through God’s grace

7/29/21, tcarter

Close with a prayer.

Dear Father, We thank Your for the time you have given Dave and me to present this podcast. And Lord I want to give you praise for the work you have done in leading us into and through today’s podcast. You knew our individual strengths and have blessed us by joining our strengths into on goal - praising You and the work You have and continue to do in our lives. Lord, we pray for those listening to the podcast that they have found something of worth in it. We pray that you have touched lives beyond

what we have dscussed here. We pray for our listeners that they have a blessed week and that You touch and heal those who are sick and going through struggles in their lives. We give You all the priase and glory for the good than may have come out of our encounter today. We pray in Jesus’ name.

If you give

Him the times

As you live

His word rhymes

We are the kings kids and you will never get rid of us because we are His Jesus

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