Fw: stillness

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Rob Smith <toanosmith@yahoo.com>
To: Rob Smith <rsmith@mycwa.com>
Sent: Monday, September 26, 2016 7:29 AM
Subject: stillness

There is a time of stillness

before the day begins,

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When sleepy skies rub their eyes

and birds begin to sing.

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Awake and walk in early times...

before the cares of life arrive.

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Your heart and mind can now receive

Heaven's thoughts...

they carry life!

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Before the tumult of the world

intrudes upon your inner place

find the stillness of the morning

and renew within His grace.

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Isaiah 14:7 The whole earth is at rest and quiet; they break forth into singing.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

Fw: seeds in the wind

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Rob Smith <toanosmith@yahoo.com>
To: Rob Smith <rsmith@mycwa.com>
Sent: Tuesday, September 13, 2016 11:01 AM
Subject: seeds in the wind

I was jogging yesterday out by a local reservoir.  As I headed into a wooded area I spotted some seeds being carried by the wind and drifting across the road above me (like the picture).  I thought about the new life represented by the seeds and how, at the end of the summer, preparations are already being made for spring...despite the winter that must come between.  How beautiful that God designed a way for the wind to carry this new life and establish it before the cold of winter.  He knows that spring lies just ahead...just past one very cold season.  I am reminded that the Holy Spirit is the divine wind that carries the seed of new life to people even as they are about to enter "winter" experiences in their lives.  Spring, for them, also lies just ahead...through one cold season.

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Psalm 104:30 When you send forth your Spirit, they are created,
    and you renew the face of the ground.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

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Fw: known only to God

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Rob Smith <toanosmith@yahoo.com>
To: Rob Smith <rsmith@mycwa.com>
Sent: Monday, September 12, 2016 10:44 AM
Subject: known only to God

There is a county park not far from our home called Freedom Park.  It is 600 acres of bike and hiking trails, nature trails, a zip line for fun and a botanical garden.  I've just recently explored it and found it a great place for jogging.  As they were developing the park in recent years they discovered a cemetery with 150-200 unmarked graves.  These were slaves and descendants of slaves who lived and died in the area from the late 1600's to the early 1800's.  None of the graves was marked with any kind of permanent stone and that's not surprising because a headstone would have been a luxury slaves couldn't afford.  After the remains were found and dated they were returned to their resting place.  The park built a simple memorial out of brick and engraved a brief description of the people found there with the closing phrase: "Known only to God".  It occurred to me that these were people who had lived hard lives and owned virtually nothing and whom history would not note for any major event.  But, like all people they were created in the image of God.  They are eternal beings.  Time may have passed by and the cemetery become overgrown by grass and trees.  Successive generations may have lost track of the location of these people.....but God has not forgotten who they are and where they are.  I'm confident that at least some of these humble people had placed faith in the Lord Jesus and are now with Him in Heaven.  And one day their resurrection bodies will be raised, along with millions of others from marked and unmarked graves around the world.  They might have been forgotten by men but never forgotten by their Creator.  After all, they may be "known only to God" but being known by God is the only knowledge that truly counts for eternal life.

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John 10:^14 "I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, ¹⁵ just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep." [Jesus talking]

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blessings,

Rob Smith

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Fw: seeing the invisible

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Rob Smith <toanosmith@yahoo.com>
To: Rob Smith <rsmith@mycwa.com>
Sent: Saturday, September 10, 2016 9:09 AM
Subject: seeing the invisible

My wife, Shirley, has had severe back pain over the past few weeks.  Following medical direction she has had an x-ray and an MRI to reveal the condition of her back.  The MRI clearly (to the neurosurgeon's eye) revealed the location and extent of the problem and led to his recommendations.  Thinking about these diagnostic tools it made me realize that sometimes we need help to see things that are normally invisible.  Recently Shirley and I were listening to a pastor teaching about Jesus as the visible expression of the invisible Father.  In the upper room, right before the events leading to Jesus' crucifixion, Philip asked Jesus, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us."  Jesus replied, "Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip?  Whoever has seen me has seen the Father."  God knew that we needed a clear picture of who He was and what He was like and so He sent Jesus to provide a visible picture of the invisible God.  And we have a need for help with other invisible things.  Interestingly, He also sends his invisible Spirit to dwell within believers to reveal truth through God's word and search within our hearts to help us see issues that need to be addressed (like a spiritual MRI).  In John, chapter 14 Jesus says of the Holy Spirit, "he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you." 

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It's good to be reminded that even the invisible things can be made visible when it is necessary for us to understand and benefit from them!  And it is interesting that God wants us to be part of His plan to reveal His secrets to the world.

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As Paul said to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 2:7 "But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory."

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blessings,

Rob Smith