INTO HIS IMAGE

INTO HIS IMAGE (Col. 3:10)

I see myself with Jesus;
We’re walking Hand in hand,
Along the paths and trails of life;
Across the green field land.
He is the Shepherd of my heart
Who leads me every day;
To pastures green and waters still;
Because, He Is The Way.
He knows when to hold me close,
Or let me run so free;
For this one thing I know for sure:
He’s never forsaken me.
Oh yes, there’s times I feel alone;
Times I feel afraid;
Yet, this one thing I know for sure;
He’s never forsaken me.
The enemy, he has pounded -
Against my mind and soul,
But Jesus ever held me close;
In Him, I am made whole.
At times I falter, at times I fail,
And the enemy seeks his gain;
Yet he has never conquered,
No matter how intense my pain.
For Jesus Is My Refuge;
My Anchor in the storm;
He Is My Precious Savior;
When I am weak and worn;
Who walks beside me in the fire
As He forms this piece of clay;
Into His Image made with His Hands;
He’s with me all the way.
~So, no matter the storms of life
And trials which ensue;
For it’s the narrow gate
And straitened path
Which make me look like You.
~To yield to You, and You, Alone,
Is the least that I can do.
~Crista Simmons 4/4/07

Dearly Beloved....as the Lord gave me this poem, it occurred to me that the word "trial" and "trail" are so similar in spelling, yet so very different in meaning. Reverse the ai-ia combination and voila!...a different word. But it is on the trails of life that we experience the trials, also. The "straitened" path means compressed by pressure...."The Winepress of Heaven"....to squeeze the flesh out of us...so that He may fill us with His new wine. Wine is only produced through pressure. Through the pressures on the trails of our lives, may we be filled with His new wine....the image of Christ....for His Glory. We must decrease....He must increase....Be blessed today.

A Rose in Winter

"A Rose in Winter"

Crista Simmons 9/24/15

"Come with Me as we make our way through the waist deep, soft, fluffy snow."

The air is crisp; our breath hanging like lace curtains against a backdrop of sunlit blue sky.

"Come with Me, for I have a surprise for you; something you would never think you would ever see during a season such as this."

"Come over here, My love.  I know the fierce winter winds which have howled against your soul like a pack of hyenas closing in for their kill.

I know it is difficult to find food in the frozen earth below,

yet your body was not ready for such a hearty fill.

So I opened My hand to allow you to eat the tiny grains of mustard seed ;

cupped and protected for you only.

You have felt helpless and alone, with no where to go.

But I tell you the truth, I have never left your side; even when you thought I wasn't there.

Look before you, My love.

Do you see this gorgeous pink rose?

Roses don't normally grow in winter, do they.

See how tender it's petals are.

Look at its diamonds sparkling in the sun."

"This is IMPOSSIBLE!," you exclaim.

"I want you to look very closely, My love; for this is how I see you. 

The tender, soft petals represent your heart.

The diamonds are the tears which I've seen you cry when you thought no one was watching.

You are a beautiful, radiant rose who has endured this winter of your life.

For you are far more beautiful to Me than you think you are.

Yet it is My loving and never-ending thoughts of you

 which consume Me with every beat of My heart.

I AM your Faithful and True Lover of your heart and soul.

I hold your heart as tenderly in My hands as you would a fallen bird.

You look upon the beauty of this rose in disbelief.

You are astounded, and with tears softly trailing down your cheeks,

you can only wonder how this can be.

It is because nothing is impossible with Me.

I AM THE ONE who makes you whole.

I AM THE ONE who gives you beauty for your ashes.

I AM THE ONE who tenderly wraps you in My garment of praise for your spirit of heaviness.

I AM THE ONE who has delivered you.

I AM THE ONE who loves you with an everlasting love, and nothing, absolutely nothing, separates you from My love; both for now and forever.

You My Precious child are My Rose in Winter."
Your Forever Love,
Jesus