By Robin Wiley
I have one more poem of my Dad’s to share with you before I put them away for a while. I have a couple of others I will share on particular days – like one he wrote for fathers called “Dad’s Day” and another sweet one about friends. I hope you have enjoyed these writings of my Dad. Reading them has brought back so many fond memories of growing up, both here in Weslaco and in Minnesota where I was born. My most favorite time of the year is spring and fall. I am sure everyone has a favorite season and if you have lived in the RGV all your life – you probably think there is only ONE season: Hot. Humid. Summer! LOL!!
Spring is a time for new life to bloom and for farmers to start the planting season. Growing up on a small farm meant we had just a few fields to plant but we had SIX large gardens around our house and buildings. Dad loved to grown vegetables, especially sweet corn, and we girls (my sisters and I) were expected to weed and water each one of them after we planted. I swear all these gardens put together were easily three acres of land! So think about weeding row after of row of plants all morning and most of the afternoon BY HAND. Yes – we weeded each plant, each row, and each garden by hand, and if it were not good enough, Dad would make us do it all over again.
What really made me appreciate our gardens was seeing the fruition of our hard labors. We had some of THE best sweet corn, sweet peas, tomatoes, potatoes and squash in the area. We sold what we didn’t need at the Farmer’s Market in town, and our vegetables always sold out quickly.
What this all simply taught me was the effort and hard work we put into things – can truly benefit us with positive outcomes. As Yvett Morales and WHS always say – “Hard work pays off!” and that is so true.
The same applies to our spiritual life. If we keep walking the path that leads to Christ in our daily lives (reading & studying the Bible, prayer, sharing the Gospel with others) we will see the fruits of our labor. He will work through us to plant more seeds that will bloom for His kingdom. Just like Dad’s poem I am sharing today – it’s all about life or death when it comes to our actions here on earth. Are we sowing seeds of God’s truth or are we too wrapped up in ourselves to be open to sharing? You may never know if a kind or encouraging word or scripture to someone in need will have a huge impact. We may not know - but God does!
Let God’s love pour into your heart today!
Romans 5:3-5 (ESV)
3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
LIFE OR DEATH
By Del Korf
As grass is green and flowers have hues
And through this life we pay our ‘dues,’
We ask ourselves, “What is the score?”
Wondering what’s on the other shore!
We often ask, “Why are we here,
We have our wealth, so what’s to fear?”
Our wealth will take us where we’re “going”
Because God’s see we are not sowing.
We’re listening to the tempters call
Be careful, ere you take the fall
Of listening to the tempters voice,
Take heart, you will have a choice.
The choice is yours, of where you’re going,
It matters much whose seed you’re sowing.
God’s seed is always ready to plant
Don’t shrink away and say, “I can’t.”
You can if you will trust our Lord
And memorize some of His Word,
Then pass these seeds along to others
You’ll then rejoice with Christian ‘brothers.’
We cannot hope to “save” them all
For most will reject the Savior’s call
Most hope to earn what ere they can
To own the earth is what they plan.
Can we bear fruit while in a dearth,
Of trying to own the entire earth?
What if, the earth we’d want to own?
God says, “It’s mine, you only loan.”
To have much wealth, is not a sin
But if your aim is to begin
To hoard and pile up your wealth,
You’ll waste your health, to get your pelf.
Then use your wealth to regain your health! (this sentence is kind of a tongue-twister!)
You are simply thinking of yourself.
‘Self’ is another word for ego
As down the road to hell we go,
But this can be changed all around
And get our feet on solid ground
By taking Jesus as our way of living
Then He, a new life to us, will be giving.
We must accept this Son of God
Then we will get His approving ‘nod.’
His nod of approval is what we cherish,
It’s what we need before we perish
And lie forever in death’s “dust”
Or, be recorded with the just!
To be among the justly living
Our heart, to Him, we must be giving.
Thus we will choose our life or death
By opting on Jesus and using our breath
To tell the lost the cost of death
Without the assurance as Christ as our head
We will end up lost, in our sins, we’re dead!