I had no idea of how to proceed with this other than the Lord wanted it written out. It was a title given to my husband. So I prayed about it and put it on the list to publish. So here is what I have gotten in prayer.
I thought of this song done in the sixties. It was called "Poetry in Motion". It was a song sung by Johnny Tillotson. There were two lines of verse that stood out to me........."a flower of devotion, a swaying gracefully."
Spiritually speaking, that is the way the Lord views us. He desires us to be that flower of devotion as we move through life ever so gently swaying gracefully in His plan for our lives.
Did you know that when you hold the Bible in your hands to read, you have poetry before your eyes? Did you know that 1/3 of the Old Testament was in poetry form?
But today we look at the New Testament.
In the New Testament, we see it in written form as the Beatitudes. (also Luke 20-26)
Matthew 5:3-10.....
3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
For they shall be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
For they shall obtain mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. NKJV
Poetry in motion. Mary, the mother of Jesus responded to Elizabeth with a poem. It is known as the "Magnificat".
Luke 1:46-55
46 And Mary said:
"My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
48 For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
49 For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
And holy is His name.
50 And His mercy is on those who fear Him
From generation to generation.
51 He has shown strength with His arm;
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
52 He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
And exalted the lowly.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things,
And the rich He has sent away empty.
54 He has helped His servant Israel,
In remembrance of His mercy,
55 As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and to his seed forever." NKJV
Yes, even the New Testament has some listed poems: like in Luke 2:14, and in Luke 1:68-79.
When God the Holy Spirit spoke through Jesus in the beatitudes, He was wrapping up the package of beauty the disciple of the Lord and how the disciple would look like now and for tomorrow. In looking over Matthew 5:3-10, Jesus was giving details of how the disciple's character and lifestyle would be different than walking in ways of the world. Anyone, an whosoever, would be a person with attributes that was distinctive of the "kingdom of God".
In Mary's poem, we see praise and worship toward God! She said, "My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior."
Her spirit was rejoicing in knowing truth of God Who was the Savior!
Her spirit was rejoicing in knowing truth of God Who was the Savior!
For both of these two given,Jesus and Mary both endured pain and heartache. Jesus was the Ultimate Sacrifice and was the example of the "Believer". He, though, was the pure without sin or blemish. He gave His all for us. He was the example who knew that the Word of God, that scripture was power and saw change for Himself and for others. His was one that spoke of the Father and the kingdom of Heaven.
Mary saw many come against her after these words were spoken. She saw some to want to cast her out and yes, throw rocks, because of what she was going through. But that is for another time. Right now we look at the beauty of how these spoke to encourage others, and breathe life into mortal souls.
Psalm 150:6.............6 Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.
Praise the LORD.
NIV
We, too, can speak like these two spoke. We can take the Word and speak that spiritual poetry to see our lives change and the lives of others as well.
1 Peter 3:4.....4 rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. NKJV
When we speak His word there is beauty! We can pray the prayer that He would give us the “incorruptible
beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious” in His sight.
We can pray and worship making Him the Lord in any situations, whether for male or female, that
where anyone in our past has convinced us that we are less than who He made us to be, that He would show us how to replace
those lies with His truth. Even though hurtful words have been spoken to us, we deny their right to continue playing over and over in our minds.
Our value is far above rubies.
Proverbs 31:10-12...10 Who can find a virtuous wife?
For her worth is far above rubies.
11 The heart of her husband safely trusts her;
So he will have no lack of gain.
12 She does him good and not evil
All the days of her life. NKJV
Our value whether, the husband or wife, when looking at this scripture, it all is pointed toward the heart. We should have our trust in our mates and do them only good and not evil all the days of their lives. Our value should be something others will notice. Knowing God and His word, and speaking it with confidence, gives us the edge, that ingrained capacity for meeting the "storms", and "the bad report" with courage.
God's wisdom enhances the beauty He has for us is to the full and it always glorifies Him. May we truly reflect His image in us.
Jesus spoke only what He heard the Father speak. John 8:47.......47 He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God." NKJV
As Kingdom Citizens, we were shown what each category looked like. As His disciples, we were to have them before our eyes and understand. We were to imitate His life and tell others within our circle or community of people about Jesus. ( I have heard that it is within 15 feet where you stand, work, or live as in your home.) (so who is within 15 feet of you right now?)
That beauty goes hand in hand with His power and His honor. That quality always emphasizes His greatness and His authority!
Jesus and His mother Mary moved through life allotted them. They kept their vigil on the Word of God and exuded God's Presence and His glory! It is true Spiritual Poetry when we keep that Word and move though in this journey of life into life eternal. May it be to God's glory forever!
Father, it is in Jesus' name that we pray today. Set a guard over our mouths according to Psalm 141. Please keep watch over our lips and do not incline our hearts to any evil thing as those who practice wicked works with men who work iniquity. Lord, we pray that we do not eat of their delicacies.
Father, it is YOU we seek with our whole heart. We know that YOU are not in the" let's scare mankind today business." No, YOU are the One who gives life. Today we deliberately choose to behold the beauty of You the Creator who made the heavens and the earth. It is You Who made the forests, the rocks, and the rivers. YOU created the ice- caped mountain ranges, the birds that fly and sing, blue skies with clouds of white, and children to sing and dance. You created Jesus with the plan of Redemption. In all this we closely guard Your Word. We take it to our hearts for though things are coming on the earth, You will keep us in Your bosom. Though others may experience wrath, we take comfort and are encouraged that You will care for us even in times of trouble.
Like Mary we sing today. From Psalm 59:16-17...we will sing of Your power, yes, we will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; for You have been our defense and refuge in the day of trouble. To You, O our Strength, we will sing praises; for God is our defense, our God of mercy.
Father, it is Your wisdom that enhances the beauty YOU have for us! May we be those with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.
May we truly reflect YOUR image in us. Amen and Amen.
May we truly reflect YOUR image in us. Amen and Amen.
You can also visit my Youtube channel The Voice of Prayer for more teaching at http://bit.ly/1tNyBhV
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