"Father, forgive them," the Savior prayed,
While He upon Him had all sins laid,
What grace, love and mercy He displayed!
What hope this offers to poor lost men!
But, do we think of what He did then?
Oh, why do we persist in our sin?
Do we think we shall gain life on high
By putting Him off until we die?
Why do we our dear Lord's call deny?
And what shall we do come Judgment Day
Our last chance at mercy passed away?
Who will be able the price to pay?
Put not off today what may be done,
Too quickly shall come the set of sun,
The trip to glory have you begun?
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
...........A Perfect Day...........
Let us now think of a sweet perfect day
And what it would take to make it that way
For me the issue's not hard to explain
Just a day filled with joy and free from pain
A day which affords me all that I need
Time to spend with my loved ones, time to read,
Time to tell others the grand old story
And bid them accept the Lord of Glory
Time to reflect on how things used to be
When I was a child, so pure and carefree
This day won't cost money, not one red cent!
And for it one never needs to repent,
Such days as this will help us on toward
That perfect eternal day with the Lord!
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
..........The Door Now Stands Ajar..........
Our Savior in mercy the burden bore,
All alone the price He paid;
Now onward we're trodding t'word Heaven's Shore:
On the pathway that He made.
He opened the door for the faithful few,
The door that was closed by sin;
Now the old sinful man can be made new:
When we the journey begin.
Were it not for what He did that sad day
When He died upon the tree,
There would be naught to take our sins away:
And no one to set us free.
Now all those who hear Him and thus believe,
And of ev'ry sin repent,
Confess and be baptized shall then receive:
A blessing Hell can't prevent.
To the body we're added by the Lord,
To serve Him as on we go;
And then, as He promised us in His Word:
Great blessings in Heav'n we'll know:
Sweet fellowship with the faithful who've died
While fighting here the "good fight";
Who, despite the troubles, on Him relied:
And took their stand for the right.
What wonderful love! What Amazing Grace!
What mercy beyond compare!
When Jesus on Calvary took our place
The Home above to prepare!
How can you the call of mercy ignore?
What else could the Savior do?
He gave all He had -- He could give no more:
Just to prove His love for you.
From each of us Jesus is not that far...
As Paul, at Athens, supposed;
The door of mercy stands still now ajar,
But someday it shall be closed.
Put not off His call until 'tomorrow',
'Tomorrow' may never be;
Lest, in that day, you are left to sorrow:
From sin come and be made free!
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
(On "...Paul, at Athens..." see Acts 17:27).
.............The Plea..............
"Come unto me!"
The Savior's plea,
He beckons unto all;
"I'll make you free,
Just come -- you'll see"
Oh, heed the Savior's call!
A home on high
Where none will die
And none will shed a tear;
Just peace and rest
With all the blest
And Jesus ever near!
Take up the Cross,
Suffer the loss
Of sin and wickedness,
With Christ in love
You'll live above
And bask in righteousness!
He paved the way
That leads to day
'Tis but for us to be
Faithful and true
Our journey through --
And then to be set free!
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
..........The Fight..........
I am here but for one reason, you see,
To point all men to the light;
In Christ I am saved and from sin set free -
Now I must fight the good fight.
There are many chances to do the 'wrong',
And turn away from the Lord;
But Jesus helps me as I go along,
And turn to Him through His word.
The battle is not left to other men,
Indeed: I must do my part;
If here I procrastinate in my sin
He will say to me: "Depart…"
Sowing the seed of the Kingdom of God,
Before all I shine my light;
Walking down the pathway that Jesus trod,
Trying to do what is right.
Not seeking acclaim, great riches and gold,
Not trying myself to praise;
Just telling the sweetest story e'er told:
The banner of God I'll raise.
I'll ever look to the Old Rugged Cross,
Where the Savior suffered so;
For this wicked world He endured such loss,
That salvation we might know.
Is it asking too much for us to live
The life with which He is pleased?
By grace He did our ev'ry sin forgive:
In Him our burdens are eased.
And so, my brethren, be strong in the Lord,
In the power of His might;
He has promised to lead us on toward
The Land of Heavenly Light!
Flesh and blood, principalities, powers:
With these we have no concern;
With us He'll be through the darkest hours,
If we this lesson will learn:
The armor of God is all that we need,
To stand is what we must do;
Herein we from our transgressions are freed,
And granted our lives anew.
Having, with the truth, our loins girt about,
Our breast bathed in righteousness;
The victory cannot be gained without
These things that free from distress.
Our feet with the Gospel of peace are shod,
To our Master we will yield;
The sword of the Spirit - the word of God:
Serving also as our shield.
And the helmet of salvation we wear,
Entering into the fray;
Always, with all supplication and prayer,
Trying to walk in God's Way.
We are here for but one reason, you see,
To point all men to the Light;
In Christ we are saved and from sin set free:
Let us all get to the fight!
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
06-26-2000
..........A Moment To Rest..........
A moment to rest,
A second's repose,
What a wonderful thought!
Up there with the blest,
Greater joy none knows:
With Jesus' blood I'm bought!
No trouble or care,
No heartache or grief,
And none will ever die!
Sweet peace ev'ry where,
From all pain: relief;
In our new Home on high!
Here anguish and toil
Are all we may know,
All our weary lives through;
There nothing will spoil,
Nor fall to the foe:
It's waiting for me and you!
And, there we may go
To be with the Lord
If faithful we are here;
Good seed we must sow,
(The seed is the word),
There we'll shed not one tear!
Good friend, O prepare!
Naught else means a thing:
Do not procrastinate;
If joy you would share,
And with the saints sing:
Wait not 'til it's too late!
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
6-29-00
..........I Was Too Busy..........
I was too busy while living each day
To take a few minutes to humbly pray
And ask for direction, as on I went:
And, all too soon, now, my lifetime is spent.
I had a good job that well met our needs,
But, work left no time for doing good deeds;
Not once did I ever to Jesus turn:
Each invitation in life I did spurn.
I thought myself able to stand upright,
So thinking I saw no need for the Light;
'Religion is just for the weak at heart...
My wisdom will to me true strength impart.'
Now stand I in judgment so all alone,
Still in my sins I am lost and undone;
Whatever shall I do? Please, help me, friend --
Don't leave me to face, now, my life's poor end.
If I could live over I'd prove my love
By doing the bidding of Christ above:
I would hear and believe, repent, confess,
Be baptized: Then I know my life He'd bless.
I would help others to find the Lord's Way,
And His every word I would obey;
But, alas, life is finished - it's too late:
Why did I, all those years, procrastinate?
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
7-1-2000
..........BOOKS..........
Of making books there is no end,
So long as fools have ink and pen,
And paper on which they may write
Their psalms of sadness or delight.
Some stories help, I don't deny,
Our need to know they satisfy,
The broken heart to heal again,
The shattered life once more to mend.
Some tell of ways that used to be,
Of frontier days, so wild and free,
They make us wish we'd lived back then,
The saying goes -- "When men were men."
Some take us further in the past,
To tell the stories that will last
Clean up until eternity,
The truth that was, and that shall be.
Some tell the tales of love's defeat,
Forbidden moments, oh, so sweet,
When lovers true in secret met,
In passion all else to forget.
Some tell of wars and victories
On battlefields or stormy seas,
Of heroes valor, coward's vice,
Of those who made the sacrifice.
In some we have the poet's verse,
Whose songbook was the universe,
Who sang their songs in simple rhyme,
To light the way for future time.
Some tell of worlds unseen by men,
Of going where no other's been,
Of stars and ships in distant space,
The future worlds that men shall face.
In some we see within the mind,
Of mighty men -- great truth to find.
The fool in others on display,
To save us from his weary way.
Be careful what you read, my friend,
'Twill stay with you until life's end.
There's always time, good books to read,
But for the rest ---- we have no need.
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
4-11-97
..........SMALL KINDNESS..........
A smile, a hug, a friendly word
Can turn the night to day;
And make the heart fly like a bird
From life's low, weary way.
So take the time to give a smile
To one whose way is rough;
And go with him the extra mile,
And pray that it's enough.
And if you see it didn't do,
His heart still bowed down low;
Maybe a hug from one like you
Will help him onward go.
And don't forget: there's power in
The kind words you may speak;
So from the heart, deep down within,
Take time to help the weak.
It just may be that in your past,
You, too, were bowed with care;
You didn't know if you could last,
Your troubles ev'rywhere.
But then a kindly stranger came,
Or, maybe just a friend;
To help you all your troubles tame,
Your broken heart to mend.
May 1, 1997
..........THE HOME FAR AWAY..........
Oh, to think that some day
In a land far away
We shall meet beyond the blue;
From the pains of life free
There no trouble to see
All things shall then be made new.
It's a beautiful home
Where we'll nevermore roam
It has all the things we seek;
There's no illness or death
In the Rock there's a cleft
Sweet rest for those tired and weak.
In that Home we shall find
Nothing that will remind
Us of all our cares below;
We shall have joy and peace
All our troubles release
Just look to heav'n as you go.
God has prepared a place
By His Wonderful Grace
Where the saved of earth shall dwell;
Sent His Son down in love
From His Home up above
To rescue our souls from hell.
Brother don't turn away
For He surely will slay
All those who hear not his Son;
While we dwell in this land
For the Lord we must stand
In Him, the Victory's won.
If without His great pow'r
We must stand in that hour
With no Blood to cleanse our sin;
If till death we should wait --
We shall find it's too late --
To then our journey begin.
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
..........TO LIVE AGAIN..........
If I could live my life again
Some changes I would make;
To all I'd strive to be a friend,
Advantage not to take.
The little things that often go
Unseen to other men,
I think I'd like to get to know...
If I could live again.
The kitchen smell of baking bread
And sausage in the pan;
The tools all placed in Grandad's shed
Where life for me began.
The cricket's song, the locust's shell,
The rippling waters clear;
These sound the news that all is well
With loved ones ever near.
To catch a fish and spend the day
With dad alone at rest;
To see my troubles run away
Are things I'd love the best.
I'd take the time to lend a hand
To little ones in need;
The crippled I would help to stand
The hungry I would feed.
I'd miss no chance to speak my mind
To those I truly love
My words would be so sweet and kind
As sent from God above.
I'd point them to important things
Those things that count the most;
To hear the songbird as he sings
To see the sandy coast.
I'd tell them that there's more to life
Than mammon's filthy lure
To bear their cross, endure the strife
Rest waits---you can be sure.
But I cannot live life again
And so I must while here;
Take time to be to all a friend
And treat all life as dear.
APRIL, 1997
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
ONE GREAT TEAR
To have him here would be much more
Than memory to me;
But he in death crossed to the shore,
From pain and sickness free.
The empty days and lonely nights,
The cause for joy seems gone;
A broken heart -- the worst of sights,
His race, not mine, is won.
I cherish still the little things
In love he did for me;
To each kind word my heart now clings,
But, him I long to see.
I wish to feel again his arm
So firm and sure and strong;
Protecting me from ev'ry harm,
He's gone -- so far, so long.
I know he lives within my heart,
In that way he's still here;
But he is gone, we're now apart,
And life's just one great tear.
..........H. L. Gradowith..........
May 16, 1997
This was written in honor of my grandfather, perhaps you could change a
few words and make it fit someone close to you.
We have had a lot of trouble with 'bounces' lately -- I don't know why,
just that it has been happening. If your mail 'bounces' listbot will
remove your name from the list. I cannot control this, they do it
automatically. If you don't receive a poem for a week or so please
visit
the archives page and 're-subscribe'. Thanks. Tim