He is Always on Time

#Poetry, Chronic Joy Ministry, Gardening, Uncategorized
my crown-of-thorns plant

“Thorns”

I see the thorn-bush set in my path
And I ponder the way ahead
Can I make my way cleanly around
Or must I offer my arms to be torn in the passing?

I look for tools to cut away the brambles
And I find them waiting for my use
Can I gather the branches without snagging
Or must I give over my hands to be bloodied in the holding?

I hear a voice calling me to lay down the struggle
And I see the Gardener watching me
Can I pause long enough to allow for His help
Or will I willfully stomp my feet in the tearing of pain?

It is HIS garden after all that offers this path
And I find the journey ahead planned by Him
Can I see the beauty in the thorn-bush here
The eternal weight of glory being given in this suffering?
--bg

“I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.

“He will not let your foot slip—
    he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
    will neither slumber nor sleep.

“The Lord watches over you—
    the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon by night.

“The Lord will keep you from all harm—
    he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going
    both now and forevermore.”

Psalm 121 NIV

Our Father, the true Master Gardener, the Eternal Lord, is never late. His help is on the way, even now, when all we can see is the thorn-bush planted in front of us.

Oh, may we lift up our way of looking, and see HIM waiting to answer our cry.

May I pray with you today?

Dear Lord Jesus,

Thank You for being such a great Master Gardener over the garden of our souls. Thank You that You see the full picture of what is necessary for the soil and the seeds and the harvest in our hearts to be healthy and strong. Help us not to resist Your planning, but to hold fast to You through the suffering placed in our paths. Help us to trust that You will bring us to Your own safe resting place so full of Your glory. We praise You here, as we wait for Your perfect timing, our Dear Lord.

In the Name of Jesus we pray,

Amen.

**This poem was offered in response to the prompt of “Thorns” given at the new Chronic Joy Poetry Page. Click here if you would like to join in the prompt yourself, and read the beautiful poetry given by one of the new Poetry Coordinators, Karin Fendick.

I am linking with: #TellHisStory #Grace&Truth

Published by Bettie G

Jesus follower, Wife, Mom, and Grandma, journeying through chronic illness one day at a time

Published

31 thoughts on “He is Always on Time”

  3. Bettie, I love your poem so much and the scripture is such an encouraging one. This last stanza of your poem is so encouraging: “It is HIS garden after all that offers this path
    And I find the journey ahead planned by Him
    Can I see the beauty in the thorn-bush here
    The eternal weight of glory being given in this suffering?”
    Thank you so much for sharing even in your pain and for pointing us to the One who will go with us through our pain and bring us home to live with Him forever. Amen. Blessings, love and hugs to you, my dear sister/poet/friend! xoxo

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    1. Dear Gayl,
      I am so very thankful that God has woven our paths together to encourage and pray for each other through these days! He truly does know how to give us His comfort in these painful and thorn-filled places. I am so longing for that day when we all will be with Him for eternity! Amen. Love and blessings to you also, my dear poet/sister/friend. xoxo

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  4. Oh wow! Two major things here: It was on my schedule today to review Psalm 121 and it’s almost 8 pm and I hadn’t done it yet. But then I find it here! Review now complete. 🙂

    And second, I found Rita Springer’s new song last week on my pastor’s FB page and immediately fell in love with it. God is always right on time. Your post is proof of that for me tonight, Bettie!

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    1. Oh, Lisa, thank you for sharing these blessings with me! God truly weaves our paths together, in such ways that do lift our hearts to HIM. I have tears in my eyes now, seeing His faithfulness at work. I have been listening to that song on repeat over this last week also. He knew how much we all would need to hear that encouragement for such a time as this. And I’ve begun slowly, to pause with that Scripture passage, and meditate on it here. He has brought it to me at various times in my life, always speaking a little deeper for each new season. May we both listen to what He would say for this time. Blessings to you, dear friend!

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    1. Dear Lynn, Isn’t He so good to keep reminding us how near He is to us? Yes, Lord help us to hold so tightly right here. Blessings and love to you during this season of waiting!

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    1. Thank you, Amy. I’m so glad that we can keep pausing, all through the day, and look for His beauty, praising Him right there, even as Brother Lawrence teaches. Blessings to you!

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    1. Thank you Dear Wendi! He really is such a great comfort to us. I am so glad you were blessed here with the words He gave. I love to think of Him as my Master Gardener over my soul. Gardening is such a joy to me, even though I cannot do the thing I used, all of God’s nature still speaks to me about Him! Blessings and prayers for you dear friend!

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  9. Another beautiful post, Bettie! And, that song is so good, too. I have never heard it before. God bless you, sweet friend, and keep you and your family healthy and safe, in Jesus’ name.

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    1. Thank you so much Dear Cheryl! I am so glad that Jesus allows us to bring encouragement and love to each other on this journey. I’m so grateful to be part of the Bible study with you, and to share in reading your lovely posts that you have brought together on your site also. May the Lord Jesus bless you and your family too!
      xoxo

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  10. Oh Bettie, this touching poem, prayer, and these verses bring tears to my eyes and encourages me to seek the beauty in the midst of the thorns. The song is encouraging, too. Thank you for reminding me of our faithful Master Gardener! Love and blessings of strength and peace for each moment!

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    1. Oh Dear Trudy, I am so grateful that Jesus brought encouragement to you here! He is so good to help us share with each other. Even today, He brought this poem more deeply home to me, as my infusions are cancelled now till after the outbreak. And my Dr. gave me increased prednisone again to deal with the flares. So, Jesus brings His own words to me through the words that He asks me to share. He is the one who is my helper, even here. Your prayers have meant so much! Blessings, love and prayers for you too! xo

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  11. Bettie, this is so powerful, so beautiful and so real. Thank you for sharing your faith as you walk through the pain. Your poem, scripture, photo and prayer speak of our real lives and our real Savior. I am in awe of the Holy Spirit putting the Crown-of-Thorns plant on both of our hearts this week to use as a photo on our posts. That is no accident, dear sister! He has connected our thoughts, blogs and hearts. I have so much to learn from you and God keeps linking me to you so that I can be strengthened by your strength in the midst of hardships. That plant alone is worthy of a blog post. I could meditate on the message of its beauty and savagery as a powerful image of Jesus. His beauty had no flaws, but He yielded his head to the thorns and his hands and feet to the nails. All for justice, mercy and love. A beautiful, terrible sacrificial love. May His love for you help you to rest despite the thorns in the path ahead. I pray for many beautiful flowers to grace your path along the way. He is with us. God bless you, dear Bettie! Love and hugs to you!

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    1. Dear Melissa,
      I’m sorry it took me so long to respond to your comment–somehow it landed in my spam folder! I’m glad I felt like I should check it out tonight. Your words are such a precious balm to my heart also, dear sister. I believe the Lord truly is bringing His encouragement through the words that He gives to each of us, linking us in Him! What a precious gift. I love your meditations here about the thorns that our Lord Jesus willingly bore for us. He willingly yielded, “all for justice, mercy, and love.” His ways are so much higher than ours. I complain and resist the thorns, and yet He wants to give me more of His heart in the process. Thank you for your precious prayers, dear sister. I pray that He is blessing you with His beauty during these hard weeks also. Love and hugs to you!

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  12. Oh I love your beautiful poem, Bettie! These lines really jumped out at me:

    “It is HIS garden after all that offers this path
    And I find the journey ahead planned by Him
    Can I see the beauty in the thorn-bush here
    The eternal weight of glory being given in this suffering?“

    Our chronic illness journey is fraught with thorns, yet God invites us to see the hidden beauty in them all. Their weightiness feels like it will drown us sometimes, because we might fail to see the “eternal weight of glory” we are receiving in our souls as it moves us closer to restoration and wholeness. There’s such sweet encouragement in your words! And I also love your bible verse and prayer. Thank you for focusing on what a difference it makes having a perspective full of hope and faith. The harvest in your heart is beautiful to behold, my friend. Blessings, love and hugs! xoxo 💜

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    1. Dear Joy,
      Oh, it is so true that our Lord invites us to see His hidden beauty scattered among the thorns of our chronic illness journeys. What a day that will be when we are standing whole and complete in the glory of our Jesus! I am so thankful for all of your understanding and love, dear friend. It helps so much to know that your encouragement is here on the days that feel too weighty. May the Lord bless you with His comfort and strength, across the ocean, as we are joined in prayer. Blessings, love, and hugs to you too! xoxo

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      1. What a day indeed, Bettie! How we will run and skip and jump and laugh out loud for joy, and be deeply content in every way. I greatly value your companionship and encouragement too, dear friend. It helps so much to know another soul truly understands what we are going through. I pray you will receive all the energy, endurance and perseverance you need as you wait again for new treatment to begin. And that God would give you His sweet rest and peace to equip you to stay hopeful, strong and comforted in this season. xoxo ❤️

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        1. Dear Joy,
          Thank you for all of your prayers through this time of waiting, and through these days of walking a path that seems so unknown. I pray that you also will enjoy His sweet peace and rest my friend. I am so grateful for your hope-filled words! xoxo

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    1. Dear Mary, Oh, I am so glad that the photo of my plant helped to bring a visual here. God surely knows how to bring those object lessons home to us. What a blessing He brings us as He shows us His timing is always the best. Blessings to you this week, dear friend!

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