8/20/13

On Silent Wings





On
 Silent 
 Wings





The years have come and gone so fast
My basket of thoughts bring so much back to me
The memories of long gone years
And of years more recently lived
They fly in on cerebral wind currents
On silent wings…silent wings.

A life given by the One above
He gave her all that she could be
And all she would have and do
She received His gifts that came to her
On silent wings…silent wings.

Who is that little girl in my mind’s eye
With her doll in the antique buggy
Her eyes so wide and filled with life
I remember her and who she was
The little girl who loved so much
Where did she go; where did she fly
On silent wings…silent wings.

This little child is who He made
To play and learn and grow
May the promise of this little lass
Be realized in days to come
As she moves through life’s labyrinth
On silent wings…silent wings.

Standing on the stage, a little blue angel
Holding a tiny violin to her chin
Her bow poised now to touch the strings
The music plays the music of her life
Listen, can you hear it sound?
As if to prepare her path it drifts away
On silent wings…silent wings.

The music of the universe
He plays so that His child can pirouette
She skips along so unaware
Following His rhythm she dances her dance
On silent wings…silent wings.

I see her now as if she were here
School days, girl scouts, violin lessons
Writing stories, holding the world dear
Becoming whom she is to be
Day by day and week by week she grows
As her years go gliding away.
On silent wings…silent wings.

Watching her in every moment
Holding her in His lap in times of woe
He sends her joyful rainbows so she can know
Her loving Father’s always drawing near
On silent wings…silent wings.

Times remembered as a blink of her eye
Walking along the path He placed her on
Some recollections seen through old photographs
Those pictures she spies in her album
 Elapsed memories of what happened before and after
Events outside the pictures now forgotten and gone
On silent wings…silent wings.

Thirteenth birthday brings on teenage years
High school Latin, Math and riding the bus
Sweet sixteen, sweet little sixteen
“I’ll take the car that has the most gas.”
Boys who come and go in a lovely whirl
Of laughter, fun, and shared times
Then graduation and off she goes
College years a blur as she flutters into life
On silent wings…silent wings.

Time passing faster and faster now
Today a wedding, tomorrow a child and then two more
They grow, rise, and circle off into their  own lives
As the cycle starts again
On silent wings…silent wings.

He blesses her at every fork in the road
Choices made and lived in a life
Sculpted by her work and guided by His
She soars onward
On silent wings…silent wings.

And now as the twilight begins to fall
He watches her so lovingly
He smiles at how she spends her time
Freed from things that had been her life

Time is His newest blessing that she receives
When she can put frosting on life’s cake
Time that used to pass so swiftly
Becomes her own again
These Golden years
Leading to the Golden reward
That will come
On silent wings…silent wings.


Written by
Corinne Mustafa 
(C)

8/19/13

Stumbling Stones or......Building Blocks?


Who has not been in the woods and become aware of the babbling music coming from a brook as it bubbles over the rocks making little currents. Added to the song of birds, the buzzing of bees, and the wind blowing through the trees you have a beautiful melody to listen to.  Sometimes the harmony is broken by a torrential rain storm that is punctuated by thunder, lightening, and winds that are no longer friendly.  We run for cover thinking that this is an abuse to our right to a peaceful day in the woods.

Life is like this. When our stream of living seems to be without any impediments such as boulders to scale or rocks to climb we feel happy. We think that no challenge is a good thing. Then we tend to forget that it is in the valleys and in the storms that God blesses us with new understandings and personal growth.

The result is that we emerge and our life song is closer to the harmony that God planned for us from all eternity.  If our personal rocks are removed the strean of our lives would not have a melody that is as sweet as it could be.


Think of this when your life seems fraught with pebbles. Remember to listen for the song of your brook as it flows over what you think to be stumbling stones.  They just might turn out to be the building blocks of your life.



Thank you God for putting your stones and pebbles into the brooks of my life. Because these stones are there I am learning more about life and Your desires for me as I live it under the shadow of Your wings. Help me to hear Your voice in the stream and to understand what You are teaching me.
Amen.

Written by 
Corinne Mustafa

8/11/13

Attempting to Live in Agreement

Attempting to Live in
Agreement...Coherence…Accord

Live in harmony with each other.
~ Romans 12:16a ~

I was looking for a scripture to post today, and I came across this one. As I read it I felt a sharp nudge of my own imagining. No one was there to poke me. I looked behind me wondering if poke had missed someone coming into the room. If it was a friend, it would explain the prod I had felt. The friend was probably trying to be funny and scare me a bit. I was surprised to see that I was alone in the room.

I looked up at my scripture. When I picked it, the reason was that it was such a simple and easily received sentiment and directive. Who does not want to live in harmony with the people in their lives. I recognize that I do want to, but do I always follow this instruction. 

Yes, in my heart I want to get along with everyone. I sensed some soul searching coming on.

I have a lot of friends that love me as I love them. I love them and live in agreement with them, and I believe that they love me. Even when we think differently about a topic we are able to discuss it in mature fashion. We often learn something we had not been aware of before our discussion. I always come away from such a conversation feeling blessed that we could share without rancor. This happens when we end up agreeing to disagree. It is not always that simple as discussions between people can get a bit upsetting. However, if in the end we can unwind a bit and go on with the talk we feel as if we have been successful.

As I have been sitting here writing I hear a soft knock on the door of my subconscious. What have I been missing? I reread what I wrote. It was an accurate account of my philosophy and the rules that God has made me aware of. So what was the problem? Did the scripture only refer to close friends? I suddenly realize that the reason that friends become close friends is because they share some…even a lot…of the same paradigms about life. What was I missing? Then it hit me that we have friends that are not our best friends. They are more like acquaintances who we do not know as well. We might even not be as aware of what they think about a given topic. It actually is easier to keep an even keel in discussions with these contacts.

I started to think of a recent occurrence in my life. It was a couple of weeks ago when my husband and I spent the weekend with two couples we know. One of the women and I had been very close in the past. She had encountered some issues and was not truthful with me about what had happened and about what had been going on at the time. I had always enging chosen to let her call the shots about what we would do. My thought was that the issues in her live were so challenging that it would not hurt me to just let her have her way. I gave that willing but after I found out that she had not been honest with me that all changed. She had moved about an hour away from where I live, so I did not see her often.

Fast forward to our weekend together. She started doing some of the things that I used to allow in days gone by. I don’t need to spell it out, but I decided that I would no longer be manipulated in the way I had willingly accepted before. So we ended up bickering all weekend. In the end the other woman was not in a good place from what she witnessed between us all weekend.  The end of the weekend was a very painful one, and I ended up the person who was blamed. I was not the only one, but I don’t think God cares who is right. He cares about our behavior. Did we follow His requirements? Did we have compassion for another? Were we acting in the way Jesus showed us?

On reconsideration of what happened to me that weekend, I don’t think that I needed to be a doormat. Still I could have been a bit more retiring about arguing that I did or did not want to do something. I could have been less vehement about my desires. I did not do this and the other woman was hurt by the bickering. In the end she turned on me in a way that I never would have expected. Nor do I think that the ball belonged only in my court either. I tried to apologize for my part to the other person, but she refused to talk to me or even listen. As for my former best friend she had a role that was big in the whole thing.

I spent a week in pain over the whole thing. I felt like I was under a cloud and very numb. In the end I decided that a relationship with her was toxic to me, and I should avoid spending time with her of long duration. I do know that I did have a roll in what was a disaster, and I have accepted my culpability in it. Based on 20/20 hindsight I realize that what happened was not worth taking a chance of by that I might loose sight of my goal of living in harmony. It was a hard and painful lesson from which I hope I have learned and do not forget.

Here is another quote from Romans 12. On the road to living in harmony with each other this scripture gives wonderful instruction for success.

 Therefore, 
I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy,
to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy
and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed
by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve 
what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.Romans 12:1-2

Written by
Corinne Mustafa 

8/6/13

The Pastor's Son

I received this story in an email from a friend. I do not even know 
if it is a real story or fiction. However, even if it is fiction, 
it still illustrates a point of how powerful one Christian person  is 
when he is willing to take "a walk in the rain" to do God's work!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
 
 
Every Sunday afternoon, after the morning service at the church, the Pastor and his eleven year old son would go out into their town and hand out Gospel Tracts.

This particular Sunday afternoon, as it came time for the Pastor and his son to go to the streets with their tracts, it was very cold outside, as well as pouring rain.

The boy bundled up in his warmest and driest clothes and said, 'OK, dad, I'm ready.'

His Pastor dad asked, 'Ready for what? 'Dad, it's time we gather our tracts together and go out.' 
Dad responds, 'Son, it's very cold outside and it's pouring rain.'

The boy gives his dad a surprised look, asking, 'But Dad, aren't people
still going to Hell, even though it's raining?' Dad answers, 'Son, I am 
not going out in this weather.'

Despondently, the boy asks, 'Dad, can I go? Please?' His father hesitated for 
a moment then said, 'Son, you can go. Here are the tracts, be careful son.' 
'Thanks Dad!'

And with that, he was off and out into the rain.. This eleven year old boy
walked the streets of the town going door to door and handing everybody he
met in the street a Gospel Tract.

After two hours of walking in the rain, he was soaking, bone-chilled wet
and down to his VERY LAST TRACT. He stopped on a corner and looked for
someone to hand a tract to, but the streets were totally deserted.

Then he turned toward the first home he saw and started up the sidewalk to
the front door and rang the doorbell. He rang the bell, but nobody answered.
He rang it again and again, but still no one answered. He waited but still
no answer.

Finally, this eleven year old trooper turned to leave, but something
stopped him. Again, he turned to the door and rang the bell and knocked loudly 
on the door with his fist. He waited, something holding him there on the front
porch! He rang again and this time the door slowly opened.

Standing in the doorway was a very sad-looking elderly lady. She softly
asked, 'What can I do for you, son?' With radiant eyes and a smile that lit
up her world, this little boy said, 'Ma'am, I'm sorry if I disturbed you,
but I just want to tell you that *JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU *
 
and I came to give you my very last Gospel Tract which will tell you all 
about JESUS and His great LOVE.'

With that, he handed her his last tract and turned to leave.
She called to him as he departed. 'Thank you, son! And God Bless You!'


Well, the following Sunday morning in church Pastor Dad was in the pulpit. As the service began, he asked, 'Does anybody have testimony or want to say anything?'

Slowly, in the back row of the church, an elderly lady stood to her feet.

As she began to speak, a look of glorious radiance came from her face, 'No one in this church knows me. I've never been here before. You see, before last Sunday I was not a Christian. My husband passed on some time ago, leaving me totally alone in this world. Last Sunday, being a particularly
cold and rainy day, it was even more so in my heart that I came to the end of the line where I no longer had any hope or will to live.

So I took a rope and a chair and ascended the stairway into the attic of my
home. I fastened the rope securely to a rafter in the roof, then stood on
the chair and fastened the other end of the rope around my neck. Standing
on that chair, so lonely and broken-hearted I was about to leap off, when
suddenly the loud ringing of my doorbell downstairs startled me. I
thought, 'I'll wait a minute, and whoever it is will go away.'

I waited and waited, but the ringing doorbell seemed to get louder and more
insistent, and then the person ringing also started knocking loudly...

I thought to myself again, 'Who on earth could this be? Nobody ever rings
my bell or comes to see me.' I loosened the rope from my neck and started
for the front door, all the while the bell rang louder and louder.

When I opened the door and looked I could hardly believe my eyes, for there
on my front porch was the most radiant and angelic little boy I had ever
seen in my life. His SMILE, oh, I could never describe it to you!

The words that came from his mouth caused my heart that had long been dead,
TO LEAP TO LIFE as he exclaimed with a cherub-like voice, 'Ma'am, I just
came to tell you that JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU.' Then he gave me this Gospel Tract that I now hold in my hand..

As the little angel disappeared back out into the cold and rain, I closed
my door and read slowly every word of this Gospel Tract. Then I went up to
my attic to get my rope and chair. I wouldn't be needing them anymore.

You see-- -I am now a Happy Child of the KING. Since the address of your
church was on the back of this Gospel Tract, I have come here to personally
say THANK YOU to God's little angel who came just in the nick of time and
by so doing, spared my soul from an eternity in hell..'

There was not a dry eye in the church. And as shouts of praise and honor
to THE KING resounded off the very rafters of the building, Pastor Dad
descended from the pulpit to the front pew where the little angel was
seated....

He took his son in his arms and sobbed uncontrollably.

Probably no church has had a more glorious moment, and probably this
universe has never seen a Papa that was more filled with love & honor for
his son.... Except for One.

Blessed are your eyes for reading this message.

Just wanted to share this...
God bless
Corinne

8/5/13

Power Outages


Today our electric company had a planned outage in our neighborhood. They had been sending notices for about three weeks. The outages never actually happened. Every few days we would get yet another outage notice. So, today when the lights did not go out on time we laughed and made some remarks about all the postage was being wasted. All of a sudden…click…the lights were dimmed. It was a cloudy day, so the rooms were barely lit. I still had not taken a shower, so I prepared to take on in dusky bathroom. It was a bit of a challenge. We are spoiled by the convenience we enjoy of lighted rooms.

I was standing in the shower with the warm…thank God about that…water raining down on me. I started to think what would happen if God had planned power outages. In that time we would be in the dark away from the spiritual perks that He provides to light up our days and give us words that speak to us in wondrous spiritual ways. For the time of His planned outage we would have no path to follow or inspiration of what we need to do.

When I got out of the shower I noticed that the mirror was totally fogged because the fan could not be operated to keep the obscuring condensation at bay. Another impediment to having a clear vision of what you would need to do.  I was operating in near sightlessness in the smoggy and misty grayness.

I can see that power is very important on a natural level in an age where such conveniences are taken for granted. However the natural level is only a small part of it. Power and light are also important on a spiritual plain as well. In fact on the otherworldly level it is considerably more important than in our earthly realm. In our material dominion power and light are a convenience that when missing is a bit troublesome. However, life can go on and adjustments can be made. Without light and power in our nonphysical sphere, we are unable to keep on track, to continue our life plan, or to relate to God at all. We are like a clipper ship trying to cross the ocean without a compass.

It is our blessing that God will never leave us rudderless, floundering on the waves and swells of life. His light shines out to those who love Him and serve Him. This light shows His people the path they should go, and lets them know Him for all the wonder of who He is and how He loves us. His light also enables us to become a His light to others.

For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness,"
 is the One who has shone in our hearts to give
the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.

2 Corinthians 4:6

"Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people
into the land which the LORD has sworn to their fathers to give them,
and you shall give it to them as an inheritance. 

"The LORD is the one who goes ahead of you;
 He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.
Do not fear or be dismayed."

Deuteronomy 31:7b-8

This coming Thursday there is another planned outage for my neighborhood. This one is scheduled to happen from 8:00 am to 5 pm. This will be a really big inconvenience, but the amazing and invaluable light that I require will be right in place where I need it.

Written by
Corinne Mustafa


8/4/13

Salvation

Go get 'em!
Share the good news.
Use what God gifted you with to lead others to Him.

Some may think me weak
Or needy of some guarantees
What they think does not matter to me.

My beliefs give me peace
No need to worry
About what happens next.



I believe in everlasting life
That nothingness of death will not be
The end of my existence.


It makes me glad
And it brings me peace and joy
No need to worry about what happens next.

If I am wrong it does not matter
I live in comfort and not in fear
I will not know the difference in the end.

But if I am right I will live
Forever in the reflected glory of God
If I am right…what about you?

©Corinne Mustafa