It Takes a Lot

 

 

It takes a lot, I have noticed

To move the Almighty God,

It’s almost like begging the Government

To respond to an urgent call.

 

A lot of prayer is requested

And nowadays they have to shout

And as if all of this were not sufficient

They must get warriors with clout.

 

Intercessory prayer

Meaning on someone’s behalf

Just like the High Priest in Bible times

Interceded for Israel past.

 

Then they sacrificed animals

To temporarily expiate sin

But now as individuals Jesus invites

All and sundry to come to him.

 

We seem not to understand

Our standing in Jesus Christ

And that his indwelling Holy Spirit

More than satisfies.

 

Thus, it often puzzles me

As to whom we are praying,

It really cannot be God Almighty

Given what we are saying.

 

For oft in the midst of praying

We turn to address the Devil

Commanding him to do this and that

And remind him of his peril.

 

We send him back to hell

From where he apparently came

And demand he remove his filthy hand

From all in Jesus’ name.

 

A conversation with Satan!

Intercessors revel in this

While losing focus of the Almighty God

And lots of benefits miss.

 

Peace of mind, for sure

With the comfort that He gives,

As well as the wisdom and understanding

By which we daily live.

 

 

We go to the intercessors

And then they shout at God,

Meanwhile we stand and noisily agree

And sometimes someone falls.

 

Desperate circumstances

Require desperate measures

Hence, we rant and rave and carry on

To unlock God-given treasures.

 

It really takes a lot

At least, that’s how it appears

To get the Almighty God to respond

To His children and their cares.

 

 

 

It was not so with Eli

Or with Aaron or Samuel,

  It was not so with the disciples

Or any of the apostles.

 

Why must it be so, I ask,

With modern day intercessors?

Why must they come over so harshly

Behaving like oppressors?

 

Somewhat known

For their lengthy prayers

Other services become prayer meetings

Overburdened with cares.

 

Oh, that it could be similar

Regarding the study of the Word,

No doubt many would consider this

Somewhat absurd.

 

 

 

Lord, give us a passion

For your Holy Word

That our prayers would align with you

And with your Word concur.

 

Prayer is very important

And none should deny this

But at no time should it come over

Like a shopping list.

 

Neither should it be a noise

As in quarrelling with God

Demonstrating to all within earshot

God hears when we bawl.

 

 

There will be times in our life

When the heat will be hot

But having an empathetic Father

Is the believer’s lot.

 

Isaiah 65:24

 

And it shall come to pass,

That before they call, I will answer;

And while they are yet speaking,

I will hear.

 

God hears and answers prayer

Is the promise to the born again,

Praise Him in all your circumstances

And bless His Holy name.

 

Stewart Russell © May 22, 2024

 

A Parody of the Doxology

 

 

Blame God from whom all cyclones blow,

Blame him, all creatures here below,

Blame Him, who knocks down church and steeple,

Who sends the floods and drowns the people.

 

Anonymous

 

I ponder on this writer’s worldview

But not for long

For whatever his origins’ position

This view is wrong.

 

Instead

 

 Praise God from whom all blessings flow,

Praise Him, all creatures here below,

Praise Him above the heavenly hosts,

Praise Father, Son ad Holy Ghost.

 

He could be a creationist

Or an evolutionist,

Be it one or the other

There is much he has missed.

 

He may have been joking

Like some of us do,

But somethings you don’t joke about

Is my considered view.

 

People mocked the donkey

From time immemorial

As a result, the following was written

It’s rather satirical.

 

A Parody of the Donkey

 

When fishes walk and forest flew

And figs grew upon thorns,

Some moment when the moon was blood

Then surely, I was born.

 

G. K. Chesterton

 

Just one verse I have written

To define what’s a parody,

It speaks of a time that never was

As the origin of the donkey.

 

Treated with utter contempt

In this some find their humour,

And though the matter be serious

For some it evokes laughter.

 

The frogs were having a swim

One day in a village pool

Along came some village boys

And each became a fool.

 

They began to stone the frogs

And one by one they died,

But a wise old frog opened up his mouth

And the boys’ actions he decried.

 

“What’s fun for you boys Is death to us,”

That wise old frog remarked,

A valued lesson for those young boys

And a very good place to start.

 

 

Some blame God for all that’s wrong

But for the good man gets the praise,

Hence, this parody of the doxology

No need to repeat what it says.

 

I must confess I would be afraid

To refer to God in such a way,

God in evil does not participate

Never in the past or even today.

 

So that parody we will strike out

And go with what we know:

Praise God from whom all blessings flow

Praise Him all creatures here below.

 

Stewart Russell © September 23, 2021

 

 

 

My Response

 

A Parody of the Doxology

Blame God from whom all cyclones blow,

Blame him, all creatures here below,

Blame Him, who knocks down church and steeple,

Who sends the floods and drowns the people.

Anonymous

I ponder on this writer’s worldview

But not for long

For whatever his origins’ position is

This view is terribly wrong.

Let me write out the doxology

So that we all can compare

The truth about the Almighty God

And the nonsense that men often air.

 Praise God from whom all blessings flow,

Praise Him, all creatures here below,

Praise Him above the heavenly hosts,

Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

What a departure this parody is!

What a severe distortion of truth!

Clearly this writer is making claims

For which he has no proof.

He could be a creationist

Or an evolutionist, he might be,

Be it one or the other,

There is much he cannot see.

He may have been joking

Like some of us tend to do,

But somethings you don’t joke about

Is my considered view.

People mocked the donkey

From time immemorial;

As a result, the following was written:

It is rather satirical.

  

The donkey does the talking,

Aware of how he is perceived,

These first two verses make the point

He hopes we human will receive.

When fishes walk and forests flew

And figs grew upon thorns,

Some moment when the moon was blood

Then surely, I was born.

With monstrous head and sickening cry

And ears like errant wings,

The devil’s walking parody

On all four-footed things.

G. K. Chesterton

Just two verses I have written

To define this parody,

It speaks of a time there never was

As the origin for the donkey.

Treated with utter contempt

In this some find their humour,

And though the matter be serious,

For these it evokes laughter.

You might recall the fable of old

Written by the Greek author, Aesop,

When the village boys engaged in fun

But for the frogs, it certainly was not.

The frogs were having a swim

One day in a village pool,

Along came some village boys

And each became a fool.

They began to stone the frogs

And one by one they died,

But a wise old frog opened up his mouth

And the boys’ actions he decried. 

“What’s fun for you Is death to us,”

That wise old frog remarked,

A valuable lesson for those young boys

And a very good place to start.

Some blame God for all that’s wrong

But for any good man gets the praise,

Hence, this parody of the doxology,

No need to repeat what it says.

I must confess I would be afraid

To refer to God in such a way

But there are some who wouldn’t care less

Even if He should some of them slay.

God takes responsibility, I believe,

For all that He has created,

Especially human beings like you and me

Whose brains often seem cremated.

Like the writer of this parody

That may seem to be very clever,

To him it might have been humorous

But to God it brings no pleasure.

I will take one thing from his parody,

That is, he recognizes God,

The fact he blames Him for cyclones

Says there is a God, after all.

There’s hope, I believe, for such;

It’s the first step to being rewarded,

For one must believe that God exists

If life to him should be accorded.

So, I would say to my fellow writer

Now, take it to the logical step,

Disabuse your mind from this parody of justice

And thank Jesus for paying your debt.

Yes, God did curse the world

But on account of man’s deliberate sin,

But he also gave His only Son

Through whom we can come to Him.

He is our refuge in the cyclone

And our protector in the floods,

And in any circumstance that comes our way

God always demonstrates He is good.

Stewart Russell © March 2020

Give God Praise

For waking you up this morning

Give Him Praise

In joy or even in mourning

Give Him Praise

When the going gets rough

Give him Praise

And when confronted by the tough

Give Him Praise

No food at all in the home

Give Him Praise

Not a friend and standing alone

Give Him Praise

Cost of living up and economy down

Give Him Praise

And everyone is wearing a frown

Give Him Praise

In the happy times of festival

Give Him Praise

Amidst grief of a loved one’s funeral

Give Him praise

When there’s all round approval

Give Him Praise

And when there’s total refusal

Give Him Praise

When the children misbehave

Give Him Praise

And when spouses rant and rave

Give Him Praise

When sermons begin to sting

Give Him Praise

When melodies lift and ring

Give Him Praise

When darkness dims and blinds

Give Him Praise

And the daily life just grinds

Give Him Praise

No money on the banks

Give Him Praise

No one returns to say thanks

Give Him Praise

When the climb is ever steep

Give Him Praise

And instead of laughter you weep

Give Him Praise

The prognosis says no tomorrow

Give Him Praise

Can’t repay what you borrow

Give Him Praise

Convicted yet you are innocent

Give Him Praise

Did you wrong but won’t repent

Give Him Praise

Overlooked you for another

Give Him Praise

Could help but just won’t bother

Give Him Praise

Everyone’s happy though you are sad

Give Him Praise

For the good, indifferent and bad

Give him Praise

Pains in the day and all night long

Give Him Praise

Heart aching and there’s not a song

Give Him Praise

Don’t feel like it one little bit

Give Him Praise

Uncomfortable to stand or even sit

Give Him Praise

When there is repeated success

Give Him Praise

When everything done is a mess

Give Him Praise

When thieves strike and fires rage

Give Him praise

When evil seems an unending stage

Give Him Praise

Taxes are due and the bills arrive

Give Him Praise

Nothing happening though I strive

Give Him Praise

Significant others disappoint

Give Him Praise

Oft in the valley less on the mount

Give Him Praise

Father berate and mother forsake

Give him Praise

Family behave like nothing’s at stake

Give Him Praise

Tsunami, hurricane and all close in

Give Him Praise

Lost of property and next-of-kin

Give Him Praise

All appears ‘going down the drain’

Give Him Praise

Beginning to buckle can’t hold strain

Give Him Praise 

Stop and recall it could be worse

Give Him Praise

Free I am from sin’s awful curse

Give Him Praise

Troubles today will come to an end

Give Him Praise

Eternity with Jesus we shall spend

Give Him Praise

So together let the phrase ring out

Give Him Praise

Come what may we all can shout

Give Him Praise!

Give God the Praise!

Stewart Russell © 2014