In My Haste

 

 

 

 

“I said in my haste,

All men are liars.”

A quote from the Psalmist David-

A situation quite dire.

 

A very sweeping statement

I am sure you would agree

Hence, one that I certainly find

Difficult to see.

 

But it was said in haste

The speaker did admit

Thus, on reflection also suggesting

Hi, we should acquit.

 

Romans 3:4

 

But if this is the case

What must we do with the scripture:

“Let God be true

But every man a liar.”?

 

Certainly, God is true

And thus, He cannot lie,

Titus 1 verse 2 bears out this,

Who am I to deny?

 

On none of His promises

Has God ever faulted,

Unlike many of our world leaders

That we have exalted.

 

Their record is so poor

It makes their promises lies

And as a result, in some countries,

People are dying like flies.

 

“In my haste,” David said,

It was like, who can I trust?

Obviously, however he had turned,

Lying was the thrust.

 

On reflection, however,

It appears that he reneged

Thus, it appears somewhat to me,

For forgiveness he begged.

 

Don’t hold it against him,

It was said in his haste

And words uttered without thinking

 Can lead to waste.

 

By whose authority

Did David declare such?

Certainly not by God’s authority,

We now know this much.

 

It was a hasty remark,

That is as much we do know,

Look no further, my friend,

The scripture says so.

 

 

 

It was not the first time

David had spoken in his haste,

Turn back to Psalm 31 verse 22

Where there is a trace.

 

There, his “in my haste”

Was said as a reflection on God

But his very next statement showed

His reflection was flawed. 

 

So, whatever David meant

It was said in a haste

And cannot be attributed to Jesus-

Not even a trace.

 

However, compared to God

“That cannot lie”

All men are prone to lying

And this, we can’t deny.

 

Stewart Russell © July 8, 2023

 

Psalm 118:24

 

 

“This is the day,”

How we so lustily sing!

“We will rejoice and be glad in it”

And O what joy it brings!

 

It’s truly a lift

From our sunken depths

Especially after an experience

That brought regret.

 

“This is the day,”

And it doesn’t matter what,

There’s no such thing as a bad day;

God created the whole lot.

 

That’s how I viewed it

Until someone shared with me

This entire chapter

And then I began to see.

 

We sing it and enjoy it

But we miss its context,

The Psalmist saw a lot more

In this significant text.

 

We think of creation

And that God made each day,

Nothing’s wrong with that

But David had more to say.

 

 

David had a preview

Of God’s amazing grace

When the Messiah would come

And take his place.

 

And so, in God’s assurance

He could confidently say,

This is the day, prophetically speaking

Of Christ’s coming day.

 

The day of atonement!

The day of so great salvation!

Twenty-eight generations before,

David saw his redemption.

 

 

He rejoiced back then

As though the time was nigh,

“This is the Lord’s doing,” he says,

It is marvelous in our eyes.

 

More than a thousand years

To come before Christ’s time

But the glorious Gospel of salvation

Was on David’s mind.

 

“The stone the builders refused

Is become the headstone,”

“This is the day,” David said,

And in this he was not alone.

 

We will rejoice and be glad in it.

 

Stewart Russell © August 12, 2021

 

Sheep-ology

 

“You silly sheep” is the insult hurled

At persons who commit folly,

Yet Jesus chose to be the Lamb

To die for our stupidity.

More that that he is the Shepherd

That looks after silly sheep,

I am glad I am one of them

For at night I can comfortably sleep.

This poem is named “Sheep-ology”

For in it we will study sheep,

And I trust that will stay with me

As I do not intend to be very deep.

As I said before I am a sheep

And not given to too much study

But bear with me on this occasion

As I share with you “Sheep-ology”.

It’s not a good-looking animal

I am sure with this you would agree,

Its ugliness may be its lone defense

That’s one point to being ugly.

No horns, no growl, no bark

Nothing to frighten off an enemy,

No tricks, no guile, no fleetness of feet

The sheep is an animal most silly.

No notion of hunting for its food

Or even to search for water

But as soon as these needs arise

The silly sheep becomes a wailer.

Its legs appear prone to break

So spindly for its ill shaped body

And its fore legs being shorter than the back

Hinders its running away in a hurry.

Its vision is surely not the best

When compared to other animals,

Perhaps that is one of the reasons

It is so dependable on people.

  

Animals do some form of grooming

But you’ll not find this with a sheep,

Sheep are at home in their urine and filth

And never a time do they smell sweet.

Sheep are very easily spooked

Especially when they are grazing

But the way they follow a leader

Is absolutely amazing.

Like the camel and the llama

Their teeth are made for grass

The front to bite the back to chew

Meat would be an impossible task.

The Psalmist David in the Psalms

Paints a picture of the sheep

And of the caring Shepherd also

That does not ever sleep.

The sheep needs no other defense

Whilst in this Shepherd’s care

And even when confronted by evil

Need not be overcome with fear.

The sheep to which I refer

Are the sheep in the Master’s care,

The sheep for which he gave his life

His sheep both far and near.

I rejoice in being Jesus’ sheep

It’s the best decision I ever made

Call me a silly sheep if you wish

I was lost but now I am saved.

No need of horns or fleet of feet

Neither claws nor ferocious growl,

I am safe within the Shepherd’s fold

Saved from the enemy most foul.

In the consideration of the world

I might not be bright

But this sheep is walking by faith

And definitely not by sight.

Stewart Russell © April 2019