Give Us New Life

 

“The Holy Spirit gives us new life” (Tit 3:5)

 

When Winter mist hangs still,

And frost invites a chill,

When days are short and dark,

And trees stand grey and stark;

When life’s depressed and dull,

And spirits seem to lull.

 

This time, this time of waiting,

Time between despair and hope,

This in-between time of expectation,

Time of learning to cope, waiting

For mist to rise from troubled hearts,

Frost to clear from numbed minds;

This precious time before

The Spirit comes.

 

Then suddenly, yet gently,

Like sunlight peering through

The greyness of our life,

You are there, You,

O Holy Spirit.

                     IF

We are moved by the Spirit,

       We are children of God;

And if we are children of God,

       We are heirs also;

And if we are heirs also

       We will share his sufferings here;

And if we will share his sufferings here

       We will share his glory hereafter;

And if we share his glory hereafter

       We are given his Spirit now;

And if we are given his Spirit now

       It is as the firth fruits

       of the harvest to come.

                                         (Cf Rom 8:)

 

Bathe Me In Your

Spirit’s Glow

 

Lord, if I were to think myself a flower

I wouldn’t be anything special,

Not an Orchid or anything exotic,

Nor a rose, or anything so delightful.

In fact, thinking about it

I wouldn’t be good enough

To be a flower at all

 

-More like a dandelion.

More a nuisance that anything else.

Something taken for granted.

Yet in your design, Lord,

When your sunlight bathes the grass

Even the common dandelion

Can look resplendent,

Enrobed more wondrously

Than royalty who live in a palace.

 

Lord, bathe me in your Spirit,

That I, however unworthy I am ,

However unimportant I feel,

May look something in your sight.

 

“We are called by god to be holy – since God gives his Holy Spirit” ( 1 Thess 4:7-8)

Loving Spirit,

Dwell Within My Heart

 

Lord, how deep, how wonderful

This mystery of your love for me.

 

It begins as a stirring of love

Deep within your heart,

This movement of your Spirit

Going forth everywhere

To fill the whole of your creation

 

Your love is the greatest grace

Beyond all that you have made,

So how is it that of any space

Where your love seeks to rest,

A love that nothing can confine,

It seeks to find a place

Deep within a heart like mine?

 

How terrible then

When I do not welcome your love,

Or worse ignore it,

Or worse still reject it.

 

Loving Spirit,

Dwell within my heart.

Amen

 

“God has given us his Spirit to dwell in our hearts” (2 Cor 1:22)

For Others

​

“By the Spirit’s power may you overflow with hope”                    (Rom 15:13)

 

For you who are dear to me,

For you who are fear to me;

For you who turn towards me

For you who turn from me,

For you who are a help to me

For you who are a hindrance to me

I wish you all well, so I ask:

The power of the Spirit to strengthen you,

The love of the Spirit to inflame you;

The joy of the Spirit to fill you;

The peace of the Spirit to refresh you;

The light of the Spirit to guide you;

The wisdom of the Spirit to counsel you. Amen

Guard The Entrance

To My Heart

 

“Your body, you must know, is the shrine of the

Holy Spirit, who dwells within you.” (1 Cor 6:19)

 

Spirit of God, you dwell within me,

You are more precious than any earthly monarch

Residing in splendour in a palace,

Yet you live in me in deepest humility.

 

Guard me, Lord

Guard the entrance to my heart;

Let no unworthy desires enter in.

Keep watch at the door of my mind;

Let no unworthy thoughts pass through.

 

May this dwelling place

Be worthy of you, most Holy Spirit,

So that I may rejoice in your presence,

And glory in the comfort of your peace.

Amen

Holy Spirit, Stir Me, Bend Me

 

Lord, thank you for those moments

When I feel your presence around me.

 

Sometimes you’re like a gentle breath

Lightly touching me,

Visiting me with your peace.

 

Sometimes you’re like a light breeze,

That rustles Summer leaves,

Refreshing coolness in the heat;

 

Sometimes you’re like a wind,

So strong I stir like grass,

Bending to the force of your love.

 

I thank you, Lord,

For these precious moments,

So undeserved by me.

 

I ask you, Lord,

Stir me like Summer grass,

Bend me like river reeds,

To the inspirations of your will.

Amen

​

“The wind blows wherever it pleases;

you hear its sound, but you cannot tell

whence it came or where it goes.

So it is with all those born of the Spirit”

(John 3:8)

 

As Snow blankets earth,

Blanket me in your love, Lord.

 

As snow hides everything,

Hide my faults away.

 

As snow rests light and delicate,

Rest gently on me, Holy Spirit.

 

As snow falls fresh,

Fall anew on me, Holy Spirit.

 

As snow settles

On even the humblest

Piece of grass,

Settle on me, Holy Spirit,

Small and insignificant

Though I seem.

 

Under the mantle of your goodness

Enfold me in you stillness,

Wrap me in your peace,

Show me your love.

 

Then I shall be ready

For a new Spring,

A new beginning,

A fresh start.

Amen

​

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“We serve God in a new way,

the way of the Spirit.” (Rom 7:6)

May I Glory In You,

Not In Myself

 

“If you have any fellowship with the Spirit, do nothing out of

Vain conceit, but with humility” (Phil 2:1,3)

 

Self-confidence is a wonderful thing,

But sometimes it goes beyond that,

When I seem proud, so conceited,

Thinking I am better than others,

Looking down my nose at people.

Yet even when I’m dressed to kill,

And have a real bob on myself, a chill

Towards others, even then I’m not really happy.

There’s a sourness to it all, a painful

Falseness, a putting on a show.

 

That’s when I realise, how much I really need you.

When I realise that is far, far better

To be humble before you, Lord,

Than to be proud before thew world.

 

Open my heart heart to the Spirit, Lord,

So that I can rejoice in your glory.

Rather than glory in myself.

Your Spirit dwells in hearts that are humble.

Make my heart humble, Lord,

That I may always rejoce in your presence within.

Amen.