SONSHINE: I am not

I have been writing of and hopefully exposing this foul and self serving "I AM" spirit that pervades so much of this mixed New Age/Christian movement. As so often happens when my heart is stayed on Jesus the Holy Spirit will lay the most amazing things in my lap that confirm to me that I am on the right path. So it was yesterday as I challenged the "I AM'ers" on a forum I have been frequenting lately. As I was searching my old files for something totally unrelated to any forum, I ran across this which beautifully contrasts this counterfeit "I AM" the New Age camp embraces. While many of these misguided souls proclaim their own Godship, free of Jesus Christ, the words of this centuries old hymn illustrate perfectly my present view. I know many of you will also identify with these words, as we are coming to "naught" that "Christ be All." How far this is from the place where self and soul proclaim "I AM."

Jack

"I Am Not"

"I am not;" O words unwelcome
To the lips of men
"I am not;" O words that lead us
Back to God again!

Speech of him who knows the pathway
To that refuge sweet,
Where is covert from the tempest,
Shadow from the heat.

Speech of Heaven, from wise men hidden,
Unto children taught;
Few the words of that great lesson,
Only "I am not."

Heart of man, another language
Is thy native speech,
Spoken by a thousand races,
All alike in each.

"I am,"rich, or wise, or holy
"Thus, and thus am I;"
For "I am," men live and labour,
For "I am," they die.

For "I am," men dare and suffer,
Count all loss as gain,
Toil and weariness and bondage,
Sin and grief and pain.

In the blessed Gospel read we
How a rich man bade
Christ the Lord and His disciples
To a feast he made.

Well it was to feed the prophet;
Thus the rich man thought,
But amidst his wealth and bounty
Lacked he "I am not."

Then there came a sinful woman,
Eyes with weeping dim
"I am not," her heart was saying
She had looked on Him.

He beheld her broken-hearted,
Ruined and undone,
Yet enthroned above the angels
Brighter than the Sun.

All the while in dust before Him
Did her heart adore,
"I am not," that song of gladness
"Thou art, evermore."

For His heart to hers had spoken,
To His wandering lamb;
In the speech of Love Eternal,
He had said "I AM."

Now she thirsts no more for ever,
All she would is given;
None on earth hath she beside Him,
None beside in Heaven.

Oh how fair that heavenly portion,
That eternal lot;
Christ, and Christ alone, for ever
Ever "I am not."

(Henry Suso)

"There are but two truths and only two; the "all" and the "nothing." Everything else is a falsity. (Guyon)

Joian Ruth Schroff

God is good. And Joian, more than any of us, knows this. Our sister, and my best friend, rests in the Father's bosom, today. Dear Joian's sojourn, on earth, ended early last winter, after a period of illness.

Together, Joian and myself began "SONSHINE" in "07". Last June, we took our rest from the blog.

Great battles, were waged this last year, by both Joian and myself. One was taken and one was left. Neither, the taking, nor the leaving, lacks in His perfect providence, afforded each. I can't explain, nor fully understand, how each can be perfect. Never the less, I do know, Joian understands it perfectly.

Today, Joian, more than any, knows God is good.

Jack

PS. Thoughts of your joyful rest relieve my tears, tonight. I miss you, my friend. I'll see you soon.

Great Quotes

Those who believe they believe in God but without passion in the heart, without anguish of mind, without uncertainty, without doubt, and even at times without despair, believe only in the idea of God, and not in God, Himself. Madeleine L' Engle
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"If anything about my salvation or right standing with God depends on my faithfulness, I'm toast, damned to hell." Gavazzoni
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Any infinite Being who feels it is their duty to torture me for eternity, should switch to decaf. Joe
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Everyday people are straying away from the church and going back to God. -- Lennie Bruce
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"He took responsibility for all the evils that have befallen man that day He gave His life. This has never been adequately appreciated by religion. It needs to be appreciated." (Roy)
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"Isn't that what man always wants- a divine force he can control? That's actually the definition of witchcraft." (Florian)
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"Christianity is not about polyester and pot roast. It's about Christ and what He's doing in you and me at the moment." (Holly)
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"It's his life for ours. We die, he lives, and then the mystery is that we live again." (Joian)
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"God's Spirit, is a pure motive" (Cardinal)
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"I would rather train twenty men to pray, than a thousand to preach. A minister's highest mission ought to be to teach his people to pray." (H. MacGregor)
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Pretty soon, everybody will get what they deserve, which is Salvation, Reconciliation, Restitution, Restoration, Immortality and Incorruption - now ain't that the coolest thing! (Keith)
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The bible is not an owners manual and trying to apply it to our lives reeks of salvation by works. (Cam)
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I live all the daytime
In faith and in might
And in holy rapture
I die every night (Novalis)
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Where shall we find an abandonment that is as comprehensive as the will of God. (Fenelon)
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He wanted no one but God to witness what he did, just as the only reward he expected was God Himself.(description of Bro. Lawrence)
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The humility of the cross became more desirable to him than all the glory the world had to offer. (description of Bro. Lawrence)
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Prayer is helplessness casting itself upon power; it is misery seeking peace; it is unholiness embracing purity; it is hatred desiring love. Prayer is corruption panting for immortality; it is the eagle soaring heavenward; it is the dove returning home; it is the prisoner pleading for release; it is the mariner steering for the haven amid the dangerous storm; it is the soul, oppressed by the world, escaping to the empyrean, and bathing its ruffled plumes in the ethereal and the divine.(unknown)