Category: poetry

Fruitful-Living Memorials

During the heavy rains our old peach tree was so heavy with fruit two limbs split. This old tree has been very fruitful and had seasons of being less fruitful.

This stately peach tree is a daily reminder to me. Psalm 92:14, we shall bear fruit in old age, and we shall be full of sap.

But our promise holds true. Warn the others. Introduce them to the Rock of our salvation. Teach them about the hope we have, our Anchor which is Christ. Teach them about the precious gift of repentance. The goodness of God toward them and us is to lead us to repent and see the goodness of God toward us. Help them develop their spiritual eyes and hearing ears.

Sap is the blood of the tree.

Tree sap is a fluid that circulates, (like blood circulates through our veins). Sap flows and circulates through a tree carrying water, sugar, minerals, and other nutrients. It basically plays the role of blood for a tree and other plants.

JPS Tanakh 1917
They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; They shall be full of sap and richness;

Limb Splitting Harvest

A limb splitting harvest
Hold tightly to the Vine
Some fruit was shaken
During this time

Disciples hold tight
Maturity evident
Abiding in the Vine
Knowledgeable and relevant

The book of Hebrews warns about falling away, and this came more alive to me this season. If they abandon the faith, it is impossible to turn them back…

Fruit removed or plucked from the vine or branch cannot be restored back to the vine. It is lost. It is impossible to put it back.

Hold on tight. No matter what. If the limb shakes, splits or seems fallen, Hold on tight. God has us tightly in His grasp, He will not let us go.

This warning is to those who are about to make a terrible choice.

“if he abandons his faith, there is no use even trying to lead him to repentance. By their sin of apostasy they re-crucify the Son of God, and have publicly repudiated him.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭6‬:‭6‬ ‭TPT‬‬

“If they then deviate from the faith and turn away from their allegiance–[it is impossible] to bring them back to repentance, for (because, while, as long as) they nail upon the cross the Son of God afresh [as far as they are concerned] and are holding [Him] up to contempt and shame and public disgrace.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭6‬:‭6‬ ‭AMPC‬‬

“The [uncompromisingly] righteous shall flourish like the palm tree [be long-lived, stately, upright, useful, and fruitful]; they shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon [majestic, stable, durable, and incorruptible]. Planted in the house of the Lord, they shall flourish in the courts of our God. [Growing in grace] they shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be full of sap [of spiritual vitality] and [rich in the] verdure [of trust, love, and contentment]. [They are living memorials] to show that the Lord is upright and faithful to His promises; He is my Rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. [Rom. 9:14.]”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭92‬:‭12‬-‭15‬ ‭AMPC‬‬

I will harvest the fruit from split limbs.

God bless you and keep you and make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord cause His countenance to rise upon you and give you Shalom.

Until next time, thanks for listening with me. laurette

Interesting article 👇

What Exactly Is Tree Sap?

So delicate yet so sturdy.

Honeysuckle Yellow

Honeysuckle yellow
Meticulous frill
Springtime Iris’
Bids my heart be still

Delicate one’s
Withstand the wind
Created for glory
Testifies of Him

Colorful blossoms
Beautiful and smooth
Welcomes the rain
We can conclude

Springtime Iris’
Bids my heart be still
Mystery of mysteries
Creator’s Quill

©️ laurette laster April 6th 2024

In floriography, the iris flower symbolizes faith, courage, valour, hope and wisdom.

”The season has changed, the bondage of your barren winter has ended, and the season of hiding is over and gone.
The rains have soaked the earth and left it bright with blossoming flowers.
The season for singing and pruning the vines has arrived. I hear the cooing of doves in our land, filling the air with songs to awaken you and guide you forth.“
‭‭Song of Songs‬ ‭2‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭TPT‬‬

God bless you and keep you and make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord cause His countenance to rise upon you and give you Shalom.

Until next time, thank you for listening with me. laurette

When my heart is overwhelmed…

We hear a lot about right place and right time. While I do not disagree, I know this, when my heart was desperately seeking…

When I was in the wrong place, God rescued me out of the miry (dung) clay.

When I was lost, God supernaturally set my feet securely upon the Rock, and that Rock is Christ. He is always near.

I pray we never forget we serve a God who transcends time and space.

“Love So Pure” demands and requires our whole hearted devotion.

”For no matter where I am, even when I’m far from home, I will cry out to You for a Father’s help. When I’m feeble and overwhelmed by life, guide me into Your glory, where I am safe and sheltered.

Psalm 61:2 TPT

A perfect dance
A perfect song
Rhythmic sway
Glides along

A happy heart
Delicately handled
A blissful day
Never abandon

A dreary day
A heavy heart
Times of distress
Sadness depart

Perfect love
One Divine
Where to begin
Seek and find

Flawless beauty
Void of defect
Word of God
Alive, Perfect

Spirit and Truth
Worshippers find
Perfections Glory
Sincere, Sublime

Perfect day
New rhythm: Glance
Impeccably Choreographed
Never by chance

Creation speaks
God’s sovereign motion
“Love so Pure”
Requires Devotion

©️ laurette laster January 26, 2024

You have heard my sweet resolutions to love and serve You, for I am Your beloved. And You have given me an inheritance of rich treasures, which You give to all Your devoted lovers.“
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭61‬:‭5‬ ‭TPT‬‬

John‬ ‭4‬:‭23‬-‭24‬, ‭26‬ ‭TPT‬‬

Jesus said, “”Worshiping the Father will not be a matter of the right place but with a right heart. For God is a Spirit, and He longs to have sincere worshipers who adore Him in the realm of the Spirit and in truth.” Jesus said to her, “You don’t have to wait any longer, the Anointed One is here. I am the One you’re looking for.”“

God bless you and keep you and make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord cause His face to shine upon you and give you Shalom.

Until next time, thanks for listening with me, laurette.
‭‭

“There is no Wi-Fi in the forest, but I promise you will find a better connection.” –Ralph Smart

Foraged Treasures

Squirrels scamper
In the leaves
Acorns fall
At autumns breeze

Uncle Joe’s cabin
Beckons me
From Prayer Mountain
In Ozark territory

At the cabin
In the woods
Leaves have fallen
As they should

Deer are foraging
Meals procured
Sights and sounds
Simple, obscure

Squirrels scamper
Up and down
Nature unfolds
All around

Footsteps heard
From heaving oaks
Sounds of seasons
Nature’s cloak

What shall I bring
Home with me
Foraged treasures
His tender mercies

©️laurette laster November 4, 2023

Isaiah 30:15

For thus says the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel: “In returning and rest you shall be saved; In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.”
But you refused.

May the last sentence not be said of us…

God’s creation, the poetry of heaven!

God bless you and keep you and make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord cause His countenance to rise upon you and give you Shalom!

Until next time, thank you for listening with me, laurette.

If you’re looking for a quiet place to spend time in The Lord’s presence, we highly recommend Billye Brim’s Prayer Mountain in the Ozarks! God sent us here 11 yrs. ago, and we keep coming back.

Welcome to Teshuvah, Elul 4

During Moses second 40 day visit, God, instructed him to chisel a second set of stone tablets and bring with him. When God sent Moses down the mountain with the original set, (Exodus 32:15-19) upon seeing what the people had done, Moses cast the two tablets of The Testimony out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain.

The “original” agreement and plan broken, again. God assured Moses He would write on the second set of tablets, and He did! However God would not supply the second set of tablets, Moses would be ushered into this ministry of reconciliation, see 2 Corinthians 5: 18-19.

Two tablets; the first, instructions for our heart toward God, the second, instructions for our mind toward our fellow man and believers.

Law & Order was the original plan!

Law is required and necessary to govern people, and the word of God is necessary to govern God’s way. How else are we to be known as the people of God? God refers to His people as a Holy Nation, a peculiar people, set apart or sanctified people. (Found in the book of Exodus and 1st Peter)

Sanctified, meaning His very own workmanship, God’s masterpiece. Having His Name engraved on the art. Ephesians 2:10.

Excerpt for “His Work of Art”

You are His workmanship
Created in Christ Jesus
You’re not useless
That is not how He sees us

You are a solution
For this starving generation
Look around pay attention
To where you are stationed

He placed a clue
Deep inside your heart
Crying Abba Father
His very own work of art

“Like that priceless Picasso
His masterpiece and plan
His Breath His Pneuma
The very work of His hand”

Copyright © laurette laster 2019 all rights reserved

“We have become his poetry, a re-created people that will fulfill the destiny he has given each of us, for we are joined to Jesus, the Anointed One. Even before we were born, God planned in advance our destiny and the good works we would do to fulfill it!” (‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭2:10‬

Jesus Christ fulfilled the Ten Words He did not abolish the Law of God.

Teshuvah is my favorite time of year. What was concealed now revealed in Christ Jesus.

“This is the agreement (Testament, Covenant) that I will set up and conclude with them after those days, says the Lord: I will imprint My laws upon their hearts, and I will inscribe them on their minds (on their inmost thoughts and understanding),

Not forsaking or neglecting to assemble together [as believers], as is the habit of some people, but admonishing (warning, urging, and encouraging) one another, and all the more faithfully as you see the day approaching.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭10‬:‭16‬, ‭25‬ ‭AMPC‬‬

The Ecclesia or Assembly, we call the church, must follow Christ and the laws now imprinted in our hearts and engraved or inscribed on our minds. As uncomfortable as it may seem, we are instructed to correct, admonish, warn, and urge others.

A season to seek Him, and moreover ask Him to do a thorough scan and show what needs to be cleansed.

A season to present our heart and mind before Him, and say engrave Your Name deeper into my very being.

Say it with me, Yes Lord! Engrave Your Name deeper on this work and make me Your masterpiece.

Ani L’ Dodi V’ Dodi Li

Teshuvah, my favorite time of year.

Blessings, laurette

God bless you and keep you and make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord cause His countenance to rise upon you and give you Shalom.

Until next time, thank you for listening with me. laurette

It’s close and my heart knows.

Welcome to the Eve of Teshuvah, my favorite time of the year. The season that calls to me. Is Teshuvah is calling you?

On the eve of 40 Days of Teshuvah, Elul 1, I’m reminded of days long ago. When Bibles were on every coffee table. Given center stage in the room, making a profound statement. Saying this house believes. While giving the Bible center stage in a room we neglected the innermost rooms of our bellies.

A reset. Time to return, go back, search, remember, find the reliable paths, determine to walk in them, teach them, and set our hearts securely on Jesus Christ.

Where’s Our Bible

Once so guarded
Precious to the heart
Turned to decor
Assigned a limited part

The words within
Proven to atone
Unread, forgotten
Withering alone

Decorative centerpiece
Status symbol for show
The meaning long forgotten
Immorality began to grow

The soul of our being
Left hungering, unattended
Our Bibles became decoration
Human kind descended

Written to be ingested
Learned and studied
Idle on coffee tables
Minds became muddied

We lost our way
We forgot our call
While many moved them
To a bookshelf wall

Our innermost being
Hungers and thirsts
Let’s go back
Remember the first

Our nation’s founders
Knew and read
The Holy Book
Feared the dread

Of turning away
From the Sovereign God
Left many documents
Knowing men are flawed

Where’s our Bible
I challenge you to read
Especially about our Savior
His will to intercede

Christianity must have
Central place
Our nation is desperate
For God’s great grace

I hear our Savior’s cry
Give Me My rightful place
Return to reliable paths
Leave behind this disgrace

©️ laurette laster August 2023

I’ve been reminded of days gone by, windows raised, houses opened, and coffee table bibles in every home. We had one too, this is it in the photo below.

Desperately desiring the truths inside, while not understanding what to do with “it.”
Like a jeanie in a bottle, would the truths jump out if “it” was in the house.

So comfortable we forgot the meaning. So peaceful we couldn’t imagine danger. But within every page lies a stark reminder…

Remember the Lord your God, thou shalt have no other gods before me.

But we forgot. Then we didn’t know. Then we cry out. And God answers us through the prophet Jeremiah, stand and look, ask for ancient paths, ask where the good way is, but the word goes on, and walk in it and you will
find rest for your souls.

Jesus knew this, and Jeremiah was prophesying Jesus Day, the Lord Jesus quotes Jeremiah’s very words, (Matthew 7:7, 11:28).

Off even a little, for long durations, turns into missing the mark by miles.

Psalms 119:11 from the acrostic poem, the mathematical masterpiece, [found with Bet or house] “I consider Your prophecies to be my greatest treasure, and I memorize them and write them on my heart to keep me from committing sin’s treason against You.”

Teshuvah, my favorite time of the year. A time to return.

Jeremiah 6:16
This is what the LORD says: Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask which paths are the old, reliable paths. Ask which way leads to blessings. Live that way, and find a resting place for yourselves. But you said that you wouldn’t live that way.
GWT ®️

This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
NIV

Let the last sentence not be said of us. God only needs a remnant. W.A.R.

Blessings of returning, laurette

It’s close and my heart knows…

God bless you and keep you and make His face shine upon and be gracious to you. The Lord cause His countenance to rise upon you and give you Shalom.

Until next time, thanks for listening with me. laurette

My heart knows, yes, my heart knows the season.

Days away from the first of Elul, Teshuvah is so close and my heart knows.
The Hebrew month of ELUL is an acronym; Ani L’Dodi V’Dodi Li-meaning in Hebrew,
I am my Beloved’s, my Beloved is mine.

Originally known only as the sixth month, derived this name during the diaspora. A Lord worth searching for, and a longing fulfilled. What could we glean…

The first letters of each word spell out ELUL, a time of return, repentance and self examination, a month to correct our course, being certain our focus and course is headed in the right direction. A time to center completely on our relationship with The Lord, commanded to love God, but deeper, a soul hunger that is cultivating a real relationship, being certain this love is returned in full surrender to One who calls us. He has chosen us. He is compassionate and long suffering and only merciful.

August’s Fall Breeze

August’s fall breeze
Soul captivating
Heralds a change
Has my heart pulsating

Seasons come and
Seasons change
His promises are true
Remain the same

Not one word
Falls to the ground
Our God is Mighty
Just look around

From the rising to the setting
Summer to fall
Our Lord Triumphant
Creator of all

© laurette laster August 2023

Oh yes I say with full surrender
Ani L’Dodi V’Dodi Li

Blessings, laurette

God Bless you and keep you and make His face shine toward you and be gracious to you. The Lord cause His countenance to rise upon you and give you Shalom.

Until next time, thank you for listening with me. laurette