Folks in Heaven

"Folks in Heaven"

I was shocked, confused, bewildered As I entered Heaven's door,

Not by the beauty of it all, Nor the lights or its decor.

But it was the folks in Heaven Who made me sputter and gasp--

The thieves, the liars, the sinners, The alcoholics and the trash.

There stood the kid from seventh grade Who swiped my lunch money twice.

Next to him was my old neighbor Who never said anything nice.

Herb, who I always thought Was rotting away in hell,

Was sitting pretty on cloud nine, Looking incredibly well.

I nudged Jesus, 'What's the deal? I would love to hear Your take.

How'd all these sinners get up here? God must've made a mistake.

And why is everyone so quiet, So somber - give me a clue.'

'Hush, child,' He said, 'they're all in shock. No one thought they'd be seeing you.'

by J. Taylor Ludwig

If You Only Would

There’s so much you could do if you only would.
Evil to turn into channels of good;
Lives to brighten and hearts to be warmed
Neighborhood services to be performed.

Old folks to visit, and young folks to guide;
Somebody somewhere for whom to provide.
Wide is the field if you’re willing to do
Something for others less favored than you.

Lamps of affection to trim and relight.
Wherever you look there are wrongs to put right.
People and problems to be understood.
There is so much you could do – if you only would.

Results or Roses

The man who wants a garden fair,
Or small or very big,
With flowers growing here and there,
Must bend his back and dig.

The things are mighty few on earth
That wishes can attain.
Whate'er we want of any worth
We've got to work to gain.

It matters not what goal you seek
Its secret here reposes:
You've got to dig from week to week
To get Results or Roses.

Edger A. Guest

The Touch of the Master's Hand

It was battered and scarred,
And the auctioneer thought it
hardly worth his while
To waste his time on the old violin,
but he held it up with a smile.

"What am I bid, good people", he cried,
"Who starts the bidding for me?"
"One dollar, one dollar, Do I hear two?"
"Two dollars, who makes it three?"
"Three dollars once, three dollars twice, going for three,"

But, No,
From the room far back a gray bearded man
Came forward and picked up the bow,
Then wiping the dust from the old violin
And tightening up the strings,
He played a melody, pure and sweet
As sweet as the angel sings.

The music ceased and the auctioneer
With a voice that was quiet and low,
Said "What now am I bid for this old violin?"
As he held it aloft with its' bow.

"One thousand, one thousand, Do I hear two?"
"Two thousand, Who makes it three?"
"Three thousand once, three thousand twice,
Going and gone", said he.

The audience cheered,
But some of them cried,
"We just don't understand."
"What changed its' worth?"
Swift came the reply.
"The Touch of the Masters Hand."

And many a man with life out of tune
All battered with bourbon and gin
Is auctioned cheap to a thoughtless crowd
Much like that old violin

A mess of pottage, a glass of wine,
A game and he travels on.
He is going once, he is going twice,
He is going and almost gone.

But the Master comes,
And the foolish crowd never can quite understand,
The worth of a soul and the change that is wrought
By the Touch of the Masters' Hand.

Myra Brooks Welch

No Word From You

Ain’t you got no paper friend?

Ain’t you got no pen?
Ain’t you got no envelope
To put the letter in?

Is you got the writers cramp?
Or is you broke your arm?
Is you got the rheumatis
From staying out so long?

Ain’t ya got no better thoughts
About me feelin blue?
Don’t you know it’s been ages
Since I heard from you?

Is you lost my address
And lost my letter too?
Don’t you know I’m bout to die
For lack for word form you?

Smile

The thing that goes the farthest

Towards making life worthwhile

That costs the least and does the most

Is just a pleasant smile.

The smile that bubbles from a heart

That loves its fellow men

Will drive away the cloud of gloom

And coax the sun again.

It’s full of warmth and goodness too

With manly kindness bent

Its worth a million dollars

And it doesn’t cost a cent.

One Solitary Life

He was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant. He grew up in another village, where he worked in a carpenter shop until he was 30. Then, for three years, he was an itinerant preacher.

He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family or owned a home. He didn't go to college. He never lived in a big city. He never traveled 200 miles from the place where he was born. He did none of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but himself.

He was only 33 when the tide of public opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied him. He was turned over to his enemies and went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross between two thieves. While he was dying, his executioners gambled for his garments, the only property he had on earth. When he was dead, he was laid in a borrowed grave, through the pity of a friend.

Twenty centuries have come and gone, and today he is the central figure of the human race. I am well within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned--put together--have not affected the life of man on this earth as much as that one, solitary life.*

*Attributed to James Allen Francis.

Love

A man without love,
Is a
Day without hope,
Is a
Song without music,
Is a
Poem without words.

By Gordon Parks

I love my family. We're truly blessed!
Dale Leifson

Availability, Dependability, and Capability

The Lord does not ask about our ability or inability,
But only about our availability.
If we prove our dependability,
The Lord takes care of our capability.

Neil A. Maxwell

The Second Chance

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We may not have the means at hand

To change a circumstance.

But we may gain, to our relief,

A welcome second chance.

A chance to prove that we will try,

With all our might and mind,

To change our way, to right some wrong,

And pull our weight again.

So let us thank the generous folk

Who overlook our lapse,

And put their trust in our success,

Where once we failed, perhaps.

The second chance can bring results,

The first one to out weigh

For in the mean time we have learned

A little more each day.

By Anna Hayward

Friends

Three friends have I
He who loves me
He who hates me
And he who is indifferent toward me

He who love me teaches me tenderness
He who hates me teaches me patience
He who is indifferent toward me
Teaches me self-reliance.

Smile

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A smile is such a funny thing;

It wrinkles up your face,

And then its gone you’ll never find

Its secret hiding place.

But, far more wonderful it is

To see what smiles can do;

You smile at one, he smiles at you,

And so one smile makes two.

I Love You

I love you

Not only for what you are,

But for what I am

When I’m with you.

I love you

Not only for what

You have made of yourself

But for what you have helped me to become.

I love you

For the part of me

That only you

Can bring out in me.

I love you

For passing over all of my

Foolish and weak treats

That you can’t help but see.

I love you

For drawing out into the light

The beauty that no one else had

Looked quite far enough to find.

I love you!

Dale Leifson

Christ Has Been There Before

“The road is too rough,” I said. "My Lord,
there are stones that hurt me so.”
He softly answered, “Dear child, I understand;
I walked it long ago”.

“But there’s a cool green path,” I said;
“Let me walk there for a time.”
“No child,” He gently answered me,
“The green road does not climb.”

“My burden,” I said, “Is far too great;
how can I bear it so?”
“My child,” said He, “I know its weight –
I carried my cross you know.”

“But,” I said, “If there were friends
who would make my way their own.”
“Aw yes,” He said, “Gethsemane
was hard to face alone!”

And so I climbed the stony path,
Content at least to know
That where my Master had not gone
I would not need to go.

And strangely then I found new friends.
The burdens grew less sore.
As I remembered, long ago –
He went that way before.

Leone Bays Gates

I Believe in Christ

I believe in Christ; he is my King!
With all my heart to him I’ll sing;
I’ll raise my voice in praise and joy,
In grand amens my tongue employ.
I believe in Christ; he is God’s Son.
On earth to dwell his soul did come.
He healed the sick; the dead he raised.
Good works were his; his name be praised.

I believe in Christ; oh blessed name!
As Mary’s Son he came to reign
’Mid mortal men, his earthly kin,
To save them from the woes of sin.
I believe in Christ, who marked the path,
Who did gain all his Father hath,
Who said to men: “Come, follow me,
That ye, my friends, with God may be.”

I believe in Christ—my Lord, my God!
My feet he plants on gospel sod.
I’ll worship him with all my might;
He is the source of truth and light.
I believe in Christ; he ransoms me.
From Satan’s grasp he sets me free,
And I shall live with joy and love
In his eternal courts above.

I believe in Christ; he stands supreme!
From him I’ll gain my fondest dream;
And while I strive through grief and pain,
His voice is heard: “Ye shall obtain.”
I believe in Christ; so come what may,
With him I’ll stand in that great day
When on this earth he comes again
To rule among the sons of men.

Bruce R. McConkie, 1915–1985

Good Timber

The tree that never had to fight
For sun and sky and air and light,
But stood out in the open plain
And always got its share of rain,
Never became a forest king
But lived and died a scrubby thing.

The man who never had to toil
To gain and farm his patch of soil,
Who never had to win his share
Of sun and sky and light and air,
Never became a manly man
But lived and died as he began.

Good timber does not grow with ease:
The stronger wind, the stronger trees;
The further sky, the greater length;
The more the storm, the more the strength.
By sun and cold, by rain and snow,
In trees and men good timbers grow.

Where thickest lies the forest growth,
We find the patriarchs of both.
And they hold counsel with the stars
Whose broken branches show the scars
Of many winds and much of strife.
This is the common law of life.

Douglas Malloch

Pray

I got up early one morning

And rushed into the day

I had so much to accomplish

That I didn’t have time to pray.

Problems came tumbling about me

And heaver came each task

Why doesn’t God help me, I wondered

He answered “You didn’t ask.”

I wanted to see Hoy and beauty

But the day dragged on gray and bleak

I wondered why God didn’t show me

He said, “You didn’t seek.”

I tried to come into God’s presence

I used all my keys at the lock

God gently and loving chided

“My child you didn’t knock.”

So I awoke early this morning

And paused before entering the day

I had so much to accomplish

That I had to take time to pray.

The Champion

The courageous runner runs until
the breath in him is gone,
But the champion has the iron will
that makes him carry on.

For rest the average runner begs
when limp his mussels grow,
But when the champion runs on laden legs
his courage makes him go.

The average man’s complacent when
He’s done his best to score,
But the champion does his best and then
He does a little more.

Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

Yesterday is already a dream,
And tomorrow is only a vision,
But today well lived makes every yesterday beautiful,
And every tomorrow a joy.

Prayer

We ask for strength and God sends us to difficulties which make us strong.

We pray for wisdom and God sends us problems, the solutions of which develop wisdom.

We plea for prosperity and God gives us brain and brawn to work.

We pray for courage and God gives us dangers to overcome.

We ask for favors and God gives us opportunities.

Candle Dipping

A candle's but a little thing
It starts with just a bit of string
Yet dipped and dipped with patient hand
It gathers wax upon the stand
Until, complete and snowy white
It gives at last a lovely light.

Life seems so like that bit of string
Each deed we do, a simple thing
Yet day by day if on life's strand
We work with patient heart and hand
It gathers joy, makes dark days bright
And gives at last a lovely light.

Author Unknown

Outwitted

He drew a circle that shut me out-

Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.

But love and I had the wit to win,

We drew a circle that took him in!

Edwin Markham

The Monument

God, before he sent his children into the world, gave each of them a carefully selected package of problems.
"These, He promised smiling, are yours alone.
"Only you have the special talents and abilities that will make these problems your servants, and no one else may have the blessing these problems will bring you.

"So, go down to your birth, and to your forgetting.

"Know that I love you beyond measure.
"The problems I give you are a token of my love.
"The monument you make of your life, with the help of your problems, will be a token of your love for me."

Your Father

Blaine M. Yorgason

Myself

I have to live with myself and so
I want to be fit for myself to know.
I want to be able as days go by
always to look myself straight in the eye;
I don't want to stand with the setting sun
and hate myself for the things I have done .
I don't want to keep on a closet shelf
a lot of secrets about myself
and fool myself as I come and go
into thinking no one else will ever know
The kind of person I really am,
I don't want to dress up myself in sham.
I want to go out with my head erect
I want to deserve all men's respect;
but here in the struggle for fame and wealth
I want to be able to like myself.
I don't want to look at myself and know that
I am bluster and bluff and empty show .
I never can hide myself from me;
I see what others may never see;
I know what others may never know,
I never can fool myself and so,
whatever happens I want to be
self respecting and conscience free.

Edgar A. Guest

Friendship

Don’t walk in front of me
I may not follow
Don’t walk behind me
I may not lead
Walk beside me
And just be my friend

Albert Camus