A Note On Success

December 30, 2021 / The WheatandTares / 1 Comment

I saw this posted the other day, and it caused me to pause…

“Cancel telling kids college is the only way to be successful.”

I’d have to somewhat agree a bit, but might I throw a bit of a curveball and some kindling to that line of thought?

Success is an attitude of the heart and mind as well as the actions of the body and emotions.

It’s a lifestyle that begins when you wake up everyday by the thoughts and choices you choose, which in turn, can create successes or failures.

It can last for a lifetime if you think well, choose well and have determined follow through…

So, I guess I’d personally say, “Don’t cancel the thought of “college only”, and don’t cancel the thought of “trade only.””

My suggestion would rather be, the better approach is to decide to be successful by who you are more than what you choose to do, and THEN, what you choose to do, do it well and with purpose and watch successes come more easily!

Slay On, My Friend

December 28, 2021 / The WheatandTares

The common slogan in our modern culture seems to be, “Make love not war.”

…No, maybe that was more of the 60s, but it is definitely a “Make peace, not war” desire.

Yet, peace is not always possible except on the other side of war.

Had we claimed peace on the day of Pearl Harbor, where would we be today?

Had we put down our weapons and declared all was well in the middle of Hitler’s regime, what would our nation look like in 2021?

Had we allowed the towers to fall with no retribution, would we really have a world of calm from chaos?

There will enter giants in this life that we must pursue as David pursued Goliath on the battlefield.

There will be lions that step out to devour, and we had best draw our swords first as Baniah did in that pit on the snowy day.

If we don’t, we will only be taunted, pursued and eaten viciously while we say, “We just want to live in harmony.”

Our enemy has no mercy for us.

He cares not for our troubles, pains or weakness.

Reality proves he seeks our demise and strategically plans for our destruction.

So, lest you become confused by the lull of the common welfare state.

Lest you become seduced by the brazen agenda of those who secretly desire you to fall,

Pick up your shield, dear one.

Not one moment for the drama.

None of it for a show.

Simply for survival and for life renewal.

Stand your ground and fight for what is rightfully yours.

Do not back up, hesitate or surrender.

Fight that giant and take him down.

Slice through that dragon and render him a heap.

Stomp that foe into the ground from which he came.

And slay on, my friend. Slay on.

We Need Each Other

December 17, 2021December 17, 2021 / The WheatandTares

Sometimes, it’s quicker to just finish the project solo.

Less instructions, less redirection, less headache.

Sometimes, it’s quicker to just deal with the issue on the fly.

Less confrontations, less explanation, less mistranslations

Yet, a partner brings double time finished and a companion in the battle.

Sometimes, it’s easier to live life single in the distance.

Less expectations, less missed opportunities, less disappointments

Sometimes, it’s easier to survive away and alone.

Less conversations, less misspoken, less overdone

Yet, a friend brings laughter and a lightened load.

Whether we see it as truth or not, we need each other.

We need one who is sunshine and one who is rain.

We need one who is the ocean and one who is the shore.

We need one who is the mountain top and one who is the valley.

For if we are all the same, where is the growth?

Where is the challenge?

Where is the change?

It’s not for me that I live, and it’s not for you that I die.

It is for Him and Him alone.

And He created a ‘we’ to fulfill His purpose and plan.

So, let’s get to it.

Penned -MG – 12/17/21

Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
Galatians 6:2

Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Ecclesiastes 4:12

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.
Proverbs 27:17

The Hidden Battle

December 2, 2021December 1, 2021 / The WheatandTares / 4 Comments

Memories of you swirl around my head as I swat them away like flies.

I fight feelings of anger and grief as I pick up the shattered pieces of my heart.

I struggle to paint the smile I’ve learned to wear so well as if it’s an extra skin.

I look into the mirror and despise what I see because the reflections of the past come shining through.

Thoughts of you roll through my brain as if they have stolen permission to remain.

I battle the turmoil within, trying to make sense of the void and chasm of pain.

I wrestle with my flesh to hide the sorrow so I might glance with kindness on another.

I gaze at the pictures you left behind and loathe the resemblances that cannot be shred.

Recollections ramble through my mind as that one calls your name as I look away.

I resist the hatred that threatens to take hold, as I reach out openhanded for His love.

I assail the bitterness I can taste as if it were delights for my fancy and raise my hands in praise.

I search and await His hope that is beyond this present state of being and take confidence knowing it won’t be long till His rescue is complete.

Penned – MG – 12/1/21

And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
Romans 5:3-5

Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.
Matthew 18:21-22

An Old Friend

December 1, 2021December 2, 2021 / The WheatandTares

Some days, I simply awake with a sadness, a longing I can’t explain.

It’s not like I’ve had a bad day.

I’ve only just awakened.

Yet, the weight of pain creates tears that threatened to overflow.

I searched my thoughts to see if it’s a dream I may have had, a lack of sleep, or something that was said.

Some days, it’s just simply a feeling I must fight to see the sunshine again.

It’s not anyone’s fault.

I can’t find the one to blame.

It’s not a fitful night.

Yet, it’s like a fog that threatens to overcome my musings to darken my day.

I search for words that cannot be found and listen for comfort that cannot be grasped.

And then, I remember.

This is grief, an old but sneaky friend.

He slips in when you least expect it to settle into your morning routine like a weathered but comfy cloak.

Once his name has been revealed, I can open the blinds and let the sun beams warm my face and watch as it chases away the rain.

For grief isn’t here to crush my soul.

It is only here to remind me to feel deeply, to breathe slowly, and to focus my heart on what is to come.

And when Hope is what is to come, grief can no longer consume my exhale.

Penned – MG – 12/1/21

Those who sow in tears
Shall reap in joy.
He who continually goes forth weeping,
Bearing seed for sowing,
Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,
Bringing his sheaves with him.
Psalm 126:5-6

https://youtu.be/YNqo4Un2uZI

I do not own or posses this song, except via Apple music.

So Many Broken and Bruised

November 27, 2021 / The WheatandTares

I do not own or posses this pic.
Website: https://pixels.com/featured/mirror-reflection-loriental-photography.html

I look around at the festive gathering and underneath the smile, I see the broken and bruised.

I breathe in the cool breeze and wonder how the atmosphere can change so quickly.

I gaze across the room and fight the tears welling up as I see her laugh to hide the pain.

She wears her smirk as a veil to cover the scars that run too deep.

She flitters past to appear all together, never lighting too long to allow searching eyes to peer in.

She waved goodbye before the stories could resurface and the truth could be revealed.

Yet, in the final farewell, I saw the unshed tears held at bay by the dam of poise and finesse.

I heard the longing in her slight tremble when she claimed she’d be alright.

I watched as her frame faded into the night and wondered what shadows would chase her past the midnight.

Oh, how I wished I could bring her back.

I yearned to call her name and beg her to stay.

I looked in the mirror to see a remnant of her image peeking through the lighted reflection.

If she only recognized His love is still there waiting for her surrender.

If she only perceived His grace is still hanging on right where she left Him.

If she only realized His mercy never walked away.

She could come to know all the healing that she needed are the very things she left behind.

PENNED – MG – 11/27/21

As Our Children Grow

November 13, 2021November 13, 2021 / The WheatandTares

As our children grow, we can learn so much, and we ourselves can grow

If we will only listen.

We can learn to love freely, to speak kindly and to forgive graciously

While we structure consistently, discipline conditionally and disciple unrepentantly.

Mercy must always be balanced with justice.

Wisdom must always be stretched with faith.

Grace must always be enveloped in truth.

One cannot live without the other, and the other cannot thrive without the first.

Our children can bring light to our weary souls, and we can bring comfort and security to theirs.

As our children grow, we can learn so much, and we ourselves can grow

If we will only listen.

We can learn to laugh without limits, seek without fear and be consumed with wonder

While we instill honor for the past, respect for the future and gratitude for the present.

Progressiveness is forfeited when yesterday is forgotten.

Tradition is failed when the future is ignored.

Existence is sacrificed when reality is shunned.

One cannot succeed without the other, and one cannot flourish without the origin.

As our children grow, we can grow, too.

As our children learn, we can learn, too.

As our children spread their wings to fly, we can soar alongside them

If we will only instill truths from the beginning and step aside for their liberation.

Train up a child in the way he should go,
And when he is old he will not depart from it.
Psalm 22:6

What A Death Can Bring

November 9, 2021November 8, 2021 / The WheatandTares / 5 Comments

A death can bring so many lessons of life full circle.

It can remind you of a love that was never present and the broken heart with which you lived.

It can remind you of the laughter of fleeting moments you tried to grasp like grains of sand.

It can remind you of the shattered dreams you struggled to repair but never won.

A death can reach back to the recesses of your mind and coax the darkest memories to life.

It can replay the hours of abandonment and tears that fell like rain.

It can replay the joy of a child captured in fields of grace now covered with an early fog.

It can replay spouts of anger that burst forth like hidden minefields yet receded with the wind.

A death can teach so many miraculous things that only grief can ingrain.

It can instill confidence of who you once were and who you have become.

It can instill a wonder for your destiny and a yearning to travel a faster path.

It can instill a settling peace that confirms your life was meant to be.

A death can open the windows to the soul and draw the embers to build a flame.

A death can slam the door on the heart and smolder the very passion left to breathe.

The choice is yours to make in the midst of your sorrow, and only you can choose.

Penned – 11/8/22 – MG

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.
Revelation 21:4

Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy.
He who continually goes forth weeping,
Bearing seed for sowing,
Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,
Bringing his sheaves with him.
Psalm 126:5-6

Just Sit and Soak, Again

November 5, 2021November 5, 2021 / The WheatandTares

Sometimes, you’ve just got to sit and soak and let the weight of the world be washed away.

And sometimes, when you’ve already done this, you’ve got to do it again…

You alone are the Lord;
You have made heaven,
The heaven of heavens, with all their host,
The earth and everything on it,
The seas and all that is in them,
And You preserve them all.
The host of heaven worships You.
Nehemiah 9:6 nkjv