[Faith-talk] Good Night Message for Monday, August 6 2012

[Paul]

Hello and good day to all my friends residing on a place called Planet Earth.  How was your day today, at least as it went here in North America? Mine was good, by God's matchless grace and His providential care.  Tomorrow evening I'm going to embark on a different kind of adventure.  In our local area, the northeast part of Baltimore City, there is going to be an event called Night Out Against Crime, sponsored by our local city council representative, about six neighborhood community organizations and the police department for our particular section of the city.  Those interested will be in a motorcade with a police escort as we travel through the streets of our section of the city, followed by an evening picnic and, after dark, a movie describing ways to prevent crime.  There will also be things for the children as well as a display of fire fighting equipment.  Am looking forward to the evening tomorrow, especially if it means connecting up with someone or a group with which I can hang out on the weekends, and especially on Sunday evenings.

Our poem for today entitled "Gateway to Heaven" was composed by Lydia B. Halter, who, judging merely by her address of Hylond Convalescent Hospital in Fresno California, might have been in the end stage of life, though I'm not certain.  Anyway I hope that you enjoy this rhyme by a little-known poetess of days gone by.  It is rendered as follows:

Astronauts with true precision
Point their modules to the sky,
Through a gateway out in orbit
With precision they must fly.

Many years in preparation
All in readiness must be,
Only then will be a liftoff
To a lunar destiny.

Concentrating on their flight plans,
Studying for hours each day
How they will make a flawless journey
Without wandering astray.

When they're put in isolation,
All their garments must be white,
Free from contamination,
Ready to begin their flight.

So we too, with true precision
Center all our thoughts in Him,
Who's the gateway to Heaven.
He's the door, let us enter in.

For He left a flawless flight plan
Outlined in God's Holy Word;
Striving to be like the Christ-Man,
Let us imitate the Lord.

Are we ready for the journey
To our mansions in the sky?
Have we made the right decision
Not to let the time pass by?

Now we're put in isolation field;
Our garments must be white,
Free from all contamination
Caused by sin's debasing blight.

Now is the hour of preparation.
Time is quickly passing by.
Soon, we'll hear the final countdown,
Then we'll meet Him in the sky.

Christ Himself will be the Pilot
As we travel out through space,
Through the gateway up to Heaven
Through Orion's open space.

Let us look to our Redeemer,
To the Man of Calvary
Who alone will see us safely
To our future destiny.

Wow, but what a poem Sister Halter wrote! Can't you just imagine the scene as she described it? Of course the Bible doesn't mention astronauts, modules or things like that, and we don't know precisely how things will be when Jesus comes back for His Bride, the Church, but nonetheless it was a wonderful poem and something to look forward to, if for no other reason than symbolically as she painted it.  Hope you all enjoyed it.

And now may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, throughout this night or day and especially in the last and evil days in which we live.  Your Christian friend and brother, Paul