North and South Winds, awake!
North and South Winds, awake!
Come down from His spice-laden mountains.
Dark clouds hide the sun, yet full they come with latter rains.
Come and awaken our love!
Blow on our garden that its fragrance may spread far and wide.
Listening to Gustav Holst’s “Jupiter— The Bringer of Jollity” from his “The Planets” suite, inspires on how Easter and the coming resurrection— points to the coming redemption of all time, space and matter— the soon flooding of all creation with the Spirit of Justice, Love and Beauty through Christ our ComingKing.
The far reaches of the universe— I want to explore, and see the birth of a thousand stars. I want to see the glorifying of all earth’s creatures in the coming new world of perfect love! What we seek are visions of beatific wonder, the uniting of heaven and earth in Perfect Love. “With unfailing love, He satisfies your longing, and beyond every star— establish your name in the kingdom of my Son.”
There is much I cannot see, darkened by this unknowing cloud.
Yet the wind blows and through all the earth’s beauty I hear the sound of a new world whispering my name.
Be still my soul, for in the sacrament of this present moment, His kingdom comes. So I say Father, may your kingdom come; may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
“Victor” over our foes— death, sin and the devil, does the Spirit declare our risen Lord!
Victory does the Spirit of Perfect Love declare for all fish of the seas;
For all birds of the air, for all creatures of Christ ourKing!
Victory the Spirit declares for the royal image-bearers of God Almighty!
For the renewing of all creation— our shame He rids.
Our voice He now restores, and pours on us the glory of His name—
Jesus, our coming King!
I don’t see the Church like a raft boat, nor like a luxury cruise liner to Heaven— where in the meantime passengers consume without measure. But I do see the Church as a glorious and well crafted sail clipper, which at the Gate called Beautiful is christened with the name, Doulos— journeying to the coming world of Perfect Love.
On this glorious, lean and seafaring clipper called Doulos, all hands on deck engage the athletics of eternal seamanship through practicing the sacred skills of sailing with the wind, and the redemptive, culinary arts of Faith, Hope and Divine Love. Here we learn not love for smooth waters; but rather Divine Love for rough waters; bestowing grace on all that’s rough— and creating what pleases God.
Green leaves, blue sky, morning star.
One of my favourite colours is green because so often as I look into the trees, into every leaf, into the forest, and into every plant rising up from the earth, I am seeing God creating new life and a new order emerging beyond this present darkness.
It is thekingdomofHis Sonbreaking forth that dispels the darkness and says to you who are barren, “What was lost, I am restoring to you.
I give you a new name.
I will give you a heritage— a posterity that is better than the women who bore ten sons. What I give to you will endure even beyond the farthest star you see through the night sky, even to the morning dawn.”
I am also fond of blue because of the ocean, the sky, and beyond the sky are stars.
When those stars are no more, we will replace their brightness, for beyond them are the words of God.
The Lord God has given me an instructed tongue;
to know the word that sustains the weary.
Morning by morning he wakens my ear to listen.
He opened my ear, and I have not drawn back.
Therefore have I set my face like flint,
And I know I will not be put to shame, for He who vindicates me is near.
Now will I lift up my voice with a shout, and proclaim His righteousness in the assembly of His Beloved.
In birth pains the Spirit travails till at the last trumpet sound, at the crackling of a billion cosmic starbursts, when in the new world all creation sings to Heaven’s unveiling of Adam’s true sons and daughters— who having sharing in the sufferings of the Heavenly Man, shall now share in the glory of His comingKingdom.
In birth pains the Spirit travails until Adam’s true children— those justified through the faithful witness of the Heavenly Man; who at the resurrection of the New Humanity shall having shared in the sufferings of sonship be glorified to reign over the new creation— then shall the glory of God fill the earth, and justice for those who lost their rights— shall be its harvest.
“O God, my words are cold. Oh that they were as flames!” And thus did God answer me: “Surely shalt thou have words— from on high shall embers fall, sanctifying thy tongue a holy vessel; springing up a brook of waters living.
Fire-words thou shalt speak— fuelled by embers holy; when at my altar— Heaven thy mouth hath touched.”
– Improvisio on Amy Carmichael’s “Fire–Words.”
Fire words are curved; cold words straight to the point.
Set in stone not flesh, straight words boast precise measurements.
Their fine points are sharpened—
Good they are, for building high towers on the plains ofBabel.
With them we make names for ourselves.
With them we shame the “other” and jab those of a different tongue.
Fire words are curved; cold words straight to the point.
Kindled not from above but by cold hell fire be cold words.
With sharp edged cold words, we boast to the “other,” and uncover their naked self.
We polarise and demonise.
Cold words never curved but straight to the point; always lined;
At their ends are sharp points— which lead to war.
Forged from heavenly altars where seraphim fly and forever sing “holy” to Him who sits on the throne, come to our tongues— red-hot fire words!
These living words broaden our horizon, stretch our imagination, and empower our spirit.
They empower our spirit to envision, our heart to dream, and our mind to imagine new worlds never seen.
Like mustard seeds in the earth below,
God hides fire words set aflame by altars blazing in the heavenly realms.
But when the eyes of our heart His Spirit opens, we see by faith their rising.
Beyond the stars we hear the Word of God nullifying things that are, and birthing things that are not.
By the sacred commissioning of God Almighty, we help craft their dawning—
As destined heirs of the coming new world.
The faithfulness of Jesus—
Disarms the powers of fear, worry and shame;
Strips naked the illusions of this world’s pomp;
Bestows confidence in prayer, and empowers us with the Spirit of unflinching courage, unwavering tenacity, and undying love.
In the rising of my strength;
Love that will not let me go, wounded me.
Low he brought me down.
But in my weakness, my feet He made strong—
Here, on a rock, no man shall move.
Here my heart His Spirit pierced;
With flames bright in hope of my coming King;
Love that will not let go.
Surely the Lord was in the place and we knew it not!
Yet angels of God descend and ascend from earth to heaven;
Bringing all things in complete union with the inside of God—
Manifesting the eternal fellowship of Father, Son and Holy Spirit—
Revealed in the face of Jesus.
For from Him, through Him, and to Him are all things, and by Him all things hold together that do not appear together. For even now through the blood that flows from His wounded side, and the Spirit whom He pours out fromZion— all manner of things that are now well, He is making well.
Monte Lee Rice, PhD 