Erling Thu

Blessed be the Lord!

 

Blessed be the Lord, Jesus Christ!

He is the creative force in all artists.

He is the mainstay of all music.

He is the strength of all workers.

He is the justice of all good people.

He is the care of all health care workers.

He is the wisdom of righteous solutions.

He is the colour of all painting.

He is the life of every sculpture.

He is the web of life in all societies.

He is the way of life of all that is good.

He is the life of all that exists.

He is who he is.

He is the self-existent I AM.

Blessed be the Lord!

Praying with friends

To be somebody is to pray

Together with your friends

Sitting in a circle

Facing one another

Opening up our hearts

Being transparent

As you pour out your soul

Laying bare your innermost being

Trusting God and your friends

To keep your personal needs

As a sacred treasure in their hearts

Before the need is being met

Looking with new eyes

To be somebody
is not only to explore
virgin territory or unknown places
but to look with new eyes
- look from new perspectives
- look with new perception
- look with new expectancy
- look for new insight
to the old and known world
to discover the virginity
and the hope for a new beginning
in the midst of corruption and decay
and than seize the moment
to make history
in our own little world
knowing that the great achievements
is the sum of all the small deeds of faith

By faith we can see
the impossible become possible
and the invisible become visible
and the world changed to a better place

Accepting ourselves for what we are

To be somebody
Is to accept ourselves for what we are
And at the same time rejoice
In all the good qualities
We are able to see in other people

To be somebody
Is to be yourself
Without being sufficient in yourself
But to develop your strengths
That all may see what you really are
To be yourself is to try to see something
Positive in your weaknesses
As you try to make them be less visible

Answering emails or messages

To be somebody
Is to answer emails or text messages
Showing that you care
And take people seriously
It is to come up with simple solutions to complicated questions
Or to admit that you don't have all the answers

To be somebody
Is to sit in front of a screen
Typing letters, words, reason and insight
As if you were sitting in front of a person
Communicating eternal truths
Sharing real life experiences
Opening up your heart
For the world to see
The beauty and simplicity
Of faith, hope and love
Poured into a human heart by the Holy Spirit

Text: Erling Thu (c)

Suffering loss

To be somebody

Is to suffer loss with dignity and trust

• the loss of a son who dies
• the loss of friends who turn out to be no friends
• the loss of sleep or rest
• the loss of health
• the loss of memory
• the loss of peace of mind
• the loss of a poem as the pc crash

Losses come in many forms

some are deeply personal and painful

some can be hurting but helpful

some are very dramatic and domestic

some are instant and intense

To be somebody

Is to embrace loss willingly by faith

Because you are looking forward

For something greater and better

When you have seen the Invisible

The losses in the corruptible world do not matter any more

Text: Erling Thu (c)

Daring to be yourself

To be somebody
Is to dare to be yourself
And still not rely on your own strength or human resources
But submit to the leading of the Spirit
And draw on his mighty strength
Allowing him to unfold his power in your life
Enabling you to break out of all human limitations
And enjoy the abundance of blessings
And the liberty of God's children

To be somebody
Is to accept yourself the way you are
And trust God for a supernatural life in the Spirit
When you have learned to say no to yourself
- say no to your own strengths and weaknesses
But to embrace everything that God does for you
Then you can live life to the full.

To be somebody
Is to accept no limitations as failures
But as divine steppingstones
Into the life of the Spirit
- the life of trust
- the life of faith
- the life of hope
- the life of love

Text: Erling Thu (c)

To be somebody is to take advice

To be somebody
Is to be humble enough to take advice from others
To listen to the insights of my elders
To follow the wise counsel of the experienced servant of God
To be willing to change my mind
To make new decisions going a new direction

To be somebody
Is not to compromise my vision or calling
But to find better ways of achieving my destiny
Through taking good counsel from godly persons
Committing myself into the hands of God

Only the one who really is somebody

is big enough to take advice

Text: Erling Thu (c)

Covenant duties

The issue of covenant was forced on me a short time ago. There are so many misunderstandings about being a covenant person. Even many Christians have very little understanding of what covenant is all about. They question the idea of covenant duties or covenant obligations. Therefore I have chosen to share something I wrote some years back on being a covenant keeper, on being a person who understands the implication of covenant living. Covenant is love put into practice!

Hallelujah Chorus

Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! Praise God in his holy sanctuary!

Praise him in his stronghold in the sky!

Praise him for his miracles of might!

Praise him for his magnificent greatness!

Praise him with trumpets blasting!

Praise him with piano and guitar!

Praise him with drums and dancing!

Praise him with the loud, resounding clash of cymbals.

Praise him with every instrument you can find!

Let everyone everywhere join in the crescendo of ecstatic praise to Yahweh!

Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!

Psalm 150 The Passion Translation

 

I am somebody when I have learned to listen

To be somebody is to listen carefully,

to other people, to their worries and views.

To be somebody is to listen lovingly,

to a little child and a shabby street singer.

To be somebody is to listen wondering,

to the singing bird and the voice of thunder.

To be somebody is to listen intently,

to the sound of nature and the voice of God.

To be somebody is to listen with your eyes,

to see what the Eternal one is saying now.

Words of life proceed

The Word is with God, and the Word is God.

Being word is the very nature of God.

The Word is an integral part of the Divine Being.

He speaks all the time without intermission.

He speaks continuously.

The words that proceed from his mouth

Are full of life and power

For all those who receive them.

God is life, and life proceeds from him

Through the words he speaks.

God is the fountain of life,

An ever flowing source of living water.

Living words drawing us to himself,

Drawing us into a personal relationship with him.

The word of God finds its fullness in the Word,

His own dear Son,

Light of his own light,

Life of his own life.[1]

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[1]  John 1:-4; Matthew 4:4

The heart of a friend

I shot an arrow into the air,

It fell to earth, I knew not where;

For so swiftly it flew the sight

Could not follow it in its flight.

I breathed a song into the air,

It fell to earth, I knew not where;

For who has sight so keen and strong

That it can follow the flight of a song?

Long, long afterward in an oak

I found the arrow, still unbroken;

And the song, from beginning to end,

I found again in the heart of a friend.

Text: H.W. Longfellow

The language of friendship

Recently I came across some wonderful sayings on friendship and I would like to share it with my friends:

Do not protect yourself by a fence, but rather by your friends. Czech proverb

The language of friendship is not words but meanings. H.D. Thoreau