What Counts With God

[edlittlefield]

What Counts With God Is what a man is spiritually,

not what he appears to be from a standpoint fleshly, materially.

For him who died for them and was raised up creative,

did so that those who endeavor to be spiritual comparative,

might live in the service of others,

no longer for themselves,

but for god, his son, the sheep and his brothers.

For Christ died for all, yes, that they could become the best.

Consequently from now on we know no man according to the flesh.” -- (2 cor. 5:15, 16)

The true Christian cannot rightly regard matters in any other way.

This is shown also by the apostle’s words: after he was heard to say,

“We belong to Jehovah,” ... “for to this end Christ died and came to life again,

that he might be lord over both the dead and the living.” (Rom. 14:9)

Now as lord he is able to help Christians to live their lives successfully for the things of god,

once they have made their decision.

As he has “conquered the world,” so they also can conquer. (John 16:33; Heb. 7:25)

Christ has the authority and the power to bring them back to life, as lord over the dead, as he is our sponsor.

Comfortingly, throughout a life of serving god, yes they are candid,

and even in death, they are never abandoned. — Rom. 8:31-34, 38, 39.

Paul is using this argument as proof that there is no place for the Christian to judge his brother,

because that brother belongs totally to god.

He makes the point of his argument in the next few verses, saying:

“but why do you judge your brother? Or why do you also look down on another?

For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of god;

and he is not playing.

For it is written: “as I live,” says Jehovah,

“to me every knee will bend down,

and every tongue will make open acknowledgment...”

to me, the watch guard, and the beholder.

So then, each one of us will render an account for himself to god,

and this shall be much stronger.

Therefore let us not be judging one another any longer.”—Rom. 14:10-13.

[LeslieDean]

Hi Brother Lilllefield---Your poetry blows me away. So much thought put into it. I love to see the relationship you have with Jehovah and how you can turn that into upbuilding words of comfort. Thank You. Leslie

[edlittlefield]

Thank you, sister. I really appreciate your comments.

I love to write poetry, especially about the truth and our God Jehovah. Writing this way has become an outlet for me as another way in spreading the good news. Over the years I have suffered with post traumatic stress disorder from Vietnam, along with all the maladies that come with it, such as depression. Because of this I found writing poetry as a wonderful outlet and it gives me joy along with a measure of peace.

Funny thing about writing. When an idea pops in my mind, right then I have to grab hold of it in establishing the skeleton of the poem. From there I build on it until I'm happy with the results. It takes sometimes a few hours to many days to develop. I began writing sometime around 2008/2009. Since then I have composed more than 250 poems along with my memoirs.

One of my very long poems/stories originated out of a terrible nightmare I was having one night when my wife was away in school. I won't go into the gore of it all except to say that I awoke sobbing, crying out for her because in the dream I saw her death. I got up, it was about 3 am and I called her just to hear her voice. Afterward, I went outside onto my porch and began to write. Here are the results of it. ...

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The Merman’s Eyes

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Whenever the monster has shown itself, a storm follows. Be it whether or even the loss of a loved one in death. It turns about to plunge into the waves, toward the ship, and has plunged in that direction; that lives will be lost and rough waters and severe storms will be encountered. Like a merman, I see through flooded eyes, I was awake to find that I was only dreaming. It was so real that I cannot stop sobbing. Then I called you just to hear a live voice reassuring “it’s alright, honey”, it was just a dream.

In my sleep, I search and search, but I can’t find you, no matter where I look. I asked everyone we know, and some we don’t, if they’ve seen you, or know where you are. Most say no! While some say you're down below. Desperately I search and search, calling out your name and searching some more, though in vain. But, you I cannot find, and I am in a panic with sheer desperation within my mind!

My lost love is not anywhere for me to find, and I cry and scream out for you hoping you would hear me; oh my god, please be kind! Oh my love, where are you? Why did you leave, where can you be? Awakening without composure, I discover the room trashed by me while I was sleeping. --- You it is I am desperately seeking, --- slinging my arms and feet so that I knocked over the table with my medical appliances and cell phone. The lamp is in the corner and broken at the top of the stem.

After we speak, I got up for a cool glass of water, and then I went outside onto the front porch to sit where it was cool and I could think. Still sobbing and sobbing like a merman still, the great tug at my heart as I feel the sheer drain of emotion from within my heart, as I sense my great loss. I think of you again, of all the times I caused you to grieve. All the desperation I have put you through in the tenure of our great marriage, and I feel so ashamed and pained for you while I am in disbelief.

My emotions drain straight from my heart and I can feel it sag within my chest, -- almost to the point of death. As I sat there with merman’s eyes, drenched with the watery flood. The dog comes around the house and steps up onto the porch to say hello and to give me a lick as if to say, do not worry, it will be okay, my bud. Then he meandered away to do his doggedly deeds during the night.

Next, our cat, the Siamese, strolls up and jumps onto the porch to say hello. She caresses my feet with her warm body as if to say I love you. Almost as if god was telling me, it will be all right! As the cat brushed me, she beats me with her tail to keep my attention, and finally she jumped upon my knees --- to caress me some more, almost as if she knew my grief and drained condition. Then after about ten minutes, she moved on back to her kittens on the back porch.

So dramatically, I am reminded of those who lose dear ones in death. So desperately, they look for them and cannot find them no matter where they go, because they are not among the rest. Oh how desperate, oh how sad they must feel! They wish they could die. Oh how lost! – They wish so badly it had been them instead of their loved one. As everyone does, when they were alive they failed to count the cost.

On their beds, they cry out for their mate, their dear one, their lost love. – Oh how desperately they pray to above for solace and help as they wonder why. – Why did they have to go? Why not I instead? Oh my god, how can I go on? Where did they go? What did I do to merit so great a strain, so great a pain of heart, so great a devastation within my very soul? – Oh my god, where are you in my time of distress? Oh my god please let me die too! I cry out so bold!

As I sit here, I contemplate the certain animals that mate for a lifetime too. Penguins walking together, male and female, as if holding hands, while strolling down the icy beach, in a monogamous relationship for life. Two little prairie dogs, male and female, keeping their pups, but popping their heads up in a timely manner to see what is going on outside their den. The grey wolf pups are born in the spring and through the summer while the pups grow in ability, the adults hunt singly. Each autumn, the pups join the hunting pack and both parents who mates for life teach them to hunt and kill prey as they become a family group of about five members staying together and forming a hunting pack. Barn owls, beavers, bald eagles, golden eagles, condors, swans, brolga cranes, French angel fish, sand hill cranes, pigeons, prions (a seabird), red-tailed hawks, anglerfish, ospreys, prairie voles (a rodent), gibbon apes, wolves, termites, coyotes, and black vultures, are a few that mate for life. To address whether they go through some kind of bereavement when they lose their mates, I cannot, but it seems that nature has certainly demonstrated the preference of monogamy and family. How can they not feel some sort of loss or loneliness of sorts? After all, they spend their entire lives with their mates.

And oh what a great loss it becomes, to the one left behind. “How can I live with my grief, numbness, guilt, anger and disbelief? How can I believe he or she is dead? How could I accept the words ‘dead’ and ‘death’ when in my mind (s)he has gone away on a journey? (S)he’s alive in god’s memory and coming back soon.

The monster called merman found in the seas is tall and of great size and rises straight out of the water with such a great ease. Death might be seen somewhat the same as it comes in upon us like a beast without pity. It appears to have shoulders, neck and head, eyes and mouth, and nose and chin like those of a human being; but though death appears as truly a human condition (for now) it is originally foreign and unintended by god, and it too will see its end. Above the eyes and the eyebrows, the merman looks more like a man with a peaked helmet on his head, and it has shoulders like a mans. Detail such as stated here might seem to speak of its eternal reign and enforcement upon the human society by none-other than the great Satan himself.

Even Satan has a short period of time to exist as Jehovah god will continue his great plan that does not include sin and death, along with those causing the earth ruin.

I hope you like this, even though it is a bit heavy.