Miscellaneous

     IN THE GARDEN

I come to the garden alone,
  while the dew is still on the roses;
And the voice I hear,
  falling on my ear
  the Son of God discloses.

And He walks with me,
  and He talks with me,
  and He tells me I am His own.
And the joy we share
  as we tarry there,
  none other has ever known.

He speaks, and the sound of His voice
  is so sweet
  the birds hush their singing.
And the melody
  that He gave to me
  within my heart is ringing.

And He walks with me,
  and He talks with me,
  and He tells me I am His own.
And the joy we share
  as we tarry there,
  none other has ever known.

            MSC-02

FRUSTRATED DESIRE

My love, my honey, my harp,
Playing sweet music in my soul!
When are you going to heal my grief?
When are you coming to revive my spirit
Which is constantly yearning for you?
Your beauty stimulates my desire,
But when I realize the great distance between us,
My desire is frustrated, and I sink in gloom.
Will you give me some grounds for hope
That one day my desire will be satisfied?
Will you assure me that one day
My joy will be complete?

       MSC-03

Have mercy
Upon us.
Have mercy
Upon our efforts,
That we
Before thee,
In love and faith,
Righteousness and humility,
May follow thee,
With self-denial, steadfastness and courage,
And meet thee
In the silence.

Give us
A pure heart
That we may see thee,
A humble heart
That we may hear thee,
A heart of love
That we may serve thee,
A heart of faith
That we may love thee.

Thou
Whom I do not know
But whose I am.

Thou
Whom I do not comprehend
But who hast dedicated me
To my fate.
Thou  -
  MSC-04 

                      THE MAD DANCERS

  ALREADY  the voices  of opponents were raised
against   the   Baal     Shem's   teaching,   for   many
rabbis could not understand his ways. Some said of
him  that  he  dishonored  the  Sabbath  with singing
and freedom,  some said that his ways and the ways
of  those  who  followed  him and called themselves
Chassidim were truly the ways of  madmen.

 One of the scholars asked of the Baal Shem, "What
of the learned rabbis who call this teaching false?"

      The  Baal  Shem Tov replied, "once, in a house,
there was a wedding festival.   The musicians sat in a
corner and played upon their instruments,  the guests
danced to the music, and were merry,  and the house
was filled with joy. But a deaf man passed outside the
house;  he  looked  in  through  the  window  and saw
the  people  whirling  about  the room,  leaping,   and
throwing  about their arms.  'See how they fling them-
selves  about!'   he cried,   'it  is  a  house  filled  with
madmen!'   For he could not hear the music to which
they danced."
            MSC-05 

             AMAZING GRACE

    Amazing grace! how sweet the sound
        That saved a wretch like me!
    I once was lost, but now am found.
        Was blind, but now I see.

    'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
        And grace my fears relieved;
    How precious did that grace appear
        The hour I first believed.

    Through many dangers, toils, and snares
        I have already come;
    'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
        And grace will lead me home.

    The Lord has promised good to me,
        His word my hope secures;
    Hw will my shield and portion be
        As long as life endures.

    MSC-01

SONG WITHOUT NOISE

O sweet and loving God
When I stay asleep too long,
Oblivious to all your many blessings,
Then, please, wake me up,
And sing to me your joyful song.
It is a song without noise or notes,
It is a song of love beyond words,
Of faith beyond the power of human telling.
I can hear it in my soul,
When you awaken me to your presence.

MSC-06

LORD, OPEN OUR EYES

Lord, open our eyes,
That we may see you in our brothers and sisters.

Lord, open our ears,
That we may hear the cries of the hungry, the cold,
    the frightened, the oppressed.

Lord, open our hearts,
That we may love each other as you love us.

Renew in us your spirit
Lord, free us and make us one.
   MSC-07

A little boy wanted to meet God.  He knew it was a
long trip to where God  lived, so he packed his suit-
case with Twinkies and a six-pack of root beer and
he started his journey. 

When he had gone about three blocks, he met an
old man. He was sitting in the park just staring at
some pigeons. The boy sat down next to him and
opened his suitcase. He was about to take a drink
from his root beer when he noticed that the old man
looked hungry, so he offered him a Twinkie. He
gratefully accepted it and smiled at him. His smile was
so pleasant that the boy wanted to see it again, so he
offered him a root beer. Again, he smiled at him. The
boy was delighted! They sat there all afternoon eating
and smiling, but they never said a word.  As it grew
dark, the boy realized how tired he was and he got
up to leave, but before he had gone more than a few
steps, he turned around, ran back to the old man, and
gave him a hug. The old man gave his biggest smile
ever.

When the boy opened the door to his own house a
short time later, his mother was surprised by the look
of joy on his face. She asked him, "What did you do
today that made you so happy?  "He replied, "I had
lunch with God."  But before his mother could
respond, he added, "You know what?  He's got the
most beautiful smile I've ever seen!"

Meanwhile, the old man, also radiant with joy,
returned to his home.  His son was stunned by the
look of peace on his face and he asked, "Dad,
what did you do today that made you so happy?"
He replied, "I ate Twinkies in the park with God."
However, before his son responded, he added,
"You know, he's much younger than I expected."

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch,
a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest
compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of
which have the potential to turn a life around.
People come into our lives for a reason, a season,
or a lifetime. Embrace all equally!

Send this to people who have touched your life
in a special way. Let them know how important
they are.

Have lunch with God!
                                                  MSC-08

O Great Spirit
Whose voice I hear in the winds,
and whose breath gives life to all the world,
hear me! I am small and weak, I need your strength
    and wisdom.

Let me walk in beauty, and make my eyes
    ever behold the red and purple sunset.

Make my hands respect the things you have made
    and my ears sharp to hear your voice.

Make me wise so that I may understand the things
    you have taught my people.

Let me learn the lessons you have hidden in every
    leaf and rock.

I seek strength, not to be greater than my brother,
    but to fight my greatest enemy -- myself.

Make me always ready to come to you with clean
    hands and straight eyes.

So that when life fades, as the fading sunset,
my spirit may come to you without shame.

             MSC-09

I ask for a moment's indulgence to sit by Thy side.
The works that I have in hand
I will finish afterwards.

Away from the sight of Thy face
My heart knows no rest or respite,
And my work becomes an endless toil
In a shoreless sea of toil.

Today the summer has come at my window
With its sighs and murmurs,
And the bees are plying their minstrelsy
At the court of the flowering grove.

Now it is time to sit quiet
Face to face with Thee,
And to sing dedication of life
In this silent and overflowing leisure.

        MSC-10

MSC - Quotes from miscellaneous collections
            of poetry, hymns, etc.

           -01 - John Newton (1725-1807) - the

former captain of a slave ship turned

evangelical minister. This hymn is

sung to a melody that probably

originated with African-American

slaves.
           -02 - Christian hymn written in 1912 by
                     C. Austin Miles

           -03 - Excerpt from a poem by Richard
                    Rolle c. 1300 - 1349

          -04 - Written in 1961
                    by Dag Hammarskjold (1905-1961)

          -05 - Meyer Levin, "Classic Hassidic Tales"

          - 06 - Mechthild of Magdeburg,
                   c.1210  - c.1280

          - 07 - Mother Teresa, 1910-1997

          - 08 - from a subscriber - can be seen on
                    several sites, author unknown

          - 09 - TRADITIONAL NATIVE
                    AMERICAN PRAYER

          - 10 - Rabindranath Tagore