Teach us, Lord ...

The path is steep,
The vales are deep,
And rocks and thorns might make us fall;
And yet, dear Lord,
Within Thy Word
We find provision for it all.

No need to fear,
No need to hear
The mocking taunts of worldly pride;
For day by day
In all our way
We know that Thou art by our side.

Oh Lord! but why
Do we still cry?!?
We seem so frail, so weak and small,
So deaf, so blind,
So slow of mind
To grasp Thy power, our All in All!

Teach us, Lord, to trust and wait…

(11/93)
© W. J. Watterson

Born again

The expression "born again" that the Lord used to Nicodemus can mean "born from above".

Born again, from up above,
Not of man, or flesh, or blood;
Born with power from up above,
Cleansed beneath a crimson flood.

Born of water and the Spirit,
Born to live a higher life.
May we follow, then, His Spirit
Till He come to end our strife.

(02/91)
© W. J. Watterson

Is it nothing to you?

“Is it nothing to you?” (Lamentations 1:12)

Think of Christ, the El-Shaddai,
Coming down to earth to die,
To shed His blood for you and I;
    Is it nothing to you?

Hear Him crying on that tree,
Alone, all alone at Calvary:
“My God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
     Is it nothing to you?

Can a heart be so ungrateful,
Still ashamed of such a Lord?
Can a soul be so ungrateful,
Holding back from such a Lord?

“Is it nothing to you?”

(03/02/93)
© W. J. Watterson

Grandma Watterson

Written 29 years ago, after Grandma died.

I dreamt that heaven’s hosts were singing
In a different, special way;
Every voice in rapture ringing
In a different, special way.

I stopped to hear, and wondered why
Their song seemed sweeter, more sublime;
And then I saw a soul draw nigh
And bow before the Lord of Time.

I saw my grandma place her crown
Before His feet in humble praise;
I saw His pierced hand reach down,
And heaven hushed beneath His gaze.

Her praise was silent, pure and fervent,
As I heard Him gently say:
“Well done, good and faithful servant”.
Then I saw Him turn my way.

“Would you rather take her back”, He said,
“To face the pains and tears of life?
Dry your tears, My son, and think instead
Of all the joys of her new life”.

I awoke, then, and understood
That she is resting now in peace.
Oh Lord! Hasten, please, the glorious day
When all these partings shall have ceased.

(1990)
© W. J. Watterson

Thy ways, Lord

Let me see, dear Lord,
The way that Thou hast planned for me;
Let me tread, dear Lord
 The path that leads me nearer Thee.

A heartfelt cry invades the night,
And splits the stars in countless parts;
I tried to stop it’s rushing flight,
But echoes poured from broken hearts.

My hopes are drenched with bitter tears,
As dark despair surrounds my dreams;
My spirit seem a slave of fears,
My eyes keep shedding lava-streams.

I only see the present day,
But give me, Lord, the strength to stand
And watch my troubles pass away,
Until I reach Thy golden strand.

I’d rather bear these dreary days
And know that Thou art by my side,
Than walk in peace in my own ways
And sense the emptiness inside.

Let me see, dear Lord,
The way that Thou hast planned for me;
Let me tread, dear Lord,
The path that leads me nearer Thee.

(22/07/90)
© W. J. Watterson

Grandma Maxwell

Written over 30 years ago, after Grandma died.

Oh Lord, how happy Thou must be
To have her now so close to Thee;
To see her bow before Thy throne
And give Thee fruits of all she’s sown.

Oh Lord, how happy she must be
To know Thee in Thy majesty,
To praise Thy name with rapturous song,
A special voice amidst that throng.

Oh Lord, how happy we should be
To see her leave, but not to flee;
We know she’s waiting for that day
When Thou shalt bring us home to stay.

Oh Lord, how happy then we’ll be,
United with herself and Thee;
We long to praise Thy name so blest,
 And join her in her blissful rest.

(19/12/88)
© W. J. Watterson

I gaze in wonder

(Can be sung to the tune of “When I survey the wondrous cross”)


I gaze in wonder, oh my God,
Upon Thy Son, and feel so small;
I think of how the awful rod
Of Thy just wrath on Him did fall.

His sweat ran down, as drops of blood,
While those He loved were fast asleep;
He poured His heart in one great flood
(He knew that He with death must meet).

His friends all turned and ran away,
And even Thou didst let Him die.
He cried to Thee from darkest day,
But only pain answered His cry.

Dark tears were shed, but all in vain,
For no one saw that He did cry;
There was no one to share His pain,
But all alone my Lord must die.

They tore His flesh, His hands, His feet;
What pain those nails to Him did bring;
But see in every sore heart-beat
The love that from these wounds does spring.

How can I understand the pain
That He did bear upon the tree?
But lest my life be all in vain,
Please let His love be found in me.

(07/09/87)
© W. J. Watterson

Torn!

In Matthew chapters 26 and 27 we find three occasions, on that solemn day of the crucifixion, when something was torn.

In 26:65 we read that “the high priest rent his clothes”. It was an act of hypocrisy, to suggest that he was offended with the Lord's declaration. With knowing it, however, Caiaphas was also indicating, symbolically, that his office of high priest was ended. We have no need of a human sacerdotal system — we have the Son of God Himself (Heb. 7:26-28).

Man of war and man of rest

David and his son Solomon and described in very different manners. Someone said of David: “A mighty valiant man, and a man of war” (I Sm 16:18), while the Lord Himself said of Solomon: “Behold, a son shall be born to thee, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies round about” (I Ch 22:9). In these two men we have an illustration of our Lord Jesus Christ in two different periods: at the end of the Tribulation (David) and in the Millennium (Solomon).

David, the man of war who freed Israel from all her enemies, reminds us of the Lord Jesus as the one who on the cross, “having spoilt principalities and powers … made a show of them openly, triumphing over them” (Col 2:15), and the one who, at the end of the Tribulation, will be manifested as one who “in righteousness doth judge and make war … And out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations” (Rev 19:11-16).

Solomon, the man of rest who received a kingdom without enemies, where peace and justice reigned, reminds us of the Lord Jesus and the kingdom of peace and rest that He will establish on Earth during the Millennium, when “the work of righteousness shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever. And My people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places” (Isa 32:17-18).

Having received deliverance from our enemies by the greatest Man of war, we await a kingdom of peace and rest under the authority of the greatest Man of rest. To Him be all glory!

© W. J. Watterson