God's Processing Tunnel

God's Processing Tunnel
By Dr. Charles Solomon
Undated

Egypt

As we embark on the journey of life
And partake in its burdens and cares;
Ere long we loathe the turmoil and strife,
And seek respite from its snares.

In vain we search for joy hat endures
Among the pleasures and trinkets of Earth;
Only to find that which beckons and lures
Is empty and void of true worth.

On and on 'til the restless heart cries
For the relentless ache to cease;
Oh, for Someone to wipe tears from our eyes (Rev.7:17)
And flood our beings with peace. (Jn.16:33)

At length we see that He who died
Was acquainted with sorrow and grief; (Isa.53:3,4)
And we come confessing our sin and pride; (Rom.10:9,10,13)
And, in coming, experience relief. (Jn.5:24; 8:32)

Wilderness

In this new-found Friend all grace resides
That abounds to our every need; (2 Cor.9:8)
The promise is to him who in Jesus abides, (Jn.15:5-7)
To him who from Self has been freed.

But the monster Self is a dauntless foe
That insists on ruling the life; (Rom.7:18,19)
So instead of the peace we fain would know
We encounter a new kind of strife.

As the battle rages and clouds are dark
And our way with heartaches is lined; (Rom.7:24)
We almost give up; we almost give out when hark;
A promise: "... I will bring the blind ..." (Isa.42:16)

Many are the doubts as He leads us along
By a path that we would not choose;
But, clinging to Him, we can't go wrong,
Since our life to save we must lose. (Luke 9:23,24)

As in a tunnel whose center is black
We yearn for light on our path;
In the wall of despair we search for a crack
That we might walk by sight not faith. (2 Cor.5:7)

The Spirit's discipline, reaching far and wide,
Denies the comfort we keep demanding;
But, as we take our place in the Crucified, (Gal.2:20)
We find peace past all understanding. (Phil.4:7)

Canaan

Now, as before, a new battle begins
For which we are ill-prepared
As Satan his fiery darts expends (Eph.6:16)
To tempt us again to despair.

When he launches forth his savage attack (I Pet.5:8,9)
To regain the ground he has lost,
We're tempted to quit and turn our back
On the warfare and its ultimate cost. (Eph.6:12)

In the battle fierce with strength bereft,
We realize that all is but loss,
And retrace our steps to the place we left (2 Cor.2:14)
As He delivers us alway to the cross. (2 Cor.4:11)

As our mortal flesh shows our union with Him,
Jesus' life will be made manifest;
And the things of this world will ever grow dim,
As we enter into rest. (Heb.4:3)

Though your way seems hopeless and full of fears,
God is handling you in love, dear friend;
No matter how dark your tunnel appears,
Take heart, there is light at he other end.

(Copyright © 1996-98 Grace Fellowship International)

More of Dr. Solomon's Poetry is at the Grace Fellowship Int'l website (http://SolomoNet.org).

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Grace Fellowship International.
President of GFI - Dr. Charles Solomon,
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