God's House Is Not A Coffee Shop

God’s House is not a coffee shop;
    'Tis to be a place of prayer.
    'Tis not a place where we come to eat
    But the Bread of Life to share.

    'Tis not a place to spend our time
    With a well-filled coffee cup,
    But to drink Life's Water from the heavenly spring
    And at God's Table sup.

    God's House is not a coffee shop
    Where silly women prattle
    But where the saints of God are trained
    And then sent forth to battle.

    So if it's coffee that you crave
    And mortal food to eat,
    Have it at home before you come
    To the house where God's saints meet,

    For God's House is not a coffee shop,
    In case you have not heard,
    But a place where the saints of God are fed
    The pure meat of God's Word.


September 28, 1994



    Copyright © 1994 by A. Franklin Staples

The Great Lake of Fire

The Great Lake of Fire

There’s a fiery lake that’s prepared for the devil
And those angels who’ve followed him,
A fire that’s unquenchable, burning forever,
And it’s waiting for you, my friend,
If you’ve turned your back on the Lord of Creation,
Who died for your sins on the cross.
If you’re living in sin, and you die without Him,
You’ll be cast away with the dross.
As the flames roar higher in the great lake of fire,
And there’s weeping and gnashing of teeth,
Will you be forever in the great lake of fire
Or in Heaven with those who believe?

Don’t fall for the lies of those who subscribe
To the notion that hell doesn’t exist,
For it’s being prepared, you must needs be aware,
And when Christ returns for those who are His,
Time as we know it will come to an end
And before the White throne you will stand
To hear the stern judgment of King Jesus Himself
Upon those who’ve ignored His command.
Should you be among them, a part of that throng
Who’ll be there when they open the Book,
The Lamb’s Book of Life on whose pages are written
The names of the saints, take a look!


You’ll find that your name has been blotted out,
Completely erased, can’t be found,
You’ve been weighed in God’s balances
And found dreadfully wanting,
And you won’t be alone! Look around
And you’ll see weeping, hear wailing and gnashing of teeth
As the lost of the ages stand there
Before Him who died that they might have life,
Whose glory they never shall share,
For they shall be cast, as will you, my dear friend,
If my Saviour and Lord you deny,
Into that great lake of fire that shall never be quenched,
Where the soul forever shall die.

     -a. franklin staples
September 18, 1998
    © 1998 by A. Franklin Staples

What Is Truth

“What is truth?” old Pilate asked,
And men still ask today. —
If you were asked the question, friend,
Just what would you have to say?

Could you give an answer, friend,
That’s based on cold, hard fact,
In a day when “truth” seems relative
To the way men want to act?

Do you know the Truth, my friend,
In Whom all fulness dwells,
Or have you fallen for Satan’s lies
And doomed yourself to hell?

For Truth is found in Jesus Christ,
And nowhere else at all;
In point of fact, He is The Truth
In all things, great and small.

 By Him in truth were all things made
That we see or cannot see,
From sun and moon and stars and atoms
And, yes, friend, you and me.

December 12, 1998