HEAVEN IS A REAL PLACE

Heaven is a real place,
Not an ethereal somewhere out there,
And one day, perhaps soon, I shall look on the face
Of King Jesus, in that city so fair.

Heaven is a real place, my friend,
Just as real as all that we see,
With its walls of jasper and its gates of pearl,
And its River of Life flowing free.

Heaven, my friend, is a real place
Where the streets are paved with pure gold;
Where the Lamb is the Light and there is no night
For those who have entered God’s fold.

Heaven is a real place, my friend,
Where joys indescribable await
For all who will accept Christ Jesus as Lord
And will enter in by the gate.

Heaven, my friend, is a real place
Where friends and loved ones we’ll know;
Those who’ve gone on before to be with the Lord,
Clad in garments whiter than snow.

Heaven is a real place, my friend,
The eternal place of God’s Throne
Where Jesus now sits at the Father’s right hand
And intercedes for each of His own.

Yes, Heaven. My friend, is a real place,
And its glories one day I’ll see,
For my Jesus has gone to prepare a home over there
And He’s building a mansion for me.

a. franklin staples

July 2, 1990

Copyright © 1990 by Allison F. Staples

FATHER, I THANK THEE FOR THY GRACE

Father, I thank Thee for Thy grace;
That Jesus died to take my place;
That from my deep sin I've been set free;
For all that Thou hast done for me.

Lord, I pray that, by Thy Spirit
(Not by my own, for it has no merit),
I may be cleansed of evil thoughts,
Of thinking thoughts that I ought not,
Of doing things I should not do. —
Lord, cleanse Thou me, yea, through and through.

Help me, dear Lord, to be gentle and kind,
To operate with Jesus' mind;
Not to speak so curt and short,
Not to be often "out-of-sorts".

Take from me that critical spirit
That judges others by earthly merit;
Help me be gracious in my walk,
In the way I think and act and talk.

Help me to do all these things, dear Lord,
Not for merit or reward,
But from my love, dear Lord, for Thee
And Jesus Christ who died for me.

a. franklin staples

January 24, 1994


Copyright © 1994 by Allison .F. Staples

GOD IS A GOD OF JUSTICE

God is a God of justice;
God is a holy God.
We are an unholy people
With hearts that are sinful and flawed.

God is a god of judgment; —
Great and fierce is His wrath.
We are deserving of vengeance; —
We have strayed very far from His path.

But thank God, He's a God of mercy,
A God of such marvellous grace
That He provided for our justification,
Sent Jesus to die in our place.

Yes, God is a God of justice,
And justice is what we deserve,
But by His wonderful grace we've been pardoned!
What a merciful God that we serve.

a. franklin staples


January 23, 1994


Copyright © 1994 by Allison F.Staples

The Great Works Of God

All of the "great" things accomplished by men
Won't count for much when all's said and done.
They will pale into sublime insignificance
When compared to the works of the great Three in One.
The "great" works of men will be valued at nothing,
Those "masterpieces" of architecture, music and art,
When measured against what our God has created,
The "creations" of men play a very small part.
Yes, all the "great" things that have been
accomplished by men,
Are just the poor fruits of weak human endeavour; —
They won't stand comparison to the great works of God,
For the great works of God are forever.

a. franklin staples
January 21, 1994

Copyright © 1994 by Allison F. Staples

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR JESUS TODAY?

What have you done for Jesus today?
Have you thought what He's done for you?
Do you lift Him up by the things you say,
Use His example in all that you do?

What have you done for Jesus today?
Has His name crossed your mind at all?
Have you taken a moment to think and to pray?
In His name on God have you called?

What have you done for Jesus today
As you've gone about this day's tasks?
All of your trials at His feet have you laid?
His guidance in all have you asked?

What have you done for Jesus today?
He paid the price for your sin.
He paid a debt that you never could pay
That the crown of life you might win.

What have you done for Jesus today?
To Him have you given your best?
Has the work you have done shown another the Way?
By your care has another been blessed?

a. franklin staples

November 5, 1993

Copyright © 1993 by A. Franklin Staples

INDELIBLY WRITTEN IN BLOOD

In the blood of my Saviour
My name's written down
In the Lamb's Book of Life, praise God!
It's not written in pencil;
It can't be erased; —
'Tis indelibly written in blood.

'Tis indelibly written in blood,
Yes, indelibly written in blood;
On record forever, it cannot be erased
For 'tis indelibly written in blood.

Some think it's in pencil,
Still others, in ink,
But both those ideas are flawed,
For the record is permanent
For those who are saved; —
'Tis indelibly written in blood.

In the blood of the Saviour,
God's own precious Lamb,
Lord of lords, King of kings, Son of God,
The names of all saints are forever recorded; —
They are indelibly written in blood.

They are  indelibly written in blood,
Yes, they're indelibly written in blood; —
The names of all saints are forever recorded; —
They are  indelibly written in blood.

December 24, 1993


Copyright © 1993 by A. Franklin Staples

NO SIN IS TOO GREAT FOR GOD TO
FORGIVE!

No sin is too great for God to forgive!
Nay, none is too wicked or too base
But what God, in His mercy, will wipe clean away,
Forgive and forget and erase.

No sin is too great for God to forgive
If the sinner will repent and give in,
Let the pure blood of Jesus, shed for his sake,
Wash away all of his sin.

No sin is too great for God to forgive!
The way home is open to all
Who will turn from their wickedness and be born again —
Who on Jesus the Saviour will call.

No sin is too great for God to forgive,
No sin that is, except one:
The sin of rejecting the Way, Truth, and Life —
The sin of rejecting God's Son!

a. franklin staples

October 9, 1993

Copyright © 1993 by A. Franklin Staples

UNITY

To maintain unity, that's the thing
As we serve Jesus Christ, our Lord and King;
To be one in heart and soul and mind;
To put our differences behind
In all we do and think and say;
'Tis for that unity we pray.

To be united in our common cause
Is essential, friend, to the church because
Without it Christ is not what we preach
And souls for Him we cannot reach.
That is our purpose, let us not forget,
That the premises of His commission be met —

That we should preach, baptize and teach,
That souls for Him we may truly reach;
That is our cause — we have no other —
It's that which is paramount, my brother,
Not buildings, large, small, fancy, plain,
But in Christ alone is our great gain!

In His great Name we must go forth
To south and east and west and north,
To preach the Word of God to men
That we might win some of them.
Christ is the One on whom we call
For 'tis He who died for one and all.

a. franklin staples

July 4, 1993

Copyright © 1993 by A. Franklin Staples

THEREWITH TO BE CONTENT

"Therewith to be content,"
 No matter what my state;
 Not to be anxious about tomorrow
 But to live each day by faith;

 To have "the peace that passes all understanding"
 That only comes from God —
 That is the way I want to live
 As on life's way I trod.

"Therewith to be content,"
 With that, not less nor more,
 Which the great loving God shall give to me
 From His abundant store.

a. franklin staples

June 27, 1993

Copyright © 1993 by A. Franklin Staples