By the Root; The Proof!

Michael E. Wood
May 12, 2011

While having what at first I thought to be a head cold, and finding it difficult to sleep, I arose around 3:00a.m. and began to read and meditate upon some excerpts from Proverbs chapter 12.

Vs. 12 …the root of the righteous bears fruit.

Vs. 14 From the fruit of his mouth a man is satisfied with good, and the work of a man’s hand comes back to him.

Vs. 17 …whoever speaks (Heb. - breathes out) the truth gives honest evidence.

Vs. 19 Truthful lips endure forever…

The following came as a result of this time with the Lord.

How oft we need reminding
That true patience comes from Thee,
As righteousness makes sweet the fruit
That was, and is, shall be,
The honest evidence provided
By The Root; the proof,
That by Your hand shall all returns
Commend Your faithful truth.


And as Your Holy Spirit speaks
And satisfies with good,
You cause us to take great delight
In wisdom understood,
That by Your Word we shall endure
And from Your lips forever,
We shall rejoice in all Your truth
That none can ever sever.


So help us meditate on all
From heaven You have said,
Recorded in Your written Word
And by Your Spirit led,
That while on earth we shall be found
By You to now be faithful,
Rejoicing in the truth by which
You’ve made our hearts so grateful!

The Old Man is Dead!

Michael E. Wood
May 11, 2011

Psalm 37:35, 36
I have seen a wicked, ruthless man, spreading himself like a green laurel tree. But he passed away, and behold he was no more; though I sought him, he could not be found.

The old man is dead!
The new man now reigns!
The effect of God’s Spirit
Now runs through my veins,
By faith everlasting
That came as a gift,
And mercy surpassing
My sin and to lift
Up holy hands
Without wrath or a doubt.
Oh praise with me Jesus
Who brought my soul out,
That I might see
And delight in the face
Of Christ evermore
To the praise of His grace!


You have heard it said, “The New is in the Old concealed, and the Old is in the New revealed.”  Though I have no warrant to say with all authority that the preceding passage from Psalms was speaking directly in accordance with Romans 6:6-11, the poem recorded did come as a result of reading through Psalm 37 and coming to verses 35 and 36.

Romans 6:6-8
We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.

In the Shadow of Your Wings

Michael E. Wood
May8-11, 2011

Psalm 36:7 says, “How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.”

By the finished work of Christ at Calvary, we who have been made to be children of God are likewise made to be partakers of His abundant everlasting goodness which springs forth into praise unto Him. While reading through Psalm 36 one day I had underlined the phrase, “in the shadow of your wings”, and had simply written the word “song” overhead. While reading through this Psalm once again the following words with a melody came to mind over a four day period of time.

Verses two and three were written on May 8th, while the first along with the chorus came four days later after receiving much encouragement by a message by Gregory N. Barkman, preached January 31, 1999 from Romans 5:9-11, entitled, “Rejoicing in the Certainty of Eternal Life”. The result in being brought into an understanding of our justification before God through the cross of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and made effective by the power of His Spirit is an out flow of praise to Him both in the church, in our homes, and even in the market place before the heathen. Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Your steadfast love, Oh LORD
Extends up to the heavens.
Your righteousness is firm,
Like mountains, Oh our God.
Your judgments like the deep,
Beyond all of our searching,
Both man and beast preserve
To glorify Your Name!




(Chorus)
And our boast is in the cross
By which with Christ, we’re crucified
Unto this world of sin,
As our Lord Jesus has denied
All powers of death and hell
That all Your praise
May grow and swell,
To worship and adore
Your Precious Holy Name!


In the shadow of Your wings,
As children we take refuge.
The abundance of Your house
Is where we feast upon
Your righteousness as light,
And justice as the noonday.
Through the blood of the cross
Our souls You made whole.


(Chorus)


From Your river of delights
You cause us to drink freely.
The fountain of all life
Is certain and with You.
In Christ Jesus we see light
And know as our possession
You are our God alone,
And precious is Your love.


(Chorus)


(Repeat)
To worship and adore
Your Precious Holy Name!

Of Your Almighty Character

Michael E. Wood
May 5, 2011

1st Corinthians 8:1- 3

“...’all of us possess knowledge’. This knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. If anyone imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know. But if anyone loves God, he is known by God.”

On some occasions I take a short nap in the afternoon in order to be more alert for the rest of the evening. On this particular day I did not feel that I had accomplished all that I would have liked to beforehand. As I awoke I felt a kind of darkness within my emotions that seemed to sweep over me. Though our salvation is not dependant upon our feelings there are times some of us have need to work and wrestle through our subjective feelings relying and trusting in the objective truths of scripture whereby God through His infinite mercy restores us to the haven of rest we have in the finished work of Christ.

The following was written upon the understanding of my own lack of knowledge and my need to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; to lay hold of and to be held by the realities of the truth of His work on the cross of Cavalry.

Dianna came home from work while I was in the midst this conflict within and I told her I felt like I had just undergone a satanic attack. Thanks be to God for His love by which He has known us and from which we can never be severed.

Father,


Oh when I feel like darkness
Will o’er take me like a storm,
I yet rejoice in knowing
All from you is sent to form
A greater understanding
By the pleasure of Your hand
Of Your Almighty character
Through Christ then to withstand
The turbulence that heretofore
Had shook me to my knees
And caused me to cry out alone
To You who hears my pleas
For mercy while in darkness
I await Your sweet embrace
That draws me ever closer
And rejoice to see Your face.


And as Your smile then scatters
All subjective fears and loss,
I see that all was nailed
Together on that rugged cross
Of which was borne to show
Beyond all words Your royal love
And confirmed by words supplied
By Your Almighty Dove,
Spoken through the text of Your
Unchanging Holy Script
Of which You’ve given here below
That we might be equipped
To uphold Your honor
By the wisdom that You give
And by the power of Your Spirit
For Your glory live.

In Christ Jesus, Glory's Sum!

Michael E. Wood
April 27, 2011

While reading 1st Peter chapter 1, grace was given to write the poem enclosed. Excerpts from that chapter beginning with verse 13 were the spring from which these thoughts flowed.

“… preparing your minds for action, and being sober minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ….conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile knowing that you were ransomed… with the precious blood of Christ, like a lamb without blemish or spot….you through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope might be in God. Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth …through the living and abiding word of God; for ‘All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.’ And this word is the good news that was preached to you.”

What grace is this that God did give
To make us holy, pure--
Enflamed by love through Christ alone
Where strength comes to endure--
The great assaults of all our sin
Arising from our hearts!
Oh, give to Him now all the praise
Whose blood doth cleanse all parts
Of that which yet remanineth
Till the day our bodies die.
As finished then our war shall be
And to Him we shall fly!


Oh, Help us Mighty Father
By Your Spirit to behold
The beauty of the face of Christ
You’ve known afore of old.
As all His work is finished
Whereby we in sweet communion
Are made partakers of His grace
And fullness by our union--
As benefactors of the cross
We shall not be denied;
Encouraged through the pain we bear
As He is glorified!


And as the consummation
Of all things are in Your hand--
Your great perfections will be seen
In all You cause to stand.
For as all flesh shall wither
And its glory surely fall,
The good news is Your Word of grace
Remains, Lord, overall.


So help us walk with courage
While engaging worldly plights,
And devils darts which come at us
To darken heavens lights--
Of which You have provided
Till Thy kingdom fully come,
With holiness perfected
In Christ Jesus, Glory’s Sum!

On Our One Year Anniversary!

On Our One Year Anniversary
Reflections by Michael E. Wood
May 18, 2011

One year ago today we made
Our vows to God above,
And in His sight and by His grace
We’re bound by covenant love.

And in His gift we trust;
His promise clearly will be seen
To reflect the glory of the One
On whom we lean.

For as Christ is our joy and source
Of blessing as the vine;
Which provides for all our need
As one He shall refine

To produce the fruit of which
His Spirit shall increase
The glory due unto His name
While led by Him in peace.

And as our time is fleeting,
Father, now before our eyes;
We thank you for your faithfulness
To ever hear our cries

For mercy as we bold approach
For grace before Thy throne
That all may know that you are God;
Yeah, You are God Alone!

Pretty Little Caterpillar

Michael E. Wood
May 13, 2011

This little poem (jingle) came about as a result of getting sick for several days from (what we believe was caused by) exposure to a Western Tussock Moth Caterpillar.   For more information see Dianna’s post in “The Wood’s Secret Garden”, dated May 13, 2011.

Pretty Little caterpillar;
We never knew--
Just what kind of damage
Your little hairs would do,

For when you inhale,
The membranes do swell,
Your head begins to ache,
And you just want to yell.

Your head is full of snot,
You cough a lot,
You feel like your little world
Is gone to pot.

Three a.m.
Your lungs are full of phlegm,
You’d trade some sleep
For your most expensive gem.

But that we have not,
And thankful for our lot,
As closeness with our Lord
Is a part of the plot,

Of which He designed,
To show He is kind.
In all of life’s things
We can know of His mind,

Of which we observe,
By faith and the nerve,
To look to His Word,
From which we will not swerve.

For there, He is Sweet;
Every need He will meet,
As He is our consolation
And will strengthen our feet,

To rise up again,
As His glory is our end,
Both to praise and magnify our God
On Whom we can depend!

Oh Spirit of the Living God

Michael E. Wood
April 21, 2011

Luke 11:13
If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!

Thanks be to God who faithfully proclaims to us the truths of which we have need of by His Spirit through the men of His choosing not only in the days of which we live, but has likewise left to us a heritage by those of which He hath showered His favor upon in days gone by and hath received up into glory. The following is an excerpt from a message preached by Charles Haddon Spurgeon, entitled, Our Urgent Need of the Holy Spirit.

“Daily, then, let us pray for the power of the Spirit as the Illuminator. Come, O blessed Light of God! You, alone, can break our personal darkness and only when You have enlightened us can we lead others in Your light! An ignorant Christian is disqualified for great usefulness, but he who is taught of God will teach transgressors God’s ways and sinners shall be converted unto Christ! Both to burn within and shine without you must have the illuminating Spirit!

III. One work of the Spirit of God is to create in Believers the spirit of ADOPTION.

“Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, whereby you cry, Abba, Father!” “For you have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father!” We are regenerated by the Holy Spirit and so receive the nature of children—and that nature, which is given by Him, He continually prompts, excites, develops and matures—so that we receive day by day more and more of the childlike spirit. Now, Beloved, this may not seem to you to be of very great importance at first sight, but it is, for the Church is never happy except all her members walk as dear children towards God. Sometimes the spirit of slaves creeps over us—we begin to talk of the service of God as though it were heavy and burdensome—and are discontent if we do not receive present wages and visible success, just as servants do when they are not happy. But the spirit of adoption works for love, without any hope of reward, and it is satisfied with the sweet fact of being in the Father’s house and doing the Father’s will. This spirit gives peace, rest, joy, boldness and holy familiarity with God.

A man who never received the spirit of a child towards God does not know the bliss of the Christian life! He misses its flower, its savor, its excellence and I should not wonder if the service of Christ should be a weariness to him because he has never, yet, got to the sweet things and does not enjoy the green pastures where the Good Shepherd makes His sheep to feed and to lie down. But when the Spirit of God makes us feel that we are sons and daughters, and we live in the House of God to go no more out forever, then the service of God is sweet and easy and we accept the delay of apparent success as a part of the trial we are called to bear.

Now, mark you, this will have a great effect upon the outside world! A body of professors performing religion as a task, groaning along the ways of godliness with faces full of misery, like slaves who dread the lash, can have but small effect upon the sinners around them. They say, “Those people serve, no doubt, a hard master, and they are denying themselves this and that. Why should we be like they?” But bring me a Church made up of children of God—a company of men and women whose faces shine with their heavenly Father’s smile! Who are accustomed to take their cares and cast them on their Father as children should! Who know they are accepted and loved, and are perfectly content with the great Father’s will! Put them down in the midst of a company of ungodly ones and I will guarantee you they will begin to envy them their peace and joy. Thus happy saints become most efficient operators upon the minds of the unsaved! O blessed Spirit of God! Let us all, now, feel that we are the children of the great Father and let our childlike love be warm this morning! And so shall we be fit to go forth and proclaim the Lord’s love to the prodigals who are in the far-off land among the swine.”

Oh Spirit of the Living God
Please fall afresh on me
And teach me more of Christ my King
As wait I do for Thee.
For in the wrestling’s of my soul
No greater pleasure is
Than to know that He is mine
And I am truly His!


Forgive me for the many ways
That often I grieve You
And ignore Your promptings
By the Word You speak, that’s true.
And when I make the choices
Which are good not for my health,
Oh quickly bring me back to know
In Christ lies all true wealth.


And when I think on things
Which prove to be most ineffective,
Oh bring me back to Christ alone
Who Is our great Objective.
Oh break afresh the fallow ground
To see our lack of love,
Yet be encouraged by
Your tenderness Almighty Dove.


Refresh us by the Word of Grace
You gave in infancy
To know and love our Savior
As our hearts cry out and plea,
Dependant not on anything
That we have thought or done,
But only in the merit of
Our God and Father’s Son.

This post is simply a record for our memory book.  The photo collage and the letter below was sent to Mom and Grandma, Mother's Day 2011.

Dear Mom and Grandma,

We trust that you are well, and that you are enjoying the beauty that comes with the Spring of the year.

We hope you don’t mind the simplicity with which we are sending this by way of duplicating one letter and one collage for each of you. Rather than buying cards, Dianna put together a collage with a few of the pictures taken around “The Secret Garden”, along with a couple from our Spring time and Summer balcony area. A lot of what you see on the balcony has to be stored inside during the rainy season, but as you may be well aware we will have very little of the wet stuff from now until late Fall or early Winter.

We are very thankful for the provisions of God in all things. Previously not knowing that Sacramento is the third most difficult place to gain employment in America, the part time janitorial situation with the church is most appreciated as it is the means by which we are enabled to stay abreast with the recent increase in rent along with the skyrocketing price of gasoline. I am also very appreciative of a comment our Pastor made, saying, “There’s no such thing as unemployment in the Kingdom of God.”

Just to give you a brief update on our various involvements since becoming members at Immanuel Baptist Church: Paul Vossen plays guitar at church, and we are working together on a couple of songs. Emmett, one of the sound men has offered to help with making a new C.D. This of course, will be accapella, but will hopefully be used for further development with others who are gifted to translate the music the Lord brings to mind to be played on instruments unto His glorious praise.

A young man by the name of Eric, was hit by a car as a child, and lives in an assisted living facility. Most Sunday mornings, he makes it to church in his wheel chair, and this past week I had the opportunity to visit with him at the facility. He greatly appreciated it, and thus I plan to continue to visit with him on a regular basis. And lastly, Dianna and I are scheduled to be at the Union Gospel Mission Sunday night for me to sing a couple of the songs that I have had the pleasure to write. There are a number of possibilities for further development in both ministry and or employment with this rescue mission, but as we have learned that all of our expectations are in Him who does all things well, we trust and commit all things into His hands.

In closing, we trust you will also enjoy the little poem to go along with the collage print.

They say a picture’s worth a thousand words,
And so, it’s true,
And so we send this sampling of our life,
To share with you.
For though we are so far removed
By time and mostly miles,
We trust to share God’s beauty
With much great delight and smiles.
For as He has in mercy given grace
To thus display,
This simple way to honor you
On this Dear Mother’s Day.

With Love & Prayers,
Michael and Dianna

He Clothed and Made Entire

Michael E. Wood
April 20, 2011

2nd Corinthians 2:2
For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.

While there are many things of which we have been so graciously blessed of God to contemplate and delight in as His children, all hinge upon the fact that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures. That is the gospel in its simplicity, and the gospel is the means by which we live and die unto Him.

How far it seems some times we stray
From this one central thought,
That Jesus Christ was crucified
And by Him we were brought
Out of the depths of sin’s dark pit
Where once we thought to hide
From God Himself, Who showed His face
And heard when once we cried
Out to Him for mercy
As none other could have turned
The wrath of God away from us,
The due which we had earned.


Oh love yet so unfathomable
That caused us to believe
And look to Christ; His sacrifice
Whose blood atoned to cleave
Unto Himself a precious bride;
Oh weigh the price He paid
As all our sins most infinite
Was on our Savior laid.


If thoughts of Him bring not at times
Both tears and joy now mixed,
Then better that you check the faith
On what or whom you’re fixed.
For when the time shall come
And will of which to give account,
The cross of Jesus Christ alone
Will be your strength to mount
Above the torrents that will test
True faith like gold in fire,
Where Jesus will be found by those
He clothed and made entire.

“Our soul must live and die on Jesus crucified.”
C. H. Spurgeon, The Man Of One Subject

“The righteous, loving Father humbled Himself to become in and through His only Son flesh, sin and a curse for us, in order to redeem us without compromising His own character. The Biblical Gospel of atonement is of God satisfying Himself by substituting Himself for us.”
Excerpt taken from Desiring God blog quoting, John Stott, The Cross of Christ, p. 159, 160

All That HE Has Fashioned

Michael E. Wood

April 19, 2011

This was written as the morning light was breaking over the hillside.

You pierced our darkness with the light
Of Your unchanging Word,

And caused us to rejoice with sight

And know the voice we heard

Is that of Jesus as the Son

Has risen for the race
Of fallen men that we may run
And see His smiling face.


Now as the Spring of Life does flow
From You our Father, God,
Give strength to conquer all our foes
And spread Your fame abroad.
We see reflections of Your beauty
While still we live on earth
Which cause us to rejoice in duty
You gave with second birth.


We thank You that Your faithfulness
Is seen with such delight
And humbled by the righteousness
Of Christ now in Your sight,
We glory in the cross as
All things new will thus commend
Your holiness with every loss
Till with Him we ascend


Into that bright and glorious day
Where love shall full abound

And every tear be wiped away

By Him in Whom we’re found

To be more glorious than on earth

Could ever be imagined

Whose praise and worth will be displayed

By all that He has fashioned.