A Short Story & A Poem, Plus My Garden.Free Inspirational Reads

 

Impossible?

Emil cast his line gracefully into the middle of the river.

"Great cast." Gus said as his own rod bent under the weight of a fish.

"It's going to be a pan-sized one." Emil grinned as he watched his friend reel the fish in.

"Yup. Looks like we may have a decent lunch." He removed the hook from the fish's mouth and cleaned it carefully at the waterside. The two men fell into a companionable silence broken only by the sound of the lapping water.

Emil studied some lazy clouds as he waited for a bite. After some moments, he spoke. "Wouldn't it be cool if the Rapture happened right now, while we're fishing? Kind of appropriate, I think."

Gus chuckled. "You always were a dreamer Emil."

"It's not a dream," said Emil as he reeled in his own catch, "it's in the Bible. 1 Thessalonians, chapter 4."

"I know, I read my Bible. It just sounds so impossible. Like a dream." He added, "I sort of think it could be figurative, you know. Or maybe it happened already, when Jesus died."

Emil was cleaning his own fish now, and he chose his words carefully. "Gus, you believe that God created the river, the fish, the mountains?"

Gus grunted. "Course I do."

"Don't you think that such a powerful God can lift some people off of the ground and take them home if He wants to?"

"Well, when you put it like that..." Gus laughed.

"Doesn't seem like too big a thing for an awesome God, does it?" Emil drew his arm back and cast. His line plopped decisively into the deep water.

The two friends were quiet again whilst Gus baited his own hook. The splash of his sinker hitting the water broke the silence. "Seems like fishing is a real fitting thing to be doing when Jesus returns Emil. A real fitting thing."

Copyright: Alison Lawrence

***

‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭4:16‭-‬18‬ ‭ESV‬

[16] For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. [17] Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. [18] Therefore encourage one another with these words.

***

https://bible.com/bible/59/1th.4.16.ESV

***

Snatched Away

Walking under 

pleasant palms

not seeing,

not breathing deep

a pile of troubles

balanced in my arms

Others walking

with their

piles of troubles

haste and hurry

rush, rush, rush

past whispering waves

and reeds

I pray as I walk,

my heart is full;

the troubles are

many but 

God is good

and I draw 

near to Him

The troubles are heavy

but my heart is light

as I walk

on pilgrim's way

'til a trumpet sounds

and cares start falling

away

as my feet leave

the ground

caught up in the air

with brothers

and sisters

away through the clouds

all troubles now

behind:

Our Bridegroom

has fetched 

His Bride

***

Copyright: Alison Lawrence

My garden is looking colourful and bright. 

From top to bottom: 

Here you can see a riot of orange Californian poppies, lettuce, Swiss Chard, Bulbinella, and geraniums.

The purple-blue Cape Forget-Me-Not came up on its own.

A cheerful face peeks at the camera.

***

Thanks for stopping by! May you have a blessed and encouraging week.

Love and prayers,

Alison.

Ps. Friday will be bonus content day. :)

Also, I am currently working on an Afrikaans post. Here is a link to my Afrikaans blog:

Link

All photos my own.