Faith Power Twins

With these power twins working for you, there is no telling how far your faith will soar! 

Personalization. Powerfully transform the rather objective (3rd person singular) promises of God in The Bible, and make them personally subjective (1st person singular) in your life, rather than cold, distant promises to others, written eons ago. Sample: Psalms 91 – Personalized.

Personification. “The Spirit of ________”. Orally fill in the blank often with the one predominant word that summarizes your mood, thoughts, words and motives that ebb and flow during the day. Do this for a few days, and you will recognize your most prevalent spiritual companion(s), be they ‘good, bad or (you know it) ugly’. Since knowledge is a form of power, this insight will be helpful in your efforts to either retain or change your close spiritual companions. Get this: Whether you do this or not, they’re still there.

Omitted Fruit? (Poem)

Ever wonder why faith, praise and thanksgiving are omitted,

From fruit of The Spirit in a believer’s life that’s submitted? ¹

This is curious, given the sheer number of references,

To these traits -- these New Testament preferences.

The Seed that sprouts roots ‘n shoots that produce the fruit, is God’s Word.

But fruit is not produced by a seed alone, as you’ve heard.

All seed requires good soil into which the seed can be deposited--

Nutrients for roots downward and shoots upward to be targeted.

Yet still, good soil alone will not guarantee seed will be fruitful.

To propel growth, water and light are necessary, to be truthful.

Seed, soil, light and water in balanced proportions will combine.

But let’s not omit that one key ingredient of time.

Each of these elements has its spiritual semblance:

Seed is God’s Word, soil is your heart. Light is His presence.

Faith enables the soil to open, receive and incubate the Seed.

So clearly, faith certainly can’t be a fruit, now do you see?

As with you, praise motivates our God of Love to act favorably.

See why praise can’t be fruit that Love produces un-measurably?

There’s only one thing left among our elements to muse.

What is the water that this Word-root so values?

It’s your thanksgiving, for blessings past and yet to come,

Flowing from a grateful heart in which Christ is very welcome.

The Spirit’s fruits are Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,

Gentleness, self-control, faithfulness and goodness.

Though other character traits of Love are permitted,

Rest assured, none of the fruits deemed critical are OMITTED.

To initiate His fruit growing process in us,

To each person, God gives a measure of His faith, plus

Special gifts to grow The Body of Christ,

With accompanying Grace that will suffice. ²

----------

¹ See: Galatians 5:22-23.

² It is important to distinguish between the fruit of The Spirit and the gifts of The Spirit. In Romans 12:3-8, Paul lists the gifts of The Spirit as: the gift of a measure of God’s faith (presumably to all men, not just believers, though this is not entirely clear), plus special gifts to or giftings within The Body of Christ, and grace to exercise these gifts: prophecy, administration, teaching, exhorting, generosity, leadership and mercy. Finally, in 1 Corinthians 12:4-11, Paul also cites faith as a manifestation of The Spirit, which some may misinterpret as the gift of faith, separate from the gift of a measure of God’s faith.

Our Un-common Denominator on Earth

The presence of satan and co. in the earth seems to have pre-dated the presence of mankind on earth. The respective abilities of devils to deceive and mankind to be deceived are the 'common denominator' of mankind's rulership and governance in earth, both pre- and post-Christ’s life on earth.

Jesus "dis-armed" satan and co. of the authority Adam gave to them over earth (Colossians 2:15), yet their presence on earth was allowed to continue. They were dis-armed of their authority, but apparently not of their power to deceive. Our individual and collective lifestyles here on earth have effectively re-armed and empowered them, e.g., via our words and choices. As a result, mankind once again succumbed to their deceptive tactics. Only when Christ returns to establish His 1,000 year reign on earth will the earth be free of the presence of satan and co., until the end of this period. Afterward, they will be released for a while to deceive the nations once again (Revelation 20:7-8), before being eternally bound in an inescapable hell. They will be effective and fruitful in their ability to deceive mankind during this release period.

Thus, mankind's governance and Christ's governance of earth up will have an "UN-common denominator", that is, they will not share the same 'common denominator' of the deceptive power of satan and co.
 
This prompts the question, what would the situation look like if mankind could govern in the earth, e.g. for say 1,000 years, without the presence and deceptive influences of satan and co.? What would it look like to be able to compare apples with apples, namely 1,000 years reign of Christ and 1,000 years of man's governance, both without the presence of our common enemy? Would the diagnosis God pronounced in Genesis 6:3 still apply? (The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and He saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil.). Why do you think it would or would not?

Though thought-provoking from man's narrow perspective, this is effectively a vision impossible, as it postulates a third existence. The Bible outlines only two existences: one with God and another without Him -- black and white, so to speak. The absence or active disregard/dishonoring of God (since He is everywhere!) means and ensures the presence and active regard/honoring of evil. Though mankind has long wished for a 'good, Godless world', assuredly no such ‘gray area’ is possible. Our vision for life on earth apart from un-seen spiritual forces is just that….

a dream, rooted in deception.

Acknowledging Equips

As a Star Trekker, admittedly, one of my favorite expressions from the programs is Captain Picard's order, "ENGAGE!"

When feeling ill equipped to share my faith, whether privately or publicly, I pair the image of this command with some wisdom from Paul as expressed in verse 6 of the Book of Philemon: "...the sharing of your faith becomes effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus."

The command I imagine hearing is simply:

ACKNOWLEDGE!

Acknowledging ‘all’ I am in Christ and ‘all’ the good He is working in, through and for me, shifts the spot light from me to shine brightly on Him, giving the assurance that He is working through me.

Next time you feel ill equipped to share your faith openly, imagine yourself in the captain’s seat, giving the order, ACKNOWLEDGE! All who/that Christ is in in you, plus His angels, will rally with you in seizing the opportunity to share your faith and accomplish the task at-hand....for His glory!

So Intelligent; Equally Deceived

Do an Internet search for ‘picture of angel’ any day of the week, no matter the circumstances of your life (peace or trouble), and you’ll come up with images of delicate, pretty, most likely Caucasian, often tiny humans with wings.  That about sums it up, folks!  To that I say, 

No wonder we lack faith in the power of God

or His angels assigned to protect, 
develop and supply us according to His purpose!

If you wrote a letter to someone describing something, would you expect the reader to walk away with a totally upside-down/inside-out image in his/her mind of what you had taken pangs to describe?  I don’t think so. 

So why do we collectively do this with The Bible’s various and awesome descriptions of the holy angels, insulting them and God in the process?!  From whence came our contorted/deceptive images of these, our assigned protectors?  Are your images of your protector angels ‘up to the job’ when you find yourself in a pickle, and really need them to be much more like they are described in The Bible?  Have you read and tried to imagine the Bible’s many accounts of angelic encounters, including the massive feats they will accomplish as described in The Book of Revelation?   

Consider this:  Imagine how un-measurably BIG and POWERFUL God is.  Now imagine the kind of beings such a God would obviously need to do His bidding …across all of Heaven and the starry universe, and on earth, with billions of residents to look after.

As you ponder that thought, here is my wish for you:

Be it unto YOU according to YOUR faith.

(You’ll get and deserve the angelic help, protection
and supply you imagine.)

Who They Gonna Call?

We've all been there. That sudden, unexpected moment of crisis when all hope seems lost...until.

Somewhere in the recesses of our mind, we remember a bit of the lessons from our days attending Sunday school, and we are moved to pray....a bit. But with hardly any relationship with God and Jesus after pretty much ignoring them most of our life, we realize...we are on rather shaky ground re. the prayer we just prayed!

Consider these 3 short questions:

1. Whom would you call?  If your relationship with Jesus is so weak (or nil) that you cannot pray the ‘prayer of faith’ in earnest, believing that God hears and answers your prayer right then and there when you pray (Mark 11:24), how likely is it that you have a strong enough relationship with the top persons on your "gotta call 'em" list?

2. Whom would your friends call??  Whether they ever speak of it or not, I'd bet your close friends have tucked somewhere in the back of their minds their own "gotta call 'em" list. Do you think you are on their list?

3. Would you call YOU ???  Knowing yourself well, would your name be on your own "gotta call 'em" list (get this) ...if you were not you???

If either of these questions gives you reason to pause, please consider that pause as a gentle invitation from The Holy Spirit to enhance your relationship with God, through Jesus Christ. He will show you how. And if you need additional help, for goodness sake...call me! (520-360-4771)

Here's an idea: Work to earn a place on their list. What a privileged list to be on!

BE-come the one to call!

4th Quarter in the Game (poem)

Ok, the big game has come and gone. As with any big game, the build-up to game day is longer than the game itself. Then, in a flash, the climaxes, especially those exhilarating ones in the 4th quarter, are over …gone, done, a quickly fading memory.

Similarly, the game of life has what should be an exciting 4^th quarter; replete with exciting climaxes to a life well lived.

Are you approaching or perhaps already in the 4^th quarter of your life’s game? Then join me in counting your blessings, considering the millions who never experience walking this part of our trail.  

As in a sporting game, the first 3 quarters of our lives have been the build-up to this 4^th quarter, anticipating a myriad of climaxes, much like the glorious heights reached by exploding fireworks. Suddenly, they burst on the scene, ‘exploding’ in all their glory… retirement parties, grandchildren, long-delayed professional recognitions and send-offs, and the launch of retirement dreams, peaceful times away from the world of work, time to pursue a hobby, etc. As fast as they exploded, it may seem the bursts of glory are too quickly over. Then what?

Like a parent watching a race in which his/her child is running, I imagine God watches to see us cross the line that begins our 4^th quarter. I believe He wants the world, your spectators, to see and to know what He already knows, namely how well you will finish the race that has been set before you! Will it be ho-hum, with more of the same stuff you tolerated and dished out to people during the first 3 quarters, or an invitation to Him into previously closed-off areas of your life, to do something significantly different and glorious …for eternal benefit? He already knows what you and others will come to know as each day unfolds.

Many people staunchly reject the very notion of changing gears or tracks, and getting on a more contemplative/reflective/service-oriented track during any quarter in their lives. Rather than embrace an awaiting 4^th quarter, perhaps they live an extended 3^rd quarter experience, continuing their push to increase their bottom line moneywise, working for ‘things that do not satisfy [or last]’ (Isaiah 55:2) until a debilitation sets in that prohibits their further push, or until their departure from this life.

While pondering the blessing of my own 4^th quarter experience, it became clear what we may call the 4^th quarter of life is really the end of the 3^rd quarter of God’s design for life. The 2^nd and 3^rd quarters are life in vitro, followed by life on earth. These experiences are sandwiched between the 1^st and 4^th quarter of His design, namely a pre- and post-eternity experience. Sounds odd? The Bible refers to God as ‘the Father of all spirits’ (Hebrews 12:9), from whom all human spirits come and to whom they certainly shall return.

Toward the end of the 3^rd quarter, a good coach carefully reassesses and adjusts the team’s line-up and tactics to enhance its chances for a winning 4^th quarter. If you are blessed to reach this far in the game of life, rest assured great Grace has been extended to you for this exact purpose. I hope you will join me in recognizing, and will not squander this tremendous opportunity.

Psalm 138:8 reports, ‘The Lord will perfect that which concerns me.’ Could much of this perfecting work possibly occur in our 4^th quarter of life, especially if we have spent much of the first 3 quarters pursuing what Jesus called mammon, and dealing with the steady onset of cares of this world? If so, the 4^th quarter should see our greater availability for Him to complete this perfecting work. Otherwise, I wonder if Heaven may have the equivalent of ‘make up’ classes’. ;o)

Here are some good tips from a wise man on the run-up to your 4^th quarter. As you read, consider what if we failed to follow his wise advice during the first 3 quarters of life?

Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth,
Before the difficult days come,
And the years draw near when you say,

‘I have no pleasure in them’:

While the sun and the light,

The moon and the stars, are not darkened,
And the clouds do not return after the rain.

Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed,
Then the dust will return to the earth as it was,
And the spirit will return to God who gave (fathered) it.

(Solomon, Ecclesiastes 12)

One of my 4th quarter wishes:

Someone is being encouraged (by me).

Someone is being helped.

Someone is being urged,

To tighten his/her spiritual belt.

Our Lie-Stained Life

By and large, we earthlings (especially we Americans) are living a lie-stained life, having opened wide and swallowed the devil's lie that ‘life is all about money!’ 

Consider the depth and the far-reaching implications and the price of believing this lie.  Going with the cultural currents and worshiping at the devil's money alter, we:

-Abort unborn babies

-Beggar our neighbors

-Rob graves of the dead

-Steal the tithe from God

-Cheat governments of taxes owed

-Promote wars for the sake of profit

-Orphan and sell our children's bodies

-Steal and sell body organs, even our own

-Borrow and finagle ways to avoid repaying

-Lie, cheat, steal and scheme our way through life

-'Shack-up' and refuse marriage over the fear of money loss

-Distort our paths, accepting do anything/go anywhere jobs

-Sell armaments to the highest bidder, ignoring the intended uses

…and the list goes on, and on, and on, with each generation finding ever more cleaver ways to … sin for the sake of money.

This stain is so deep and its implications so pervasive that we have practically squeezed all the 'life' out of life.  We have become like 'dead men/women walking', indiscriminately marching to the beat of m-o-n-e-y.  Both by example and urgings, we prompt our children early to board the money-hungry train, warping every decision of their lives around the money pole. 

Our push for money isn’t really all about money, per se, but about things money can obtain.  Money essentially offers the potential to purchase things tangible and intangible.  World economies are largely based on the assumption of infinite growth in production and consumption, mostly of consumer and military goods, thus massive consumerism and war mongering are considered ‘good for the economy’!

The taproot of our lie-stained, money-for-things-driven life style is the spirit of covetousness.  Consider the pressures you have personally experienced from intense (sometimes inexplicable) desire for some things, and the pressures from the threats/fears of not having necessary things.  These pressures are the direct manifestation of the spirit of covetousness.  The well-disguised root of covetousness easily triggers these pressures that can and do seed a wide range of emotions (both positive and negative), thoughts, words and actions.  Given this, it is clear the spirit of covetousness is a major ‘mover and shaker’ in our world.  No wonder satan and his crew have worked tirelessly to convince us covetousness is only about desiring other people’s stuff!  Cleaver but dead wrong!

Given the ease with which we are deceived, would it help to have a ready gauge to determine when this spirit is operating and when you have unknowingly fallen into its powerful grip?  Like you, I have struggled both to recognize this spirit and to free myself from its grip.  The rapidity of change in ‘the latest/greatest whatever’ (be it fashions, cars, tech gadgets, fads, games, movies, productivity aids, etc.), working in conjunction with the increasing income/wealth imbalances in our world, effectively assures the roots of covetousness will be increasingly fruitful in our world!     

Thankfully, Jesus gave us both a clear warning of, and the escape route from the vise-like grip of the spirit of covetousness:

Warning:  And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses." (Luke 12:15)

Escape route: [Recognize/know that] …your Father knows you need …things.  Seek first the kingdom of God, and ...things shall be added to you. Give and it will be given to you.  Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Luke 12:32, 6:38; Hebrews 13:5)

Here’s a helpful handle to grab and hold onto this escape route:

                              M-ammon [for things]

                              O-ught

                              N-ever

                              E-dge-out (as in replace)

                              Y-ahweh!

I attest this escape route really works and works well!  The spirit of covetousness and the Spirit of Giving are opposites, and they cancel out the effects of each other.  Whenever you’re caught in the trap and grip of covetousness, quick-quick, find something worthwhile to give to somebody!  Do this, and repeat as often as necessary, and that ole spirit will high-tail it out of your life!  Why does this work?  Giving in the very face of your need or desire is an absolutely great way to usher in the presence and power of God into situations, and to demonstrate your trust in Him to meet your needs and also to give you the desires of your heart, as you rest on His Word.  This is like taking a spiritual sledge hammer to the spirit of covetousness and its works.  Try it; have fun with it; let me know how it works for you!  

Quite simply, this is faith in action -- trusting God for things accessible and inaccessible with money.  As if to really get our attention, the admonition to live by faith is reiterated four times in The Bible!

Faith -- the currency of Heaven’s economic system on earth.

Study it well.  Learn to ‘LIVE by it’…really!

I Love How You Love Me (Poem)

Remember this song? 

Easily, the title of this song is something we would all like to say to that special someone who loves us… romantically.  We all love to be loved. We all need other kinds of love as well.  But consider this: To whom in your life can and would you honestly say, apart from romance, “I love how you love me”?  The notion of love has been so hijacked that we hardly/reluctantly think ‘it’s love’ apart from romance.  What a narrow perspective. Like you, I’ve been guilty of it as well.

If your answer to this question is, “No one.”, consider this: Whom can you practice loving, apart from romance, to the point where that person might one day say to you, “I love how you love me”, or something equivalent?  Got the picture?  Now find that person and get to work.  Consider starting with Jesus, then find another, and another…

~~~

No one but Jesus loves us more, better and longer.

Living closer to Him, our love grows stronger.

“I love how You love me!”

But here's a novel idea, the truth about the matter:

He longs to sing to you, and overcome the clatter,

And in His singing, all your fears completely shatter.

“(Your name), I love you. I love how you believe,

How you cling to Me, and from My Word receive.

I love how you love Me!”

But if your lifestyle is currently such

That you can’t hear Him singing so much,

‘I love how you love Me!’

He's sent this note to you to say, through me,

“Cheer up, there’s still time and opportunity.

 I want to love how you love Me!

“If you embrace Me with all your heart, mind and life force,

A mutually satisfying love we’ll have, of course!

Oh how I want to love how you love Me!”

As Long as I Abide (poem)

When reading and hearing about the many great promises God has made to us who accept Jesus as His offering for sin, is your initial inclination to ‘Grab and go!’ – that is to embrace and accept the promise, and then run with it, forgetting the small conditional phrase ingrained into each promise – ‘…if you abide’? If so, I am in your good company!

Abide: continuing in a particular condition, attitude, relationship, etc. I have been pondering this a small word to understand what it may mean in the context of life today. This word appears in the Gospel of John 17 times, 10 (60%) of which occur during the most passionate, private moments Jesus had with His 11 faithful disciples. With such an emphasis on this one word, I wonder what these disciples may have heard, what might they have imagined this meant given the socio-cultural context in which they lived. More importantly, what does and should it mean to us in our world today, especially with so many things vigorously competing for the attention of our minds, hearts and bodies 24 hours a day?

To get the point across, Jesus used the example of a grape vine and its many branches that can only produce grapes as long as their connection to the vine remains unbroken or undamaged. This was a familiar and visual example for His audience (even to the fishermen), but may not be as familiar with us who may not have experience in grape orchards. On one extreme, we might interpret this to mean seeing just about everything we experience ‘through the lens’ of Scripture – perhaps not a bad idea if you can do it … sustainably. I cannot! On the other extreme, we may easily be tempted to ‘throw in the towel’ from trying to understand and apply a realistic/practical meaning of this word to our lifestyles today.

So what does abiding look like, practically speaking? Do the meaning and intent of this word flex with culture? Is the interpretation monolithic or individualized? Since we humans think in pictures, what images come to your mind when considering the oft-repeated instruction to ‘abide’? Whatever it means, clearly these questions are worth pondering since only as we abide:

• Are God’s promises made effectual and full in our lives (Psalm 91:1);
• Do we become fruitful for the Kingdom (John 15:4-5); and
• Does God answer our prayers according to His will (John 15:7).

Ergo, when we cease to abide, the effective reach and impact of these promises may be significantly blunted or blocked altogether (unless Grace intervenes); we lose the opportunity to be fruitful for The Kingdom; and our prayers are hindered or unanswered. 

Yep, I conclude this tiny word, ‘abide’, packs a powerful wallop! Would you agree?

Here is a possible way to increase the volume on this soft-spoken, inherent condition of God’s promises. With every reading or hearing of a relevant promise, consider inserting into your understanding this phrase or one of its many variants: 

"as long as I abide".

Variants include: as I abide, when I abide, if I abide, because I abide, since I abide, due to my abiding, while abiding, etc.

Abiding enables us to remain on, and in the equivalent of God's private property or territory, whereas ceasing to abide in Him immediately puts us onto/into our enemy's property or territory. Other words for abide include 'dwell' (Psalm 91), ‘stand’ (Ephesians 6:14), and ‘stand fast’ (Galatians 5:1). Do you know others?

~~~

Though God loves one-and-all un-conditionally,
His promises are not un-conditional, so we see!
They have an embedded condition, spoken softly,
Whose volume will increase when on our knee.

He doesn't have security fences electrified
To teach us in His territory to abide.
Nor does He use even one simple lock
Our desire to leave His abode to block.

He must put baby Christians in sort of a crib,
And feed them The Word with a spiritual bib.
An older, bibbed Christian sucking on milk 
Will be very easy prey for satan to bilk!

Without meat he’ll have insufficient spiritual energy
To achieve necessary heart-mind-and-body synergy. 
Abiding requires a mature, disciplined heart and mind--
Someone whose eyes, satan's lies can't so easily blind.  

Whenever we step into the spotlight of pride,
Right then and there, we've ceased to abide. *
But in so many areas of our spiritual walk
We can’t see so clearly with eyes like a hawk.

Calendars, notes, alarms -- all sorts of reminders
To help us remember our time not to squander.
Avoiding consequences of wrong directions we’re sliding
Requires a clear signal of when we’ve stopped abiding.

Here is the quick way we're all inspected
To see if our abiding has been infected.
Clearly and loudly God’s message it'll convey: 
‘Abide is the other side of My word … OBEY!’

—————

* The Lord allows only ONE exception on the matter of pride. In Jeremiah 9:23-24, He authorizes us to ‘glory in’ knowing Him, and that He is in the Earth exercising Grace, Judgment and Righteousness. This is my favorite Bible passage, about which I write extensively, from various perspectives. For more on it, search for these verses. Look up the verb, to glory, in quality dictionaries. 

The Reluctant Judge (poem)

Jesus loves us. God, Himself, IS Love. God, who is Spirit, has turned all things over to His Son, Jesus (Luke 10:22), who is a resurrected man. (Yes, there is a human being in the Holy Trinity.) One of the things so delegated is judgment. (John 5:22)

Can you imagine how much of a challenge it would be for perfect Love, Himself, to judge those whom He totally and absolutely loves, eternally? Could this possibly be one reason why God has delegated judgment to Jesus? Just wondering out loud. Either way, both must be extremely Reluctant Judges. How do I reach this conclusion? Just open your eyes and review not only human history, but also current affairs in our world. Consider the following highly reliable trend, one you yourself may have gotten caught up into. I know I have. 

People who have been given and who received God's gift of righteousness moan and wail to God against the wicked -- the unrighteous, pleading for God to "Do something!" Like David and other psalmists, we long for the day when their righteous judgment will manifest, and they will be 'out of our hair'. Psalm 58:10 goes much further; "The righteous will be glad when they are avenged, when they dip their feet in the blood of the wicked." I'm not sure about you, but this certainly isn't one of my wishes. In many places, The Bible even promises the righteous will see the unrighteous receive their judgment! (Proverbs 29:16, Psalm 107:42, 56:2 and 91: 8)

Alas, we have totally forgotten one little, highly pertinent fact:

We, the righteous, were once numbered 

among them, the unrighteous!

God extended to us the richness of His Grace and Mercy when we likewise did not deserve it. And we embraced it! But how long did it take you to embrace it? Would you be willing for God to extend to the current unrighteous among us the exact same degree and number of years to reject His Grace and Mercy? This is hardly a question we are brought to ponder when horrible breaking news reports are iteratively flashed across our screens and minds. 

The good news: God is willing to go even much further than that, and to give the most desperately wicked even more time to repent! He and Jesus are truly Reluctant Judges. James 2:13 staunchly affirms, 'Mercy trumps justice'. But judge they do and will continue to do, through Jesus, once a person's, people's or nation's 'cup of iniquity' is filled and their allotment of Grace and Mercy has been exhausted.

Considering the other side of the coin, their reluctance to judge means the world needs to have sufficient 'shock absorbers' to handle the iterative and horrible sins of the extremely wicked while Grace and Mercy are being extended and are at work in their hearts and lives. Does the concept of 'shock absorbers' sound unusual? If this characterization is appropriate, what pray tell, are the 'shock absorbers?' I believe they are the hearts/spirits and actual lives of people whose hearts are troubled (John 14:1), and whose physical hearts fail them (heart attacks) in the face of both the wickedness and the resulting punishment (Luke 21:26).

Consider the unique case of the ancient Jewish King Manasseh, son of King Hezekiah. During his wicked years, Manasseh had many innocents killed and God's prophet, Isaiah, sawn in half – a fact Isaiah reportedly prophesied to King Hezekiah when Manasseh was a young child. Yet Manasseh subsequently repented and served God until his death. Having 'absorbed the shocks' of this king's evil rule, Isaiah, other innocents and their murderer are now friendly neighbors in Heaven! Imagine such a work of Grace and Mercy!

Ok, before you return to your customary moaning and wailing about the God judging the wicked (and return you will because it is our nature), consider the people who absorbed the many shocks your own pre-Grace life had on the world...the hearts and lives of people stained, crippled and destroyed spiritually or physically, by your sins.  I find this to be quite humbling.

Yep, Mercy truly does triumph and excel over Justice!
 
Once a Heavenly sentence is passed (judgment), Jesus instructs His angels to remove their spiritual protections from around the guilty who have staunchly rejected Grace and Mercy. This flings the door wide open for any and all devilish spirits to finish off the wicked, as we, the righteous, stand by to wait, watch, whine and wonder about that which is unfolding right under our noses.
 

We say, "Judgment delayed is justice denied."
God says, "Not so long as Grace and Mercy abide."
The wicked say, "Begone! With my life I'm satisfied!"
I say, "Thank God, these twins sure saved my hide!"

When next you wonder why justice hasn't found the wicked,
And revenge come to us who in God's Books are listed,
Remember, judgment delayed is not justice forgotten.
From judgment delayed nouveau righteous may be begotten!