ABCs of Prayer

Adoring our Lord
Bowing before His throne
Confessing doubt and weakness and sin
Dancing and singing, delighting in Him
Encompassing a needy world with love
Forgiving others, forgiving myself as He forgives me
Grateful for hope in the face of adversity
Having sweet fellowship with Jesus
Interceding in the Spirit
Joyful in salvation
Kept from deception, confident in Christ
Lavishing His blessings on others
Mindful of eternity
Needing nothing else
Overcoming evil in obedience to God’s Word
Praising His name
Quieting my anxious thoughts in the light of His love
Resting in my Father’s arms, receiving His peace
Speaking by faith His Words of deliverance and healing
Thankful for His grace
Understanding little, trusting much
Victorious in His armor, empowered by the Spirit
Weeping over the lost
X excited about what God has already done
Yielding my life, saying Yes to His leading
Zealous to give Him all glory!
by Elaine Hardt ©1995

Attitude Adjustment

What’s your passion, what do you do well?
Do you dream that you can?
An attitude can be improved
By a careful, thought-out plan;

Without His Word we do not know God,
We could follow false dreams;
He has a good plan for each of us,
Quite challenging it seems.

You can’t receive when your fist is clenched,
Give up both anger and fear;
Satan seeks to block your destiny,
Don’t believe every voice you hear.

Can you trust God? He’s giving you
A certain number of days;
Empowered by His Holy Spirit
Obey Him, give Him praise.

Perhaps what you dream is not for now,
Don’t let pride get in your way;
Life is too short! Avoid confusion!
God calls —now is the time to pray.

By Elaine Hardt ©2007

Father, You Know

Too much is out there in the world,
Too much is going on;
I can’t keep up, find out, figure it out,
I’m tired of the struggle and fear and doubt.

Too much noise and confusion,
Little lies and downright deception;
Too much bitterness and strife,
Too many problems for a too-short life.

Too much is out of order, those who care are few,
Too little that just one person can do.
Evil is hidden, evil is plain to see;
Everyone is caught up in superficiality.

Father, You know.
Father, You know.

My heart longs for things to be right,
For truth to prevail, blindness give way to sight.
I hand over my stress and aggravation,
Forgive my complaining and frustration.

Father, I’m glad You are here in this place;
I rest in Your goodness, I’m safe in Your grace;
You restore and refresh my world-weary soul,
I’m eternally glad that You’re in control.

Yes, my life is insignificant and small,
But I will listen when You call;
What You tell me I will do
And leave the end results to You.

By Elaine Hardt ©2002

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The Day After Easter

Easter came and went
dressed in ribbons and lace
bringing baskets of
colored eggs nestled in plastic grass.
Glazed ham emerged from its pan
and everyone ate too much.
But now it's over,
wilted lettuce and melted Jello,
and back to school.

But I chose instead
to remember Resurrection,
God's approval of Jesus,
the ultimate Passover Lamb,
His powerful answer to the daily crush,
and the unspoken questions of being,
and the heart's deepest cry.
So my celebration
has no end.

—Elaine Hardt ©l984

What Can I Say About Easter?

What can I say about Easter
That hasn’t been said before?
Stuffed rabbits and baby chicks,
Eggs in baskets or hidden nests,
Yummy cupcakes. jelly beans,
Is this a treat for your dentist?
At least that’s what it seems!

But let’s get past the pretending
And recall the Easter facts
of Jesus’ Resurrection Day;
Let’s search the Bible truth
Of that early celebration,
Passover’s sacrifice remembered
In solemn commemoration.

So what is this holiday
Really supposed to be about?
God’s love, His sacrifice for our sin,
Jesus rising from the tomb,
Our obedience and trust,
Thankful for forgiveness,
So celebrate, we must!

By Elaine Hardt ©2007

The Mathematical Question

Several times people wanted to make Jesus king,
“My hour is not yet come,” was His reply.
One day He arranged it Himself, rode into Jerusalem,
In a mathematical way we find the reason why.

We read in the Gospels about Palm Sunday
To the shouts of the happy crowds, He allowed their praise.
And, here’s the unbelievable fact about that date
Predicted to be 173,880 days.

Several hundred years earlier Daniel wrote it,
The King coming, as prophesized, for all to see,
Messiah long-awaited and promised by God.
We nearly overlook this event today, amazingly.

No coincidence, the facts lined up,
Scholars deciphered the mathematical prophecy
Of Daniel 9:24-27 and knew Zechariah 9:9;
Setting the date of the triumphal entry.

On March 14, 445 B.C. Longimanus gave command to restore.
(Jewish and Babylonian calendars used a 360 day year.)
And on April 6, 32 A.D. Jesus presented Himself as King;
Accounting for leap years the exact total will then appear.

The Old Testament contains hundreds of prophecies,
The Bible, Word of God, is really true;
“What difference does it make to me?”
To accept Jesus means eternal life to you.
-Elaine Hardt ©2007



(Information is from Chuck Missler’s K-House News, 3-27-07.)
The book of Daniel was translated into Greek prior to 270 B.C. several centuries before Christ was born. Read about Artaxerxes Longimanus; see an article at http://www.khouse.org/articles/1996/46/