For my darling children.
With all my heart.
First day.
1
Hush! My darling child!
Let me hold you for a moment.
Breathe against my chest
And feel your father’s heart.
Let my arms enfold you.
I would save you from the world.
Yet soon I must release you
To find your way among people.
Take with you this memory,
My heart is yours forever.
2
Trouble not that we must go
To a future neither knows.
We know the Final Future, so…
“Let not your heart be troubled.” (John 14:1)
3
I have seen the world speed by me
Like lightning flashing fast—
Bright promises surprising
With few that come to pass.
But One has never failed me—
His Word is ever true,
“I AM the Way, The Truth, the Life”—
Thus shall it be with you. (John 14:6)
4
No matter where you are in world or life
Right NOW is where to start.
Let your life be like a text book
Mapping out the steps you’ve walked, then
Ask HIM to show you where you’ve wandered,
And where to steady as you go.
Be not hasty to correct
The thing you do not understand.
A solution understood tomorrow
Is better than a second error today.
Let the Eternal Wisdom teach you,
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Psalm 111:10).
You will find many a key to great triumphs
In the mistakes that he heals within you.
5
Be patient, my darling. Be patient.
I am not in a hurry to see you come to me.
You must travel your road. You alone must walk it.
Though you will never be alone as you do.
I am with you, even now. Can you not feel it?
You have leaned on my chest. You have felt my heart.
6
The Great Heart calls us, with every step. (Matthew 11:28-30)
Every breath is a leap of faith.
I breathe out one grateful utterance,
“Thank you, LORD, for my precious child!”
You will finish what you have begun.
I do not doubt it, for I believe in you.
7
On this first day I take my solace
In knowing that my child will win:
No opposition will shatter my beloved—
“If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31)
2ND DAY
1
Confusion cannot overwhelm
The settled heart whose ground is Jesus—
That is the secret of secrets for us—
His words will never fail. (Matthew 7:24-25)
But what about love? When it disappoints, what then?
Ah! Love. When human love fails.
This is one of the great tests of life:
How do I navigate the issues of the heart?
Do not try to live your entire life at once.
Day to day will teach you. Night to night will whisper.
2
I would not take from you the delicious agony
Of seeking the truth of love.
How would you know true love’s value
If gaining it cost you nothing?
3
Best to look for the thing that matters—
For gold in the streams of your search.
Gold is where you find it.
You know not on what day it may find you.
4
You must qualify for a great love.
The great love of your life is waiting.
Do not be hasty in the search.
The pain of search is the fuel that drives you.
Grow yourself toward the arms of a true friend—
Time will match you to your destiny.
5
The task for you is to come to be what you must be.
Value draws value. Greatness draws greatness.
The greatest love is the one unsought,
The one that emerges when you least suspect.
6
God will lighten your eyes, whether now or later.
You’ll not be misled when His Eye sees through you.
Pray to know HIM, to know HIS will,
So you may know the mate HE has fashioned for you.
7
I saw Mimi in the spirit
E’re I saw her in the world.
The moment she came to me
That moment I knew she was mine.
3RD DAY
1
No one owns another.
Love cannot be ruled. (John 3:16)
To love is to give oneself away.
To receive love is to accept a gift.
2
Then seek to be a giver.
Receiving will follow like breathing.
4TH DAY
1
As day declines to evening,
Take heed of side roads in the city.
What is clear in the day
Is shaded by the night.
2
And animals of darkness come forth to scavenge,
Animals that prey on wanderers in isolation.
The temptress and the male prostitute
Wait in the low-light to ply their wares on the corners of dim streets.
They dress for darkness, they paint their lips,
They call in seductive tones and sell themselves for money.
Keep far from them;
Follow not friends who go to their lairs in the alley.
3
My older brother was a victim
To the wanton love of night thrills.
4
Be wise, my precious one! Be wise! Be wise!
Spend not your heritage on the song of the siren.
Flee from her! Run from him! Save yourself in a moment!
Home is your haven, a defense against the night.
(Proverbs 2:10-22)
5TH DAY
1
Be a lover of the day.
Rise early, calling on the name of the LORD. (Psalm 57:8)
2
All around in the city,
And throughout the lanes of small towns,
Evil men work their deeds in the dark
Supposing to trap the pure of heart.
3
But you will rise above them all
As you rise in prayer to God.
The turning of your voice toward heaven
Is the lifting of your soul above the world.
4
Therefore, imbibe holy music:
Play and sing songs of worship.
Teach yourself to love God.
This is the habit of conquerors.
6TH DAY
1
For my son who is choosing a wife,
Take these as thoughts to consider—
But you must decide for yourself what to do—
You must live with the woman you take.
2
Look to the mother and to the grandmother of the woman you are choosing:
In them you will see bold outlines of your future.
Your young lady is in the flower of her life, as are you—
She will develop into your greatest treasure.
3
See how she talks with her mother.
Watch how she honors her grandmother.
See how they talk with her: Do they consider her opinion?
See if they respect her despite her youth: Are they condescending?
If her mother and her grandmother do not give her space,
If they stifle her in minute ways without letting her personality breathe,
Then realize that you will have to walk with her in a lonely way:
You will have to give to her what ought to be hers from them—freedom.
This is not a good road of life in general;
But if she is worth the struggle to you, then prepare for it.
But never seek to take a girl from her parents;
Her family is God’s gift to you.
Cherish her family, even if they show themselves unworthy;
God is able to turn what is into what can be.
Watch how your woman relates to her father and her grandfather;
If she loves their company, then you are a blessed man.
_______________________________________________________________
7TH DAY
1
For my daughter who is choosing a husband,
Take these as thoughts to consider:
It is he who will sleep on your pillow:
Therefore, consider the tomorrows of your journey well.
2
Is he an upright man? Is God at the top of his character?
Does he fulfill his word? And if he falters, does he make it right?
Does he love you alone? Or do his eyes glance at every passing girl?
Does he speak to you in a love language that is his? Does he do so every day?
Does he make to you some offering? Does he bring you warm coffee in winter?
Does he tell you how beautiful you are? Does he gaze deeply into your eyes?
Is his kiss a giving message? Or is it a taking for himself?
Does his touch warm you with joy? Or does it make you want to defend yourself?
3
What does he do to make money? Does he have healthy ambition?
What skills does he possess? These will direct the course of your joint future.
Have you seen how he relates to his parents? Is the relation healthy?
If you apply the tests to him that sons should apply to you, how does his family fare?
4
But deep in your soul ask yourself—Do I love him?
If the answer is Yes, then pray for the LORD’S blessing and guidance.
Ask your father what he thinks of this man.
Give strong attention to your father’s reasons.
I am a distant father, my darling. I had only sons.
But if you were my immediate daughter, I would defend you to the death.
