my lack
Feb/March 1996

I ache to follow Your Will
while I pleasure in the flesh;
I want so much to spread Your Holy Word
to the lost souls searching
(and those who see no need to look)
yet can't seem to help but spread myself thin
in this lost world of souls
wandering in a sea of sin.

He reveals a Truth to me
as I embrace a lie;
He gives me empowerment
as I wallow in my weaknesses;
He touches me to greater things
while I reach for the lesser;
He made me a powerful spiritual being
made in the likeness and image of Him,
yet I fall into the pit of self
made in the likeness and image of sin.

I don't need a psychic -- ha ha --
to know where I've gone wrong.
My problem is in my lack of prayer;
my lack of devotion to Him;
my lack of commitment;
my lack of obedient action;
my lack . . ..

I need time to be alone in prayer,
away from everyone I know,
alone, with The Lord my God, in prayer;
there's so much I need to know.

			Andrew D. Festa

Return to TOP
Climb into His Promise

Begun: 7/27/97 (10:18pm)
Finished: 9/5/97 (2:13pm)

As you climb into your hole
and you think you're in control
you find it isn't
what you thought it would be.
As you climb into the night
and you think you're in delight
you find you aren't
really living so free.

He promised He would be with us
no matter what we face.
He promised He would never leave,
it's all part of the Grace.
Jesus -- Jesus --
He is The Lord of my soul;
Jesus -- Jesus --
my life will never be dull.

As you climb out of your shock
and you think you're on His Rock
you find you aren't
where you thought you would be free.
As you climb out of your pain
and you clear away the stains,
you'll find Him right there
where He said He would be.

He promised He would be with us
no matter what we face.
He promised He would never leave,
it's all part of the Grace.
Jesus -- Jesus --
He is The Lord of my soul;
Jesus -- Jesus --
my life will never be dull.

			Andrew D. Festa

Return to TOP
Purpose: Beyond the edge of an old illusion
8/9/97 (2:36am)

"For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal." (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)

This world is a dream you can touch,
an illusion you can taste,
a nightmare that jingles in your pockets
with the loose change of flesh.

It has the satisfaction of fool's gold,
tricking many into believing
that it's more than it can be
while its purchases are no more
than the sum of void.

I once wore that illusion as a coat
that protected me within its silver lining,
shrouded me with the beauty of its limits,
tucked me into the womb of my ignorance,
and carressed me with its empty promises.

But one day I awoke
to the sound of my name
on The Master's lips
and I found that I had been naked all along.

"You can not serve two masters"
I'd always been told
but never realized what that meant
until The Lord revealed Himself to me.

The loose change stopped jingling;
the gold turned to sand in my hands;
the coat faded into a mist
that dispersed as He approached,
and I tried to cover my shame
as I naked-stood in sin
at the very edge of Truth,
at the very foot of God,
at the very moment of my Salvation.

But He cast my concerns off
and said I have no cause for shame,
that Jesus paid the final cost
and, as one who enters a toolgate
only to find that the one before him
already paid the fare,
all I need do was believe and accept.

He clothed me calmly
with a joy I never knew before.
He brought me beyond the mist of deception
into the midst of His Greatness.

He took me beyond the edge of limits
into the great expanse of eternity.
He gave me everything I never knew existed,
and more than I ever dreamed I'd know.

He gave me life.
He gave me Truth.
He gave me Salvation.
He brought me home
beyond the edge of who I was without Him.

He IS The Lord.
He IS The Hope.
He IS The Light.
He IS The Truth.
He loves me more than I ever knew.
He is my purpose
beyond the edge of an old illusion.

He can be your purpose too!!
He can give you life beyond life!!
Just ask Him into your life with this short prayer:
"Jesus, come into my life.
Show me the way!!"
...He'll take it from there!

Andrew D. Festa
Return to TOP

---

Letter from an underling to the enemy boss

7/31/97 (12:20am)

I don't understand...
We gave him sex
and he turned a blind eye.
We got him into a circle of drugs
and he didn't notice the first thing.
(He did do some but the more he got,
the more he turned his mind away...)
We pushed money at him in mountains
and, though he hesitated,
he took the trail of bypass.
We cast insults at him
and he continued with a smile.
We offered him power and position
but he passed them without even a glance.
We then took everything from him,
still he strode with joy.
We cast pain and torment upon him
and, though he winced briefly,
he continued as before.
We even took all he held dear,
but he didn't notice the loss.
Finally, we stole his loved ones with Death
and, while we managed to bring him into a stream of tears,
he was not broken
nor brought into the Dark'ning.
What have we done wrong, boss?

Andrew D. Festa
Return to TOP

---

Reply of the enemy boss

7/31/97 (12:35am)

First, do not forget that
the battle is between
me and the guy in the light.
Second, don't give up. As time goes on,
you will get stronger,
and the force of your attacks will increase
as the will of these puny humans
is broken to a wimper.
Remember that even his book
says that many will enter the wide gate,
the gate that leads to me,
and you will lose the occasional few.

Continue your attacks,
not to win,
but to keep him and others like him
as focused on the attacks as possible.
By this method,
you may lose the battle
but the war will be won
because you will keep him from reaching out
and thus keep many from hearing
what he might say otherwise.

If that fails,
and it might,
then do make sure to be there
at every point of contact
with another human
to keep him from revealing our deceptions
to those whom I claim.

There will be a select few
who are so emersed in the light guy's spirit
they won't even notice you
as if you were a flea
and the light guy had millions of flea collars
all over and around the humans.

Don't fret over him, though,
because soon my plans will come to fruition
and I will have so perverted the world's attitudes
that you and your command of demons
will have willing hosts
who will gladly take the lives
of those few unreachables.

Once that begins, my power
will come to its peak,
and silence of those fools
will be one of my accomplishments.

In other words:
DEAL WITH IT!!
and keep following my plans...

I expect that in your next report to me
you will tell me what you did,
not what you could not do!!

Andrew D. Festa
Return to TOP

---

The Conversation

Forgot to note the date & time at the writing...oops. (mid-1997)

I can't understand it. I pray and I pray
but nothing happens.

---

But, are you praying in My Name?
Are you following The Word of God?
Have you put on your Armor?
Are you praying in My Name?
...in Faith?
...believing?

---

What am I doing wrong?
Does He hear me?

---

But, are you praying in My Name?
Are you following The Word of God?
Have you put on your Armor?
Are you praying in My Name?
...in Faith?
...believing?

---

Does The Lord even care about me?
Am I not worth the bother?

---

But, are you praying in My Name?
Are you following The Word of God?
Have you put on your Armor?
Are you praying in My Name?
...in Faith?
...believing?

---

He doesn't care!
God doesn't care about me at all
or He would have answered by now!

---

But, are you praying in My Name?
Are you following The Word of God?
Have you put on your Armor?
Are you praying in My Name?
...in Faith?
...believing?

---

God! What's your problem?
What is it you want from me?
Why don't you answer?

---

But, are you praying in My Name?
Are you following The Word of God?
Have you put on your Armor?
Are you praying in My Name?
...in Faith?
...believing?

The question is:
what is YOUR problem?
I sent My Son, Jesus,
to cover your sins and,
though your mouth spoke the words,
and your mind grabbed at the understanding of Me,
and your heart reached out briefly
to touch My Hand,
you chose to rely on your own
"intellectual" understanding,
choosing to rely on your flesh
(the very thing that cast you out from me)
rather than on the Faith that saves.

Merely saying the words
and "hoping" or "wanting"
them to be true is not enough--
you MUST BELIEVE!

Faith can save you, not your works.
(Ephesians 2:8-9)
But that doesn't mean you have nothing to do.
(James 2:14,17)
I sent you to My Son
(John 6:44)
through whom you may come to Me
(John 14:6)
but you fail to do it
in the Name of Him who saves.
(John 16:23-24)

---

God, are you even real?

---

But, are you praying in My Name?
Are you following The Word of God?
Have you put on your Armor?
Are you praying in My Name?
...in Faith?
...believing?

Close your will,
stop your desires,
derail your wants,
shut your eyes,
cover your ears,
and open your heart to Me.

Your pride keeps you, even now,
from hearing these words.
(Proverbs 16:18)
Even now, I will NOT leave nor forsake you.
(Joshua 1:5)

---

God??? Is this real?
Are you just a dream?
God???
God?!?!??!

Andrew D. Festa
Return to TOP

---

---

Other Writing Links

Poem Set 1	Poem Set 2	Poem Set 3	Poem Set 4
Poem Set 5	Poem Set 6	Poem Set 7	Poem Set 8
Poem Set 9	Poem Set 10	Poem Set ***	Poem Set ***
Road of Life	I AM	Limericks	Focus
Know how much Jesus Loves you?	Attitude is everything	The Story	Story of Love
Heaven's Grocery	The Burden	Wait	The Bridge
A GCN Friend: Lynda	Lynda's Poetry(1)	Lynda's Poetry(2)	The Gambler
Victory	Christian Search Engines	Links Page (closed for repairs)	Award I'm Offering
Commentary	Special Guest Author	Favorite Bible Verses	A Short Bio
Keeping up Appearances	Caller ID	Photo Set 1	Dead Bones
Photo Tribute to WTC Long load time!	*	*	*

Jesus is Lord (Return to Home Page)
Return to TOP

---

THE CONTENTS OF THE ADVERTISEMENT ARE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF TRIPOD, NOT THIS PAGE'S CREATOR. IF I COULD AFFORD TO TAKE IT OFF, I WOULD. I DO NOT MEAN DISRESPECT TO TRIPOD, HOWEVER, WHO HAS GRACIOUSLY PROVIDED SPACE.