Forever In Your Presence

By Joyce Labor

The book Forever In Your Presence is a reminder that no matter where we are on our path through life's journey, God is forever watching over us, guiding us and helping us from our very creation in the womb, throughout life and to the grave and beyond into His Kingdom. Isaiah 41:10 and Psalm 139 say it all so beautifully. The path in the woods represents the path we choose to take on our journey through life. The sun rays lighting the path symbolize God's presence and leading us along the way. If we stray from His path, we will have struggles but He will patiently wait until we see the light and return to the path He has always planned for our lives. Then we can glorify Him and find His peace and blessings.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Oct 11, 2017
• ISBN: 9781640798526

Book preview

Dedication and Preface

I wish to dedicate this book first to my beloved departed sister-in-law Patty Jones. Through her sudden death from a brain aneurysm on January 1983 at the age of forty-three, I came to know the Lord.

I dedicate this book to my family and friends who have encouraged me over the years to continue on in my writings. Through life’s trials and the loss of loved ones, God has blessed me through my poetry to express my feelings and reach out to others who may be walking down the same paths of soul searching. May God bless each one with a very special grace that only He can give. This book expresses all the feelings and emotions that evolve around my life. I believe it’s an important ingredient of life to be able to express our inner deep feelings to others sincerely and honestly. Since I have always been a shy and quiet person, verbal communication for me has always been a challenge, so God gave me the ability or gift of writing so I could share my feelings in spite of my insecurity. He gives each one a special way of expressing ourselves; each one of us is unique. Some use writing, talking, music, art, and so many other methods to communicate. When we do not communicate our feelings and hide them inside ourselves, we become a shell and lonely and unhappy. God wishes for each one of us to share the gifts he has given us, big and small, so that we can grow and learn and share our blessings even when they are sometimes wrapped up in weaknesses or disabilities that we think hinder us from giving to others. The best way to thank God for our talents is to use them and share them. I pray my writings will give you comfort and minister to your hearts.

Joyce M. Cooper Labor

Introduction

To those who are hurting from trials in their lives, who feel alone and think no one understands what they are going through, this book is to remind you that you are always in His presence. You are never alone, and there is always hope. Sometimes our tunnels seem too long and too dark, but God always lights the way and shows us a ray of light to encourage us to go on and not give up. He may use you or someone else, even a stranger you may never see again, to lift you up and touch your life in a special way. Strangers may be angels unaware, so be careful how you react to a helping hand or a kind gesture. My life is a testimony of God’s grace and mercy from the time I was in the womb till now, seventy-three years later. Only by His grace am I alive today to share and express all He has done for me. He let me express my emotions in writings growing up, as I was raised in a dysfunctional and alcoholic family, so speaking out was not very accepted in my home. He can use the least of us to fulfill His plans for our lives. No one is left out, and no one is forgotten by Him. His love is free, unconditional, and so badly needed in our world today. He puts people in our paths for very special reasons and seasons. They come and go, yet the part they play in our lives leaves so many memories to cherish. As you walk the path He puts you on, never forget He is always near, holding you up through the valleys and over the mountains of this journey on Earth. The tests and growth we learn here prepare us for the glory that awaits each one of us in the place He has prepared in Heaven for His children. So no matter what you may be going through now or how unable you may feel to be used by God, remember all those that He used in the Bible. They were all just like you and me. Their flaws and weaknesses were what made them so precious to Him, and His glory was expressed through them to encourage us.

My Reasons for Writing Poetry

Born with alcoholic parents and told children are to be seen and not heard,

I learned to be quiet and obedient, expressing feelings yet not saying a word.

Emotions flowed so freely onto paper from my pencils and my pens,

I’d found a way of coping with loneliness as my friend.

I’d hidden so many of my feelings in a secret place that no one knows,

When my heart was so