I am 32 ~ One Year short of my big brother Jesus

God has seen me do vile, heinous & despicable things . . . ran from Him, cursed Him and spat in His face. He has seen me at my worst & my ugliest & still He loves me and allows me to call Him my best friend, my Father, my very own!!

He not only comes to my defense, but He stands upon the mountain & PROUDLY proclaims, 'This is my precious & beloved son,' with whom I am well-pleased! THAT IS LOVE!!!

He not only saw all the times I fell short, missed the mark or out-right denied Him, but He also saw ALL the times I will fall short, miss the mark & will say to whomever is asking, 'I do not know this man you speak of Jesus~ this Jesus' ...

Knowing ALL this, He still took on the human form~ the King of Kings & Lord of Lords put on a human-shell through my big brother Jesus & died for me, reconciling me to Him... you to Him!

You can call me FAKE, a hypocrite & tell me how unworthy I am and you would be dead-on accurate & correct AT TIMES~ I am a man . . . I do forget who I am in the Lord as a joint-heir of the Kingdom!! I so quickly don't remember how much He loves me and the AMAZING callinG on my life!

Did you know we are ALL invited to the King's (God's) banquet & did you know, even though we are an esteemed guest seated right beside Him, when it comes time to partake of the feast~ we are out behind behind the Mansion/Castle digging & rummaging through the garbage. . . content on scraps?

And STILL He loves me. . . still He loves you! He exchanges the filthy rags your clothes have become for vibrant/radiant, glowing in all the fullness & completeness of the glory of God, ones!!

He not only invites you into the feast, once more, but He gives you a heroic introduction for your entrance!!!

He stands up for you, He defends you more vigorously than ANY defense attorney, He goes to bat just for you, He rescues you more times than a life-preserver, He believes in you with more faith than 10 billion men!

Yes, the opposite sex can bring pleasure, so can alcohol, drugs, sex, money, power, respect & fame~ all of it WILL bring you pleasure, but as sure as I am sitting here writing this... it will be as fleetinG as the wind... the ONLY thinG that NEVER fails & will fail you not no matter what struggle, adversity, hard time, depression or season of despondancy is JESUS and He & the Father's AWESOME love for you!!!

It is my sincere prayer for my actions, words & my very life to make Him proud more times than they break His <3 and make Him sad~ after all, why do you think it rains SO much? Those are our Father's tears!

It doesn't matter if your earthly Father has failed you, if he is missing in action or just up & left your Mom, if he gives you a guilt-trip about why you don't talk to him more or come see him or worse yet if he is still around & tells you you will never amount to anything & he's sorry he had you in the first place... you have a TRUE Father, who will NEVER fail you, never leave you or forsake you~ will ALWAYS be there for you though great times & through terrible times :o)

I am 32 today~ one short of how long my big brother Jesus lived. So, right now, I ask my big bro to help me become more of a willing vessel~ more disciplined~ more obedient~ more selfless, walking in humility, authenticity & sincerity, ever-ready & happy to extend the same mercy, grace, forgiveness & love He has given me to everyone I come into contact with~ my family, friends and perfect strangers.

YES we are UNWORTHY & YES that is what qualifies you to become part of the body of Christ~ welcome to the family!!

& thank you again for all the birthday wishes,

Sincerely, John Mark (The fornicator, the fake, the hypocrite)

To see my sin & not see my <3 is like looking at the ocean & not seeing the water!

Time to March & Fight!!

In past wars, like at Normandy, it was the objective to establish a beachhead~ a beachhead was the first piece of ground taken on enemy soil.

Once the beachhead was established, the commander would order the ships they came in on to be burned... meaning there was no retreat!

With the ships burning, they had one choice, that was to fight... move forward!! No matter how fierce the enemy was/is, which satan/devil is plenty fierce and definitely relentless, we must fight and we must move forward!

I don't care what the devil (no, he doesn't deserve his name to be capitalized) is doing in your life to attempt to bring about chaos, destruction, sadness and confusion, you must fight!

You have established your beachhead... if you try to return to the past (the ship), to your old self and ways of thinking, you WILL be killed!! You will be like Lot's wife... God told her and is telling us, 'Do not look back! Trust in me and move forward.'

We are new creations (2nd Corinthians 5:17)~ the old you NO longer has ANY place in your life/in my life!

Smash your rear-view mirror~ not in five minutes, five months or five years from now, but YESTERDAY!! Since you didn't, if you didn't, yesterday, smash it NOW!!

While you are busy looking back at past-hurts, disappointments, fears, doubts and insecurities, you will never be able to move into the life more abundantly (John 10:10)~ the Promise Land!

Listen, we have spent far TOO MANY years, maybe not 40 (yet), but nonetheless we have spent far too long wandering around the desert in a circle (Just like the Israelites). . . it's time for us to take what God has promised us!!

Consider this, IF you had the winning Powerball-lottery ticket, you wouldn't wait to redeem it. Well, my friends, what we ALL have in JESUS and his promises is exceedingly better, lasting and will bring more joy then any amount of money!! Cash in on His promise for your life!

As the body of Christ, the time is NOW! We must FIGHT if we want the Gospel, truth and love of JESUS to advance and win back 'enemy-ground!' satan/devil, his henchmen, lies and deceptions are running rampant in our homes, in our schools, in our churches, in our workplaces, in our country and in our world and the ONLY way we can take back the truths, prosperity, optimism and things he has stolen from us is to fight as if our life depended/depends on it because guess what?

IT DOES!!!

Cuddling with a Ghost

I've liked a lot of girls, but it's you I've loved the most
I'm watching this movie, as these tears fall, while I cuddle with a ghost

I can hear you, touch you and smell your perfume, yet you are not here
Reality says you're so far away, yet it feels you are so very near

Did I stop showing you how I felt? Did you push me away or did I just get lazy?
All I know is~ now, I'm cuddling with a ghost like Patrick Swayze

On my pillows, in the sink, I still find strands of your hair everywhere
But a piece of you remaining is like fine painting with a tear

During the night, you're cuddling with Casper, you can relate to what I'm saying
You miss me so much, so you find yourself hitting your knees and praying

So, as you lie there, you can physically feel my arm wrapped around you
My love engulfs you, you can literally feel it drown you

Can't you see your love is dead you're holding on to an apparition
Each hug & kiss are pages, each month is a chapter of a book that's fiction

If you want it to be your auto-biography, then you certainly have that right
But don't cry to me about lying in the darkness when it's you that smashed the light!

John Mark Brooks
Sept. 15, 2010

The Dried-Rose

Our love once was a fully-bloomed rose, but now it's dried
We had to part ways (for now); at least I know I tried

I'm angry, hurt, sad and many other emotions I am feeling
Trying to figure out why I'm on the floor when what we had was the ceiling!

I've never fought so hard for something only to find myself let down
If love was an ocean's current I definitely would've drowned

Time & time again when the going got tough you bailed
When if you would've just let it, we certainly would've sailed

You gave up on us girl, you surrendered, you threw up the white flag
When God wanted us to soar, our dreams to take flight & for our lives to have no jet-lag

Yes, our love is a freshly-dried rose, but that doesn't mean that it is dead
I wanted our forever to start now, but maybe it happens later instead

All I know is a dried-rose is beautiful & timeless like a beach has grains of sand
Each grain a reason why I love you so much and why I was blessed to be your man!

I choose to look at this broken road and what's in store as only our Father truly knows
I pray we have another chance, in the future, for our love to last forever, but for now it's a dried-rose.

John Mark Brooks
Copyright August 21, 2010

Can't Tell You WHY

I can't tell you why we have to lose love
or why a gentle carress turns into a shove

I can't tell you why it is innocent blood spills
Or why so many people have to go without meals

I can't tell you why this life is so hard
Why sometimes I owuld love my hand... if I had just that one card!

I can't tell you why we struggle so to find out way
When we would find our purpose if we would just hit our knees to pray!

I can't tell you why some people never seem to catch a break
But I do know God wants to give them an ocean & not a hopeless lake

I can't tell you why we are so focused on money, women & fame
To think any can bring joy and peace~ is to search & just find lame

I can't tell you why guilty men still are able to walk free
But if he would just open his eyes~ he would learn how to see

I can't tell you why I'm still alive and not 6-feet under the dirt
After the destruction I've left in my wake & all the people I've hurt

I can't tell you why he's only 3 and find his self fighting cancer with a bald head
And why he's 40 and perfectly healthy, but still finds his self wanting to be dead

What I can tell you is that NO MATTER WHAT God is always faithful & GREAT
But I can't tell you why this mean cruel world seems to carry so much weight!!

John Mark Brooks Copyright July 14, 2010 8:06 p.m.

I'm On My Way

Little boy waiting on the porch with tears in his eyes

His Mom's called a million times just to hear his Daddy's lies

Still their son hoped he would hear his Daddy say~ I'm on my way

Don't give up my son, I'll be there in a bit

Yes, it's a long road, but it will be worth the trip

She is 89 & no memory remains of much

But they were married 60-plus & she can not forget his touch

The doctor tells the family there's not much we can do

And they start to cry, but it's like she already knew

& I heard her say...

Don't give up my love, I'll be there in a bit

It's been a long road, but you make it worth the trip

With so much hurt and despair in this world we've living in

So many wars, so much death and so much sin... I can hear Him say

I'm on my way~ don't give up my son I'll be there in a bit

It's been a long ride, but it's certainly been worth the trip

AMAZED

I stand here fully amazed
That You were broken, so that I could saved!!

Amazing is Your grace so many times we have sung
Without Your blood death was bound to have stung

Amazed & humbled~ how could You become a Man?
The Creator, the Master the CEO... the Architect of THE Master plan

Unheard of, yes, but in the warmth of Your love, I stand in awe
You gave Your life for me, but still I ignore Your plan for me & my call

I am nothing but a blade of grass, but You love me like I'm the whole lawn
When compared to Your Creation.. I would think I would be as exciting as a yawn!

AMAZED... yes, amazed~ no words could ever do the job or suffice
To speak of Your love, Your mercy, Your grace & of Your dear sacrifice!

Like standing at the foot of a mountain & feeling so minute and small
You saw me deny You, spit in Your face & STILL You went through with it all!

They kicked You, punched You, lashed You with glass, bone on a whip
They laughed at You, mocked You, bloodied the King's head & His lip!

How can I not be amazed that You would reconcile us to You after all we had done
Not only that, but for doing it ALL in ONE simple/AMAZING act~ sacrificing Your Son!

If chasing anything other than You is just a chasing after the wind
Then I am amazed I could think ANYTHING else could bring me happiness no matter how hard I try to pretend!

Many people still doubt You... & one day how they are going to be amazed
When You say depart me, I never knew You, it's too late to be saved!!

Copyright John Mark Brooks July 11, 2010 (3:53 a.m. poem started at 3:40 a.m.)