~ Thomas Gray
I hear the bell tollong as well for me.
And as the evening of my life deepens,
I am often left with thoughts of my life passing before me
like sailboats heading back to shore after their journeying.
In the afterglow of Thanksgiving,
I still feel the warm embrace of the blessings I am thankful for.
The gift of life
The grace of family and friends
The blessings of nature
The serendipity of the chance
The power and faithfulness of God’s power
In the gentle comfort of all I am thankful for,
I am filled with humility and pride
As I did not, do not deserve any of this.
And yet, God has brought all of these into my life.
He who makes something owns that which he has made.
I write out a poem or make a computer program.
I own that poem or that program.
It is my intellectual property.
God made the world and everything in it.
So simply, He owns the universe.
Likewise, he called me by name and I came to be.
He owns me as well.
How often do I steal from God that which belongs to him:
a day and an hour here,
some thoughts and desires there.
And I selfishly spend these for myself,
instead of living them out for him
or in love and service for others.
I am making his temple a den for this thief.
Saints are saints because they have learned
how to live out their lives in love and service of the maker,
and therefore of the owner of their lives.
In prayer, I try to give a daily accounting of how
I am spending and using the gift of life I have received.
Nagmula sa ‘Yo ang lahat ng ito
Muli kong handog sa ‘Yo
Patnubayan Mo’t paghariang lahat
Ayon sa kalooban Mo
Mag utos Ka, Panginoon ko
Dagling tatalima ako
Ipagkaloob Mo lang ang pag-ibig Mo
At lahat ay tatalikdan ko