Esteeming Others Higher Than Ourselves by Debbie Harris

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Esteeming Others Higher Than Ourselves — Rekindling the Ancient Biblical Light Amid the Cold Hearts and Fractured Kingdoms of These End of Days

(Inspired by Philippians 2:3 — “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.”)

n these end of days, where twilight bleeds across a bruised and broken sky,
Long shadows stretch like accusing fingers over crumbling spires standing high.
Voices rise in fevered clamor, sharp as serpent’s tongue in the gathering gloom,
While a sacred truth lies buried, whispered soft — a single candle in the room.

“Esteem each other higher than yourselves,” the biblical light breaks through,
Golden rays like mercy’s fingers piercing thunderheads of pride anew.
Yet hearts grown cold and calloused turn their gaze to mirrors cracked within,
Where only “I” and “me” flicker dimly, drowning out the call to love and kin.

The stranger stumbles past, eyes hollow under leaden heavens gray,
The neighbor bears deep wounds like open graves that never heal by day.
But eyes stay fixed on fragile thrones of self, refusing to uplift the fall,
While we scroll through fractured kingdoms, chasing likes like fireflies small.

Bridges burn to glowing embers drifting on the bitter wind so cold,
Empathy drowns silent in the rising flood of “mine” — a story often told.
Foreign now this virtue, like an exiled tongue no longer heard,
Humility’s quiet anthem lost within the roaring symphony of word.

Oh, that we might remember in the clamor and the fray so loud,
To bow the head like wheat before the wind, extend the hand unbowed.
Let another’s day bloom brighter, their joy eclipse our fleeting light,
For in such selfless lifting, true strength shines eternal, pure and bright.

Let not the end of days seal this as relic dust beneath the falling stars,
But spark anew the fire — this biblical light that heals our hidden scars.
Esteem each other higher; let sacrificial love rewrite the scroll,
Before the final twilight claims the fragments of the weary soul.

May this biblical light, though foreign as manna in a barren land,
Find its way back home — streaming through the cracks where hardened hearts once stand.
In you, in me, in us together, may its golden glory brightly gleam,
Lest we face the coming darkness merged as shadows in one endless dream.

Two Hearts On Holy Wednesday by Debbie Harris

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n Bethany’s quiet house, two paths unfold,
One breaks an alabaster jar of gold—
Pure spikenard cascades like tears of love,
Anointing head and feet of heaven’s Dove.

“She prepares Me for the grave,” the Master mild replies,
“Her deed will echo through the years, wherever My gospel flies.”
No calculation, no holding back the cost—
Just pure devotion, every drop is lost… yet never lost.

But nearby, silver whispers in a colder ear,
Thirty coins for blood, a bargain born of fear.
The same moment births both fragrance sweet and bitter gall—
One heart draws near in worship; one prepares to fall.

O Holy Wednesday, hold these mirrors to our soul:
Will we shatter self in love, or trade the Lord for gold?
Teach us, Savior, in this hush before the garden night,
To choose the breaking open, the perfume poured outright.

For though betrayal struck and pierced Your holy side,
Your mercy met the wound—You bore it, and You died.
The woman’s gift foreshadowed what the cross would fully prove:
That love poured out in fullness is the way that we are moved.

Tuesday Of Holy Week by Debbie Harris

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The Temple still rings from yesterday’s whip—
coins scattered, doves freed, tables upturned.
Today the priests and elders draw near,
robes crisp with power, eyes sharp with scorn.

“By what authority do You do these things?”
they demand, voices smooth as Temple stone.
“Who gave You leave to teach, to cleanse, to claim
what we have guarded as our own?”

He turns their trap with one swift question back—
“John’s baptism— from heaven, or from men?”
They whisper, trapped between the crowd and fear,
and answer weakly, “We do not know.”

Then silence falls from Him who holds all right,
yet mercy lingers in the air He breathes.
He tells of sons who say but do not go,
of vineyards seized by tenants filled with greed.

The questioning hearts that still confront the King
test the One who made the very ground.
He grants them courage not to trap, but bow,
and own the authority that turns the world around.
they find the grace to kneel before His throne.

Cleansing The Temple by Debbie Harris

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On Holy Monday, shadows lengthen long,
The King who rode in triumph yesterday
Now strides into His Father’s house with song
Of righteous anger, driving merchants away.

Tables overturned, coins scatter wide,
Doves flutter free from cages built for gain;
“No den of thieves shall here My temple hide,”
He cries, while zeal consumes Him like a flame.

Yet deeper still, the temple of His heart
Prepares itself for sacrifice to come—
The whip of cords a foretaste of the part
He soon will play when soldiers nail Him to the wood.

The Lord who cleansed the courts with holy fire
Cleanses now the temple of each soul entire.
He turns over every greed that makes its home,
And makes of every heart a dwelling for His throne.

Let Monday’s zeal ignite in us anew
A pure devotion, costly and most true—
That as the week unfolds in grief and grace,
We may anoint His feet with all we have.

The Savior’s Song of Exuberant Delight Over His Precious Child of Grace by Debbie Harris

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The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.
— Zephaniah 3:17 (KJV)

There is a song of delight sung over you,
O precious child of grace.
It rises with exuberant joy—
golden, gem-filled notes
of love, mercy, grace, forgiveness,
royal heirship, and heavenly delight.

No song of disdain or condemnation
echoes over your life,
for those are only the lies of the accuser,
the ancient enemy of our souls.

Listen closely, and remember:
though we walk this earthly pilgrimage
by faith and not by sight,
a song of delight is being sung
over every single believer.

So listen.
Rest in its melody.
Rejoice with all your heart.

For our Savior—
the Mighty One who saves—
is singing songs of delight
over you.

The Unimaginable Glories Prepared for Those Who Love Him by Debbie Harris

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I Corinthians 2:9
But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

What eye hath never seen in mortal light,
Nor ear hath caught in strains of earthly song,
Nor heart of man conceived in darkest night—
These things the Lord hath kept for those who long.

Beyond the veil where mortal senses fail,
Where sun and star in humble service bow,
There blooms a realm where death itself grows pale,
And every shadow flees before His brow.

O glorious fields of unfading glory’s gold,
Where rivers run with crystal fire and light,
Where trees of life their healing leaves unfold,
And fruits of Eden banish endless night!

No tempest rages on that crystal shore,
No thorn shall pierce the foot that treads the way;
The Lion and the Lamb together roar
In victory that crowns eternal day.

The trump of God shall sound with thunder sweet,
And every knee in joyous triumph bend;
The ransomed host with hallelujahs meet,
As broken chains of sin and sorrow end.

For them that love Him—pure, undying flame—
He spreads a banquet none can e’er describe:
Where joy like ocean waves without a name
Crashes in glory, and the saints revive.

What mortal tongue could tell the crown He gives?
What brush could paint the robes of spotless white?
What dream could grasp the city where He lives,
Whose walls are jasper, gates of pearl and light?

O eyes, be lifted! Ears, attend the call!
Hearts, swell with hope that mortal bounds transcend!
The King prepares a triumph for us all—
A victory that time shall never end.

Though now we see through glass but darkly here,
And trials press like waves upon the soul,
Yet faith beholds the glory drawing near:
The unseen dawn that makes the broken whole.

Arise, beloved! The feast is spread above,
The Bridegroom waits with arms of endless grace.
What God hath wrought in everlasting love
The glory none on earth could e’er conceive.

Jesus Christ Is All by Debbie Harris

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Christ is all that matters—
nothing else, nothing less.
Seek the souls adrift in shadow,
pull them from the wilderness.

Love and honor Christ alone,
crown Him King in every breath.
Let the world fade into vapor,
He alone defeats our death.

This is all that matters—
burning bright, a holy flame.
Every heartbeat, every whisper,
glorifies His matchless name.

Rise, believer, run the mission:
souls are waiting, time is short.
Christ is all—eternal treasure—
live for Him with all your heart.

The Cross Upon My Shoulders: A Donkey Remembers the Day Heaven Rode a Common Beast by Debbie Harris

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I am a lowly donkey, gray and small,
With dusty hooves that trod the ancient road.
They laid their cloaks upon my humble back,
And suddenly the cheering crowd roared loud.

“Hosanna! Blessed is the King who comes!”
They cried as palm branches waved like flames.
I felt His gentle weight, so light, so calm—
The Creator riding on my simple frame.

His hands that formed my ears, my stubborn will,
Now rested soft upon my shaggy mane.
Each step I took became a sacred thrill;
The stones themselves seemed eager to proclaim.

I carried Him who made the earth and sky,
The King of kings upon a beast so plain.
No soldier’s burden, no merchant’s heavy load—
But Love itself, who chose the meek to reign.

They say that every donkey since that day
Bears a dark cross upon his shoulders wide—
A shadowed cross of hair along the spine,
A mark of honor, not a curse to hide.

It is the memory of that glorious morn,
When heaven’s parade passed through the city gate.
I walked in triumph, though my heart was torn—
For soon that King would face a crueler fate.

Yet when they raised Him on the wooden beam,
Some part of me still lingered at His side.
The cross I wear is light, for it has seen
The day my Maker deigned to be my ride.

I bray my praise beneath the evening sky,
A rough and ragged song, both joy and plea.
For one brief day I was His throne on high—
A humble donkey, chosen royally.

The cross upon my back I proudly bear,
For it recalls the honor of His trust.
To carry my Creator through the air
Of cheering palms— that memory is enough.

Hosanna to the Victorious King – A Sonnet on Luke 19:38 by Debbie Harris

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Along the path where palms and garments lay,
The King of kings upon a donkey rides;
No trumpets blare, no armies clear the way,
Yet heaven’s host within the chorus hides.

“Blessed is He who comes in God’s own name!”
The shouting throng with joyful voices ring;
“Peace in the highest!”—thus they praise His claim,
While stones prepare their silent song to sing.

He comes not robed in pride or clad in gold,
But meek and lowly, bearing heaven’s peace;
The Son of David, long by prophets told,
Whose reign begins where earthly empires cease.

Triumphant King whose glory fills the skies,
Thy victory o’er death and hell arise!

The Triumphal Entry: Palm Sunday by Debbie Harris

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Upon the Mount of Olives, rising high,
Where ancient olives whispered sacred lore,
The Master paused beneath the dawning sky
And sent two servants to a village door.

“Go find a donkey,” said His gentle voice,
“A colt that never yet has borne a load;
Untie and bring him hither, make your choice—
If any question, say ‘The Lord hath need.’”

They found the beast as prophecy foretold,
And led him forth with garments softly laid;
Then Jesus mounted, humble, meek, and bold,
Fulfilling Zechariah’s words displayed.

Now down the sloping path the procession wound,
Through Bethany’s green fields and scented air;
The multitudes, with eager joy unbound,
Cut palm branches and strewed them everywhere.

Some cast their cloaks upon the dusty way,
A carpet royal for the coming King;
While others climbed the trees in bright array
To wave green fronds and make the echoes ring.

“Hosanna to the Son of David!” cried
The throng that surged like ocean’s swelling tide;
“Blessed is He who in the Lord’s name rides!
Peace in the heavens, and glory far and wide!”

The Pharisees, with hearts of stone and pride,
Looked on in anger, murmuring with disdain:
“Master, rebuke Thy followers!” they sighed,
“Such noise disturbs the city’s calm domain.”

But Jesus answered with a solemn tone,
“If these should hold their peace, the stones would cry;
For this is He whom prophets long have known—
The King who comes, though not with banners high.”

The city gates swung open at His name,
Jerusalem awoke in wild acclaim;
Yet in His eyes a deeper sorrow came—
He wept for her, foreseeing future shame.

“O Jerusalem, that stonest those who call,
How oft I longed to gather thee as hen
Her brood beneath her wing, but thou wouldst fall
To ruin, for thou knewest not thy Friend.”

The Temple courts received the gentle Lord,
Where children sang “Hosanna!” loud and clear;
The priests and scribes in jealous rage were stirred,
But could not quench the praise that filled the air.

Thus rode the King, not on a charger proud,
Nor with a sword to claim an earthly throne,
But on a donkey, in meekness unavowed,
To conquer sin and claim the world His own.

The palms that waved in sunlight’s golden gleam
Would soon be trampled under careless feet;
The cries of “Hosanna!” fade into a dream,
Replaced by “Crucify!” on Friday’s street.

Yet in this hour of triumph, let us see
The pattern of redemption’s holy plan:
A King who serves, who bends the lowly knee,
Who rides to die—to rise and save all man.

O Christian soul, take up thy palm today,
Not with the fleeting joy that crowds display,
But with a steadfast heart that dares to pray
And follow Him along the narrow way.

Through Holy Week’s dark valley may we go,
Bearing the cross He bore for our release;
That when the final Easter dawn shall glow,
We rise with Him in everlasting peace.