Dear Friends, Please allow me to express my heartfelt gratitude and appreciation for your interest and desire to read my poems and then hopefully apply them to your life struggles. I take no credit for these poems, for they were all inspired by Almighty God. I was born on August 8, 1937 and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, to godly parents whose parenting was priceless. I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior and wrote my first poem (Mother Mine) at the age of 12. After high school I attended and received an engineering degree from Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Georgia. Upon graduation I accepted a job with Bethlehem Steel and moved to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in 1960. I got married in 1964, had three children and was divorced in 1972. My life soon made a turn for the worse as I began to drink and abuse alcohol. At this time I thought my Christian upbringing and faith meant I could live as I pleased. I began to study the Bible and educated myself. Soon I was awakened to the truth that Christianity was not just another religion, but actually is a deep and intimate relationship with Jesus including surrendering your life to Him, dying to your earthly wants and desires and living for Him every day. I began to earnestly pray for a release from the bondage of alcohol and during the night in September 1993, the Lord completely transformed my life giving me a new heart and spirit. I was truly born again by the grace of God. When I realized what had happened. I was overwhelmed and inspired to share my experiences with everyone. The Lord led me to write poems so that others could eventually experience God's love for them by becoming born again and have assurance of eternal life in His presence. The Lord is waiting with open arms to accept everyone who truly surrenders their life to Him. I praise God every day for my new life--let Him do the same for you. Do it today for tomorrow may be too late. The Bible states in John 3:13 that "unless one is born again they cannot enter the kingdom of God." - Ray H. Venable Jr.