Dewberry Ministries International

and

Institute of Pastoral Care & Counseling

Dr. Harold & Eleanora Dewberry

"Reaching People Around the World
with the Healing Message of Christ"

Nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able
to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(Romans 8:39) 

Taste of Manna for Today.....

On a ministry trip to a Pacific Island I walked through a coconut palm grove and in the midst of the tall, stately palms, I noticed an old eucalyptus tree.  It had been broken and scarred by the frequent tropical storms.  The palm trees were in their native environment and had not been damaged by the storms.  The scarred, old tree was out of it's natural habitat.  I wrote this poem.

The Old Rugged Cross

My life was once like that storm-blown old tree,

stubborn and resistant as one could ever be.

The traumas of rejection had so scarred my life,

and had cut into my heart like  a two-edged knife.

Shattered and broken with no place to hide,

neither friend nor foe to stand by my side.

And then by an act of His divine grace,

He transformed my life to run this great race.

Yes, my life was once like that storm-blown old tree

bound to the earth, but I longed to be free.

So, on a far-away hill called dark Calvary

Jesus gave His own life for you and for me.

He was hanged on a cross

for the whole world to see;

A cross made of such wood

as that storm-battered old tree.

          Harold R. Dewberry, Tonga 1994