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Category Archives: poetry
Worship
Arms raised to the sky
Music swirls around
Voices reach to the heavens
Heaven reaches back down.
Hands cleaning and scrubbing
Words of kindness reach out
Placing others before you
Giving to all those without.
Fingers clenching the blanket
Tears slip to the ground
Head bowed in anguish
Whispers of praise still resound.
All this and more
Is Creation’s purpose
Let all life be filled
With this splendid worship.
Hope
Can you feel it?
It is the satin of an apple blossom on your cheek.
Can you smell it?
It is damp earth and greening trees.
Can you hear it?
It is hints on the breeze of a song of new life.
Close your eyes
and breathe.
It is real
and is waiting beneath what you can see.
We are meant
to be real.
We are meant
to recognize the real.
Close your eyes to what you can see
and breathe in
the real.
Fill yourself up with what
is given at all times
and is surrounding what you may see.
Can you sense it?
Satisfy yourself with what is deeper for it
is real.
…we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. (Heb. 6.18-20)
For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. (Rom. 8.24-25)
(poem and photos copyright by Made Sacred 2013)
Tired
The mother of a newborn child with
Shadowed and heavy eyes
Struggles to do the next thing.
The soldier on his third tour with
Gear and pack and weapons
Gets up from his foxhole one more time.
The husband of a cancer-ridden wife with
Small child needing his love
Sits and weeps for lack of strength.
The Christ carrying the cross with
Sins of the world on His back
Stops and looks into their eyes.
They are tired.
He carries them all.
art credits: French Troops Cross a Frozen River by Charles Rochussen; Mortar Men photo by Ustinov; cross photo by Asta Rastauskiene; Three Crosses sketch by Rembrandt; bird photo by SP Veres
Moments
All that we live splinters into moments
Moments of grace
Moments of beauty
Moments of mercy
For which we give thanks.
Moments of grace when we deserve nothing
Sweet fat dimpled hands reaching up for a kiss
Wrinkled shaky fingers caressing my cheek
Strong hand holding mine all covered with prayer.
Moments of light, of color, of beauty
Dancing lights of fireflies below with streaking lights of electricity above
Colors of sky and sun filtering down through red and gold
Sounds of water dancing, sparkling, rushing, chasing.
Moments of mercy given at just the right time
Delighted laughter of child when sister gives a gift
Food brought when time and energy has been spent
A gentle whisper bringing knowledge of love from the divine
Our splintering moments rush together as one
Grace, beauty, mercy all show us His love
Even when in darkness I can open my eyes
To all these and more and give thanks to our Lord.
Never! Said I
I would never do that.
No, never! Said I.
Horrified, confident, righteous within.
Never? He said
with a gleam in his eye.
Perhaps, yes perhaps, and yet.
This little thing?
What about this small little thing?
Oh, that? That’s nothing.
Said I with a grin.
That surely won’t matter
in the vast scope of life.
So yes, I’ll do that and enjoy.
Well, what about this?
Just a teensy bit larger.
And the pleasure is much larger still.
Oh, that? That’s still nothing.
Said I, standing tall.
This too, doesn’t matter
it surely won’t hurt
those around me or go against God’s will.
Said he with the gleam
You’re so close, just look
at what could be savored and gained.
I turned ’round
and suddenly saw with despair
my righteousness lying in shreds.
I did it, yes did it.
How could I? Said I.
with shock and confusion within.
Your confidence blinded.
Said he with the gleam.
You trusted in self not in Him.
The Last Temptation
This, the Friday before Easter, is a hard day.
I’d much rather jump straight into Easter, to the joy of the earth singing as it once again feels the touch of Jesus’ feet.
Yet you cannot get to the empty tomb without going through the suffering of the cross.
I’ve written a lot about suffering and pain in these pages. I am often tempted to do almost anything to avoid feeling pain.
It recently struck me that perhaps that is what temptation really is: Satan doing everything he can to help you avoid suffering here on earth.
We don’t know about very many of Jesus’ temptations, but God gives us enough glimpse to know that He, like me, desired to avoid pain.
That is what Jesus’ wilderness temptings were: Satan trying to convince Jesus to believe in him and take the easy, pain-free way of becoming king rather than believing God and obeying His pain-filled, cross way of becoming king.
The way that would also rescue His people.
Too often, I believe Satan instead of God.
Yet Satan did not end his tempting of Jesus in the wilderness.
When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left Him until an opportune time. ~ Luke 4
That opportune time?
The Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus’ last temptation.
The temptation to once again take the comfortable way instead of the suffering way. The temptation to believe in Satan’s hazy seductions rather than in God’s rock-solid promises.
Father, if You are willing, take this cup from Me; yet not My will but Yours be done. ~ Luke 22
I bow my head in shame, knowing how often I choose to believe Satan.
Yes, He was God, yet He still struggled as much as we do with this same temptation.
And being in anguish, He prayed more earnestly, and His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. ~ Luke 22
And so we come full circle.
That which began in a garden now ends in a garden because this time the man obeyed.
Jesus obeyed. He chose to believe in God’s promise while knowing the immediate consequences of pain.
My heart wants to weep because I know why He did this.
But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. ~ Romans 5
Since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity so that by His death He might destroy him who holds the power of death — that is, the devil. ~ Hebrews 2
Because He loves us and He wants to rescue us, to rescue you, from the power of pain and death.
This. This is why we linger long on this hard day instead of leaping ahead to Sunday. To remind us to believe in God’s promises of the end of death and pain even while knowing of the fleeting death and pain we might face in obedience.
May I end with something I wrote and a video I made with a friend? (if you are viewing this via email/in a reader, click here to view this video)
Pause for a moment and dwell on the hard things so that on Sunday your heart can resonate even more fully with Easter’s joy.
Temptation.
It swirls around me like a hurricane
sending my intentions spinning into the blackened sky.
I hear the voice of God
I hear Him tell me what is good
Why can I not obey?
My consistency is that I fail to listen
My constant is that I continue to fall.
The ugly truth?
I don’t believe God.
I don’t believe Him when He tells me what is best.
If I believed, I would obey.
If I trusted in God’s goodness, His love, I would always do what He asks.
I would choose love instead of anger.
I would choose compassion rather than bitterness.
I would forgive instead of clinging to my grudge.
I would assume the best rather than enjoying my irritation.
I would think of others and forget about myself.
How can I obey,
how can I root out this ugliness that is deep inside my heart?
I cannot listen when I will not trust.
And yet I remember.
God is mercy and God is grace.
He changes hearts and He captures our gaze.
He is faithful if we ask;
His wisdom He delights to give.
Christ stayed in the wilderness
He faced down our sin
He trusted in God
Trusted God’s love and goodness
Christ conquered to make me a conqueror.
Grace.
It captures my heart and teaches me to trust
changing my nature so that I am now able to believe what God says
And obey.
(special thanks to Kati Pessin for putting together the video and to our Pastor for his thoughts on Christ’s temptations)
art credit for the video: music is “Window” by Album Leaf
Vivid
Vivid
The sun barely peeking over the rim of the earth
Sparkle of dancing light on the crystallized snow
Bright blue eyes crinkled in a welcoming smile
Jewel tones of jelly made by hands full of love
Sunlight through a window sets the crystal aflame
Picture with crayons hand drawn to perfection
Red puffed up cardinal hopping cheerily over the white
Bowl full of oranges waiting for pink lips after naps
Sky burns with color as the sun dips below
Warm fire spits and sparks red, blue and gold
Smiles around a heavy-laden table of home
Stars burn bright in the dark black of the cold
Beyond
Beyond the pain
Beyond the shame
Beyond the love
Beyond the joy
There is Christ.
Beyond the hurt
Beyond the dirt
Beyond the beauty
Beyond the light
There is Christ.
Beyond life
Beyond death
Beyond this world
Beyond the next
There is Christ.
If all were taken away,
If beauty were turned into grey,
Beyond all that I am and all that I have,
There is Christ.
Art credits: photo of Christ statue by Asta Rastauskiene; Christ in the House of Martha and Mary by Johannes Vermeer; picture of heaven by Miguel Meki; Christ Healing the Blind Man by Eustache Le Sueur; mosaic in the Rosary Basilica in Lourdes
A Psalm of Love
Holy. Beautiful. Glory.
Creator. Author. Majesty.
King and Lord. Humility and Servant.
Love.
Wise beyond my wisdom.
Knowing beyond my knowledge.
Perfect plan beyond what I can comprehend.
Love.
Giver of all that I grasp too tightly.
Sacrificer of all, that I may see Your face.
Abundant mercy and grace, I rest in your delight in me.
Love.
For all that comes before,
When I cannot understand,
Still I will cling to Your power, Your goodness and
Your Love.
