Poems, Personal Stories, and Observations

Thanksgiving Prayer

November 5, 2013

I thank you, Lord,
For the gift of this new day.
You created me out of love,
And only out of love;
You did not need me.

Thank you, Lord,
For the warmth of the sun on my skin
And the chill in the air,
Which spurs me out of lazy inactivity.

Thank you for genuine friendship,
For without it life would be truly dreary.

Thank you, Lord,
For the people who somehow annoy me,
For they teach me unconditional love.

Someday, Lord,
I may be able to genuinely thank you
For those who have deeply hurt me,
For by Your grace,
And only by Your grace,
They have made me stronger,
More compassionate,
And able to empathize with others’ hurt.

Thank you, Lord,
For your patience with me, a sinner.

Thank you, Lord,
For all the hurts, trials, sufferings,
Annoyances, discomfort,
Awkwardness and shame;
For without these
I may never have looked for You,
And been complacent in my comfort.

By Your grace,
You make all things new again.

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Poems

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A Ball of Yarn

October 30, 2013

There’s a ball of yarn

Inside my chest;

Something struggling to get out.

Don’t know what it is.

 

Sometimes I feel

Like a mute

Who can only

Make noises but not speech.

 

I had a voice once

And I will again.

Only time will tell,

Will tell, will tell

 

The story,

The mystery,

So well.

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Poems, Uncategorized

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False Enemy

[I thought I should explain how this poem was inspired. I watched a documentary about the real story that the book “The Hunt for Red October” is based on. See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mh0N3iG-7Uc . In the true story, a Russian naval officer is disillusioned by the way Communism had played out in reality (although he was still a Communist). He tried to start a revolution to bring back Communism to it’s ideal (helping the common people). The documentary also portrayed the Cold War in an interesting way. I thought about all the hopes and dreams of people from very different backgrounds. Then my mind jumped to other differences, like Protestant and Catholic, “conservative” and “liberal”, etc., and I thought, “I wonder if we are all wrong about each other?” Not too say there are not good reasons for the differences and conflicts, only that each person in his heart has a dream that we need to listen to.]

I thought you were my enemy
But someone had told me lies about you,
And so it seems,
Someone had told you lies about me.

We went around in a fog of falsehood
That seemed so normal
Because the fog was constantly around us.

Then the light
Began to break through
For me, for you.

The mist still mystifies
But it’s getting thinner.
Slowly the sun’s light
Is burning through.

Are we just relating
To ideas of each other
Or who we really are?

If I could see
With eyes divine
I would not believe a lie.

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Commentary, Poems

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Quote on Suffering

September 25, 2013

“A hunter sometimes makes his dog suffer — for instance when the dog is caught in a trap, the hunter has to push the dog further into the trap, to lessen the tension on it, before he can get him out. That hurts, and [the dog] can’t understand what we can: the mechanism of a trap requires this push further in that causes such pain because this is the way out. God does the same to us sometimes, and we can’t understand why he does it any more than the dog can understand us.” Peter Kreeft in “Making Sense Out of Suffering”.

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Christian, Commentary

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Transformation

Your tears water God’s garden,
Your sorrows make God’s house strong,
Your joys light up the heavens,
Your triumphs give glory to God.

Every sin cleansed brings virtue,
Every wound is made less,
Every weakness now strengthened,
Every failure, success.

Death becomes life now,
Illness — good health,
Ugliness, now beauty,
And poverty, wealth.

Fear not in the darkness,
It will soon be dispersed,
And His glorious victory
In your life be expressed.

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Christian, Poems

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September 11

September 11, 2013

On crisp, clear day
The planes would come,
Their engines pregnant
With fiery death.

With hatred fueled,
With vengeance filled,
Men hardened to
A self-made death.

The planes collided
With steel and glass;
The carnage coming
No one could guess.

Our hearts were torn,
Our minds grew numb.
The horror made
Our tongues grow dumb.

Yet in it all
Our God was there.
His mercy great
None can compare.

No one can answer
All these tears.
Only our God
Can calm our fears.

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Poems

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Love is Calling

August 20, 2013

Love is patient,
Love is kind —
Let God’s love possess your mind.

Love’s not boasting,
Love’s not proud —
Let us sing His praises loud.

Love’s not jealous,
Love’s not rude —
With forgiveness it’s imbued.

Love rejoices
In the truth —
Love forever does endure.

Love doesn’t give up,
It doesn’t lose faith —
It’s never early, never late.

Always hopeful,
Always free —
Love is our true destiny.

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Christian, Poems

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Let Not Dreams Die

When dreams are dead
Men lose their heart,
And, like dead men,
They fall apart.

Inside, unseen,
Their souls like stone,
Bear calloused wounds,
Exist forlorn.

Let not dreams die —
Still deep inside,
Quench not the fire
Of hope alive.

Let Love somehow
Heal deepest wounds.
Let Jesus’ love
Break open tombs!

Then shout, and sing,
Our voices raise!
Hosannahs bring
In humble praise!

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Christian, Jesus, Poems

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What Do I Do?

August 15, 2013

What do I do
With the pain inside?
Do I try to hide?
Do I run away?
Do I try to hang on
for one more day?
Do I pray,
and pray, and pray?

What do I do
With the pain inside?
Do I thank my God
For what He’s allowed?
What do I do
With the pain inside?

What do I do
With the dreadful hurt?
The answers curt,
The putdowns, letdowns,
Sarcastic laughter,
Disapproving frowns?
What do I do
With the dreadful hurt?

What do I do
When he turns away?
When he doesn’t say
A thing to me,
And I want to scream,
“Please talk to me!” ?

What do I do
With the pain I’ve caused?
Do I try to hide?
Do I run away?
Do I face the fact
That I’m inexact
In my love for others?

What do I do
With the hurt I’ve caused?
Do I see my flaws?
Will I run to God,
And to my neighbor
To ask their favor?

What do I do
With the love inside?
Do I try to hide?
Do I run away?
For fear of pain,
To express it refrain?

What do I do?
Do I turn it around
‘Til I find my ground?
Do I look inside
And listen for the sound
Of peace profound?

What will I do?
Will I learn a way
Of peace, of prayer,
Of listening for
The other’s pain?
What will I do?
Only God can tell.

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Poems

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Walking on Water

August 11, 2013

Go out onto the water;
Yes, take the first brave step.
No doubt cause you to falter,
Nor look in water’s depth.

Climb up onto the summit;
Go forth one step each time.
Fear not, and you’ll not plummet —
The view will be sublime.

Reach out to many hurting,
One person at a time.
Though you don’t feel worthy,
God’s love from you must shine.

Go forth into the darkness,
Though you do not know the way.
There’s death and there is starkness,
But His light will be your stay.

Keep on, though you are weary;
Make your eyes look up above.
Your goal, which is God’s heaven
Will heal your heart with love.

Category:

Christian, Hope, Poems

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