Through driest desert and shifting sea,
Through darkest desolation —
Lord, let me gaze on thee.
Through mocking words and misery,
Through strife and consternation —
Lord, may I gaze on thee.
Through times of ease and much delight,
Through times of jubilation —
Lord, keep my gaze on thee.
In laughter, joy, and questioning,
Or worldly obfuscation —
Lord, I will gaze on thee.
I had my head down for so long,
It takes training for me to lift it up.
My focus is off; My heart’s eyes myopic.
Learning from God is my only cure.
“For the joy set before him he endured,”
“He considered the fact that God is able,”
“Our light and momentary troubles,”
“Our slight afflictions,”
“The sufferings of this present time,”
“Not worth comparing with the glory.”
I don’t know how abuse, torture, rape, crucifixion,
Ridicule, mockery, calumny,
Beatings, shipwrecks, imprisonments and more,
Suffered by some,
Can be called “slight –”
But the glory, the joy, of heaven,
Must be far greater than anyone can imagine.
You lifted me up, for a while.
I flew like a butterfly on weightless wings,
But I had to come down to earth.
I am a worm now, crawling in the mud.
But worms make way for growing things,
For trees, and flowers, and birds that sing.
It’s all the same,
In dust and rain,
In joy or pain.
Love has to hurt —
So life gives birth,
And pain gives way to joy.
I looked around
For many years.
I laughed a lot,
Cried many tears.
The loneliness
I could not fathom.
My heart so cold,
An endless chasm.
God’s beauty came
To rescue me.
I cried for joy;
He set me free.
An aching heart,
It comes and goes.
Love’s happiness
Brings many woes.
My love, it hurts,
Brings many tears.
Yet perfect love
Casts out all fear.
Lord, please send the rain again
Upon the dry and dusty land.
Send it down so we can drink;
Send it on the sea and sand.
Send refreshment that we need.
Desperate, we await Your plan.
Hungry, needing nourishment;
Thirsty, knowing that You can –
Bring beauty out of ugliness,
Bring joy from sorrow extreme,
Bring order out of great chaos,
And bring alive our dreams.
Why do You tarry, oh so long?
How long before Your plan matures?
Teach us to follow Your commands;
That You will triumph, is sure.
Without You, we are frozen still.
Without You, we are lost.
But with You, there is hope and light;
I look upon Your cross.
[Written during a trip to Europe, during the 2015 refugee crisis]
As I ride down the metro escalator,
Hundreds of faces look up,
Going the other direction.
Each face has a story —
Joys and sorrows
Unknown to me.
What is going on
Behind each face?
As I read the newspaper
Thousands of refugees
Are crossing borders.
Each face has a story —
Joys and sorrows
Unknown to me.
What is going on
Behind each face?
May every face
Find peace
In their own heart.
May every face
Be willing
To give peace to others.
[9/6/2015]
Inspired by my daughter and husband starting their walk on the Camino de Santiago
————–
Walk on the journey,
Don’t be afraid.
Take Jesus with you;
Yes, with you He’ll stay.
Take living water
And bread for your soul.
Let Him now feed you
And you’ll be made whole.
Life is a journey,
The road up and down.
Stay on His path now
And you’ll win a crown.
Don’t expect roses,
Or ease all the time.
Some things will happen
That cause you to frown.
But if you keep going,
In faith bear things out,
You’ll come to the finish —
“Halleluia”, you’ll shout.
Don’t give up — one more step now;
You’re nearly there.
Keep on His path now;
His joy you will share.
Joy in your sorrow,
hugs in your pain,
hope for tomorrow,
beginning again.
Are we rich in any way? It may not be material things ….
————————————————————
Invited in, I shyly stood,
Not knowing if I really should.
You see, I had so much to lose —
A fancy coat, expensive shoes,
My pride of life, my love of booze.
[The door too small to take it all … ]
Undecided, there I stood,
But I could see beyond that door
Some happy people, singing all.
But I would almost have to crawl
To get within that little hall.
I’d have to bend, might have to kneel.
My fear, my pride, I sure could feel.
I turned around, dejected still.
I wandered long; I wandered far,
But in my mind could see the door
Still beckoning, still off’ring hope.
While wandering, I lost the shoes,
The fancy coat, my taste for booze.
Somehow they didn’t seem to give
My soul its very-needed lift.
[My feet were calloused; my soul was bruised …]
I lost my pride; where did it go?
The things I’d thought; they were not so.
Inside-out, it seemed my life;
Continuing, but filled with strife.
Then humbly came I to the door.
I knelt; I crawled, into the hall.
With tears of joy I was received,
And my own tears, my fear, relieved.
Selfless Love
Jesus, Mary and Joseph are amazing examples of selfless love Even in the midst of great joy, grief, pain, or challenges, they thought of the welfare of others.
Mary, upon learning that she would conceive Jesus the Messiah, the son of God, went off to help her cousin Elizabeth, who was also with child, though further along in her pregnancy. At the wedding in Cana, Mary thought of the distress of a married couple running out of wine. Mary also stood at the cross of Jesus when many had deserted Him.
We never hear Joseph, Mary’s husband, speak a word in the Bible. But his actions speak loudly. Like his namesake in the Old Testament, he was a dreamer, and as far as we know, he always obeyed God’s leading, which often came through dreams. No matter the embarrassment (of Mary’s pregnancy), or inconvenience (having to travel long distances or pull up roots), he obeyed God and fulfilled his role as protector of Mary and Jesus.
Jesus, when he heard of his cousin John the Baptist’s beheading, went off to grieve privately, but when the crowds discovered His location, he had compassion on them and healed their diseases. Later that day, he multiplied loaves and fishes to feed the crowd. How often in our grief do we want to just curl up in a ball and pull the covers over our head?
While Jesus suffered excruciating pain on the cross, he still thought of us. He prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
When we have a vision of how God wants us to cooperate in His plan, we, too, can be selfless, through His grace!
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