My Lighthouse In Troubled Times
Lord, you are my bright beacon,
everlasting light in times of trouble,
the solid support when I stumble.
You are strength when I weaken,
my eternal guide when I wander,
steadfast though evil may occur.
In darkness, you are a lighted glen.
When the world leaves me in fear,
I am comforted when you draw near.
Lord, I shall not fear beast nor men.
When I am protected by your sword,
my strength and courage is restored
Lord, you never dim, my beacon.
You guide me from harm's way,
in your light I long to forever stay.
“I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.”
-John 12:46 (KJV)
2008; Years Later
You have your holidays
I have my Holy Days.
Somehow the meanings
got scrambled as they often do.
The spirit of so many things
we celebrate seem to
have been lost over the years.
You raise your flag
for Independence Day
and demand we stand
as a country.
"Don't take my rights away!"
But what do you do
when the Lord calls to you
on Easter and Christmas Day.
Do you kneel and pray
or slowly turn away?
By all means enjoy
with family friends, loved ones,
but remember the reason
for the season
and center your celebration
around the Man of the cross.
You have your holidays
I have my Holy Days.
“And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.”
-Luke 22:19 (KJV)
Words We Said Today
Once the words
spew forth like
the venom of 1000 asps
they can never be unsaid.
The words we said today
hang frozen in the air
tonight as I shiver
at the violence and suddenness
of a final ending.
Like the rudder of a ship,
pushing feelings
this way and that,
we are controlled by the tongue's slip.
How much better it is
to praise
and comfort
than to hate and demean.
Once the words
spew forth like
the venom of 1000 asps
they can never be unsaid.
“Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth. Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!”
-James 3:4-5 (KJV)
Woe is the Artist
Woe is the artist who paints me
as the face hiding behind these eyes.
Brush strokes and a palette knife mix
a bit of crimson and a dab of goldenrod.
I am my own thousand words.
Woe is the artist who paints me,
into a stylized version of life
left to be stared at behind glass.
I guess the colors run sometimes
and a shaky hand makes shaky lines.
Woe is the artist who paints me
not as I am but as He wants me to be.
I realize The Master's hands made me,
and he paints only perfection,
so never more shall I boldly say,
"Woe is The Artist who paints me."
“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.”
-Genesis 1:27 (KJV)
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