Tag: Sacred Poetry

Satisfaction

You do not protect me
From the pain of my life’s troubles
You lead me in the way of danger
That I may cling to You

I cling to You relentlessly
Like a weaned child to its mother
Not pulling, sucking, striving . . .
I am at peace

You are my Peace
When there is every sign of danger
You are my Satisfaction
When Wanting comes my way

I trust in You
My Shepherd-Friend

Trust

You know how I try to be
I wear my heart on the outside of my breast
That anyone who wants can see and criticize it
That any man may wound me
That, as best I can, I may be touched by anyone
That my Father may be pleased

My heart is not my own
To protect as others do
I do not know the way of it
It belongs unto my King
To use as He sees fit

May my meditations yet be pleasing
Unto You

Would You Believe?

Would you believe to know me
That once I was lost
Would you believe to know me
That I gave up everything
At the foot of the cross

Would you believe to know me
That once I was the blackest sinner
Stained with every crime
Would you believe to know me
That Jesus saved my life

I was destitute and hopeless
Waiting for the end
I was crouching in my pain and turmoil
Longing for a friend
And as I sat there hopeless
Clinging to my shame and guilt
I saw a promise rising – Risked everything to grab it –
And now I stand here broken
Would you believe to know me
That I could live?

Authority and Love

Jonathan leaned on Jesus’ breast
And breathed in out a sigh
And on his friend’s behest, he asked
The question that no other could get by.

And Jesus spoke no mystery
No story did he tell
And though plain, ‘twas secretly
So none would know, save those who know him well.

Mirriam rose when she was bid
And came before her Lord.
She said in quiet, a few still words
He had already heard before.

And Jesus wept, cried bitterly
At the pain that he had caused
He saw her heart, that loved him dearly
And knew no other law.

The others left.
The Magdelene, she stayed
And though she shuddered silently
Her heart was not afraid.

A gardener’s voice:
The victor spoke her name
He put off triumph that he might touch
The life he died to save

Memorandum

A woman lived in Jesus’ time. A whore
(Some called her so), caught in flagrante, dragged
By all her former lovers, to the chant
Of cries for stoning, to the temple door
Where Jesus sat. He looked at them and wrote
Some figures in the dirt, and asked which one
Was not the one who’d used her for his fun.
Her demons left her then. She stood with hope

And followed Him–believed him when he said
He’d die a shameful death, and planned a way
To give him all the honor due his name.
So, with an ointment, to his meal she fled,
And braved the stares of men who’d called her ‘dox‘,
Then stood and broke her alabaster box.

Beyond Eternity

Few people know where I have gone
But they may see it when they look on sea
Or when the clouds come misty down
upon the open green

But the ocean portal doesn’t always open
And the fog sometimes oppresses
instead of setting free
It’s a window, not a doorway
into the place I love to be

But I can go when e’er I want
Just lay my heart aside
Spread wide my arms and I am lifted
To a place beyond eternity

I hear some people talk of heaven
like the gulls that cry on shore
They believe they know the water
but the dark eyed fish knows more

Your Love Never Fails

Your kindness is everlasting
Your faithfulness never fails
Your heart of grace shines like the sun
Lifting me up to gaze on You
Like the lilies of the field wait for the morning

And all I want is to be to You
Like the moon is to the sun
Shining Your light onto the earth
In a place where there is darkness…
‘Cause Your love never fails

Your mercy is like water to me
Your tenderness restores my soul
Your living love falls like rain
Causing my soul to be made new
Like the streams transform the desert

And all I want is to be to You
Like the seas are to the ocean
Where one begins—and the other ends
No man could ever tell…
‘Cause Your love—never fails

* * *
Righteousness and peace have kissed
I saw it in the morning
The beauty of the Lord has come
I saw it in the middle of the day
The judgements of the Lord are good
I learned it in the evening
I cannot wait for You to come again
For what will You bring at midnight?

‘Cause your love—never fails

Something in the Name

There is something in the name of Jesus
That washes every doubt.
Watching all my fears and troubles fading
As His Spirit turns me inside out.

There is beauty in the pow’r of Jesus
As He changes old to new
Victory is found in giving
All my troubles to Divine View

I know that I’ll be found in You
Resting in your care
When all of my life has faded
And I place my feet on Jacob’s stair