Mists and Sorrow in the New Dawn

 

The ghosts of last nights sorrow

Are marching out of the bay

Driven forth by the morning

The light of the dawning day

Peace replaces the weeping

And healing is on its way

Sorrow passes with the night

The joyful memories stay

The Ghosts of the Empty Places

The ghosts of the empty places

Are haunting me today

The people that I knew and loved

Who died or went away

Still linger in the rising mist

Where tears and sunlight play

I hear their voices in the mist

Where crying seagulls stray

I see their faces in the drifts

Of mist above the bay.

I’ll never hold them in my arms

They’ve gone too far away,

But they still linger in my heart    

And haunt the misty bay.

A Faithful Heart Praising

Still morning, calm waters

The day’s just begun

Cold winter, chill fire

The first rays of sun

A resolute dawning

The black night is done

A faithful heart praising

Lord, you are the one

Proverbs 17:17

An old Friend brightens the darkness

And lifts your heart above the pain.

Whate’er the sorrow, they are there

To lift your heart or share the strain;

To run beside you when you flee

Or guard your back if you remain.

They hold your heart as dear as theirs

They bring sunshine when you’re the rain.

Dear friend I’ve missed your wit and joy,

I’m glad you’ve come around again.

And more so that you let me give

Some ease to your sorrow and pain.

Proverbs 17:17

 17 A friend loves at all times,
   and a brother is born for a time of adversity.

New Dawnings

The light of laughter returning

Glimmers in my heart

It may not be a burning joy

But it’s a real good start

Psalm 18; 16 & 19

Why am I troubled by old fears,

Fears that no longer shadow me?

The worries that no longer touch me

Still haunt my waking dreams.

Have I lived so long in their turbulence

That I cannot rest on a peaceful shore?

Even when I was tossed in their waves

You always carried me to shore

Settled me on a safe rock

Until I let go of your hand and slipped back in.

Help me to remember that I can rest on the shore,

Out of the tossing storm,

And all I have to do is remember

That I am holding your hand,

And that you are holding me in your arms.

Psalm 18

 16 He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
   he drew me out of deep waters.
19 He brought me out into a spacious place;
   he rescued me because he delighted in me.

Waking Up To Christmas

The quiet of the morning,

The peace of hot cinnamon and tea,

The choirs of angels singing

In the whispering evergreen tree,

The water murmuring of new joy

As it rushes onto the shore,

The world wakes up to Christmas

And rejoices in Christ once more.

Seeking A Truth of Christmas

I sought a photo of Christmas,

One that spoke to the day.

Was it the peace of the sunrise?

The mist across the bay?

Was it the crest of the mountain,

Where light and shadow play?

But none of it quite touched my heart

In a suitable way,

And then I saw the perfect scene

That aptly summed the day…

Two weary hearts in need of rest

After a morning grand

Settled down to nap just a bit

Before the next demand

They shared a laugh for all they’d done

And mulled all they had planned

Before they drifted off to sleep

And dozed there, hand in hand.

Yes, that’s what Christmas is about,

Love learned and shared firsthand.

Reflections on Christmas Eve

I have found, as night approaches,

This quiet Christmas Eve,

Life is filled with sorrows, yes, but

More joy than I’d believe.

The winter mornings dawn in peace,

My family safe in bed,

The love we share will ease our pain

And offer joy instead.

The loved ones lost, are gone from us,

But we still share their love;

It’s each life’s precious legacy,

It’s what we’re all born of.

There’s food enough for us to eat,

A roof above our head,

The house is warm, despite the cold,

The hearth a cheery red.

This life is not quite perfect, yet,

And it’s not meant to be,

But we have much to celebrate,

More joy than misery.

So let the peace of Christmas time

Settle within your heart,

Let its joy wipe your tears away

And mend what’s torn apart.

He came to heal our broken souls,

Redemption to impart.

Tomorrow we rejoice in Him,

Tonight let healing start.

Hush, Hush

“Hush”, whispered each turbulent wave

As it rushed on to shore

“Hush”, each whispered, “Listen, be still.”

“Hush, Hush”, each did implore

“Listen in the still of the morn,

Listen and hear His voice.

His Son will come to heal the world

And give each man a choice.”

“Hush, Hush”, the waves rush to the shore,

All the world holds its breath.

The Son of God will soon be born

To conquer sin and death.

“Hush, hush and let the miracle

Unfold before your eyes;

The hosts of heaven soon will sing

Their joy will fill the skies!”

“Hush, hush”, the waves still sing their song

And still they rush to shore

To greet the babe soon to be born

The King forever more.

The Light and The Word

I’m the wind in a winter tree

I’m the waves on a frosted sea

I’m the sun swinging through the sky

I’m the bird just learning to fly

I’m the mountain sheathed in white snow

I’m the desert where nothing will grow

I’m the light that dances at night

I’m the darkness the light must fight

I’m everything that you can see

I’m every place you long to be

I’m the infant born long ago

I’m the answer that you should know

I’m the Word the angels proclaim

You are the reason that I came.

What the Clouds Hide, Remains

The clouds and mist obscure your smile,

They hide from me your face.

They try to keep from me your love,

You comforting embrace.

But I know that you’re out there still

And in that loving place

Where I can find you when I wipe

These teardrops from my face.

So let the rains fall from the sky

And let the storm clouds race.

Eventually my tears will dry

And joy will take their place.

Psalm 37: 23 - 24

From a Friend

When I was in my early twenties I worked in the fish business as a salesman. I was at the end of my rope with two bosses that hated each other. I was accountable to both of them for different parts of my job, and they were making my life miserable in an attempt to hurt each other. I prayed one night about this because I didn’t know what I should do. I didn’t have enough money to quit and keep paying rent. And I didn’t have enough time to outside of work to start looking for another job. But here is the other thing that I recognized; I really wasn’t trusting God for anything other than my eternal salvation. In other words, I had what I have come to call “fire insurance” faith. And so I prayed, “I know that I have not trusted you for anything, but I believe that you are real. I need to hear you speak to me because I don’t know what to do.” And right at that moment a word dropped into my mind. It was the word stumble. I was lead to a verse in the Psalms that said, “If the Lord delights in a man’s ways he will make his steps firm; though he stumble he will not fall, for the Lord will uphold him with his hand.” I just knew that that verse was God’s word to me. The challenge in it was that it meant that God wanted me to trust him with more than just “life after death,” and he would “show me what to do.” He wanted me to trust him with all kinds of things in my life right now. As I went to sleep that night, I was so excited that I now knew what God wanted and that he would “make my steps firm.”

Guess what happened when I woke up the next morning. Do you think I was still excited? I’ll tell you what went through my head. Was that really God, or was I just overly emotional because I was tired? What did I have to eat for dinner – was it overly spicy? I began to try to rationalize away what I had believed by faith the night before. Because I couldn’t see it or prove it, maybe it wasn’t real. And yet, I could see my two mean spirited bosses in my imagination very clearly. They were real.

And then I went to the fridge to get the milk out for my cereal and noticed a piece of paper that was attached to the door by a magnet. It was a page from a Bible, in fact it was a King James version of the Bible. It was a photocopy of a page from the psalms. Psalm 37, actually. And one verse was highlighted with a yellow highlight pen. I’ll bet you can guess which one it was. “If the Lord delights in a man’s ways, he will make his steps firm; though he stumble he will not fall, for the Lord will uphold him with his hand.” It turns out that my Dad had put it there when he came over to clean my apartment. But through him, God made visible something that was invisible to me. He gave me a sign, that what he had said, was true, and that I needed to trust what He had said. That moment was a turning point in my life.

Psalm 37

23The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.

24Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand.

Struggling To Find the Light

The winter mists wrapped deep and still
Around my weary heart
I sought a path out of the chill,
But knew not where to start.
And then I saw before me there
A path, lit dim, but true,
That led beyond my fear and care,
And there, Lord, I found you.
For, like the filtered morning sun,
Your light burns through the haze
And I will follow you, my Lord,
Through all my misty days.

What a Photo Means

Sometimes it’s hard to say a thing

As aptly as you should,

Sometimes you want to speak a thought

But words are just no good

Yet photographs won’t mean to some

Quite what, to me, it would.

This photo shows a brilliant sun

Reflected in the sea.

To some it’s just a lovely scene,

But that’s not what I see;

To me this photo well defines

Just what you are to me.

You are the sun that lights the sky

And I’m the cold, dark sea.

You’re the light that shines so bright

That you reflect in me.

Tears that Sparkle

While heaven wept I hid my eyes

That they might not learn how

But when the sun came out again

It touched each branch and bough

And set each drop of broken heart

To sparkling somehow

So now I don’t hide from the clouds,

I welcome their sweet pain,

I lift my broken heart and let

It catch the sparkling rain.

Isaiah 58:8

I stumbled badly through the day,

Worrying what to do;

So many burdens came my way

And I reached out to you.

The tears welled up because the world

Was just too much to bear;

The bills, the grief, the worry, too,

And all the fear and care.

I felt my breath catch in my throat,

The panic soon set in.

How could I carry all this pain?

The tears would soon begin.

And then I heard your quiet voice

Whispering in my ear,

“Remember that I’m here with you

There’s nothing you should fear.”

The pain will not be more than I

Can help you stand up to;

Those storms of worry and despair,

You’ll soon pass right on through.

Your seas will not always be smooth,

The road may be too rough,

But I am here to give you strength

And it will be enough.

For peace will follow every storm,

The light burn through the haze;

And I will hold you in my arms

Through all the roughest days.

Isaiah 58:8
Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.

The Tears of a Friend

I watched the tears form in your heart,

I felt them when you cried.

I understood the pain you wept,

New pain as each hope died.

I count each tear within my heart

For your pain is mine, too.

I ache to make your heart break stop;

There’s nothing I can do.

But this I know, the rains will pass

The sun will shine again.

Your tears will ease; your joy return

Like sunshine after rain.

Spending the Day With You

What do you have planned for today?

Can I come along with you?

What do you have to accomplish,

What would you like me to do?

I want to walk with you today

And take the path that you choose

I want to be part of your plan,

A blessing that you can use.

Please, let me walk with you today

And help you as best I can

For when I walk with you, my Lord,

I’m living within your plan.

The Nativity

The lights that sparkle on the tree
Reflect themselves in bows and balls,
The bluster of a winter night
Whistles around my sturdy walls
And stirs an ancient memory;
The greatest love my heart recalls

The lights that sparkled on that night
Were not adorning winter trees
And no mere whistle on the wind
Rejoicing song filled up the breeze
And all who heard those songs of joy
Fell to worship upon their knees





A barren little cattle shed
A journey long and fraught with fears
A mother close to giving birth
Fought to hold back pain and tears
And bear a precious, sacred child;
A gift of life throughout the years.

But it was not an easy thing
For them to carry out God’s will;
The path was long and arduous
And Mary nine months pregnant still.
She must have ached with sheer fatigue
How many tears did she let spill

And when they reached God’s chosen place
No feather bed, no show of worth,
but in a cattle croft she crouched
To bring the holy child to birth.
She laid him where the cattle fed
And knelt, still sore, on cold, hard earth

And Joseph must have felt great shame
That this was all he could provide
To house his precious, newborn child
And his beloved and loving bride
And yet he never let despair
Drive him far from her weary side.

There was much glory in that night;
Angels and Kings and stars so bright,
Yet the child Mary held so tight,
That Joseph loved with all his might,
Was more than just the Son of Light;
He was their child, their sweet delight.

Whispers of Peace

Still the morning, silent the mist
Calm the restless sea
The swift wings of a passing gull
Brush by me silently

Tossed and blown, my shattered spirit,
Battered without surcease.
Oh, let the quiet misty dawn
Imbue me with its peace

And hold me in its gentle arms

While leafless branches sing

Of all the joy that’s waiting to

Return like warmth in spring.

Provebs 17: 17

Sometimes sorrow cannot be healed

But it can be eased by a friend

A loving shoulder to lean on  

May ease the pain it cannot mend

Proverbs 17:17
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity.

Tears that Splash into Sorrow

I only find my tears tonight,

My joy seems far away.

I know that I’ll stop missing you

Some day…  but not today.

The world is not what it should be,

But still it’s not that bad,

Although it’s just a reflection

Of all that I once had.

I cannot linger long beside

The fading memory,

But let me sit and cry a bit

For all that used to be

Then I will rise and carry on

To all that lies in store

For there is much that’s still come

And life holds so much more.

Job 38: 29 - 30

The ice lay thick upon the land

Its cold chill cloaked the world

How could I live within its heart,

Where bitter winds unfurled?

Where did such bitterness come from;

How could it bind me in its arms;

When did my world become so cold

And filled with winter’s harms?

The cold is born of God’s fierce will;

The icy winds and frost,

The biting pain fulfills his plan,

It’s measured in its cost.

For He has given life to all,

And life is His to take,

But spring will follow winter’s frost;

His death healed our mistake.

^{Job 38: 29-30} 

²⁹ From whose womb comes the ice?
   Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens
³⁰ when the waters become hard as stone,
   when the surface of the deep is frozen?

Psalm 136:1, 4-9

Sometimes there are no words to write

Which are as true as those,

No words more perfect to my heart,

Than those that David chose.

So I will cease to write a praise

That might as well be prose

And just say thanks for sun and sea

For where they meet joy shows!

Psalm 136: 1, 4-9

 ¹ Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good.
            His love endures forever.

  ⁴ to him who alone does great wonders,
            His love endures forever.
⁵ who by his understanding made the heavens,
            His love endures forever.
⁶ who spread out the earth upon the waters,
            His love endures forever.
⁷ who made the great lights—
            His love endures forever.
⁸ the sun to govern the day,
            His love endures forever.
⁹ the moon and stars to govern the night;
            His love endures forever.

Psalm 147:7-8

Songs of praise and adulation
Hymns of faith and joy
Lift them up unto the Lord
Make a joyful noise

Sing to the Lord each day, each hour
That which you believe
All the goodness of the earth
Is what you shall receive

I sing your Praise when I am lost
In the darkest place
I lift my voice; I praise Your name,
I receive Your grace

Oh Blessed Father, hear my song
I lift my voice on high.
Each step I take I take in faith
Because You’re ever nigh.

Psalm 147:7-8 

 ⁷ Sing to the LORD with grateful praise;
   make music to our God on the harp.

 ⁸ He covers the sky with clouds;
   he supplies the earth with rain
   and makes grass grow on the hills.

Psalm 103: 1-5

I asked you to lift up my heart,
On mighty wings to soar;
I asked you to give me the strength
To face what lies in store;
I asked you to watch over those
Whom I love and adore;
I asked you to protect them from
The troubles at their door.

I asked you to heal all the pain
That started long before,
And take away their fear and shame.
All that I did implore.
For they can’t join your plans for them
While crumpled on the floor.
Oh Lord lift them on mighty wings
And help their spirits soar.

I feared you had not heard my voice,
In dread I stood alone.
I challenged you to prove your love;
I needed to be shown
That you could even hear my prayers
Upon your mighty throne;
Lift up my heart and let it soar
Where eagle's wings have flown.

I heard a voice speak quietly,
Soothing my deep despair,
It said look up and see my face
For I have heard your prayer;
Know that my love will never fail
For I am always there.
Then I looked up and wept to see
The eagles everywhere!

Psalm 103:1-5

Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

The Cactus, Blooms and Thorns

Again I proved myself human

Letting hurt and anger slip in

I failed my Lord through my weakness

And lashed out at loved ones again

Each dawn I swear to do better

Each dusk finds me washed in new sin

I’m blessed that He is more patient

Than I am with family and friend.