John 8:12

You are the light, I am the dawn,

I’m nothing without you.

I linger on the edge of dark

Until your light shines through.

But through your light I touch the world,

As you expect me to,

Though, as the dawn, I cannot glow

Til I’m reflecting you.

So, while I am born of your light,

I won’t lose sight of you,

For you’re the light, I am the dawn,

I’m nothing without you.

8:12
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

The Quiet Harbor

“It’s cancer”, said the sad doctor,

“And it’s spread everywhere.

There’s very little we can do,

But offer hospice care.”

She felt the world shift under her

Like a wind roughened sea.

The quiet sail into old age,

That she’d planned carefully,

Had suddenly become rough waves

That tossed her in its wake;

And she was not quite certain, then,

Just how much she could take.

But she looked up to see a face

That wasn’t the doctor’s,

And in it she found promise of

Safe harbor that was hers.

She trimmed her sails and changed her course,

Choosing to follow him.

The seas were wild, but she grew calm,

Her fears seemed much less grim.

She turned into the vast unknown,

Her sails billowed and bright,

Yearning to reach his safe harbor

Of calm waters and light.

Her family wept, but she was calm,

She knew she rode the tide

That he had calmed, with just a word,

And he was by her side.

Where He Waits For Me

Where the darkness meets the light

That’s where he waits for me

Where the hurt rises up to fight

That’s where he’ll always be

Where all the wrongs confront the right

I know he’ll hear my plea

Where guarded dreams hold back the blight

That’s where he’ll set me free

I’ll go to him along the line

Between darkness and light

Where he will wrap me in his love

And shield me with his might

Matthew 11:28

I see the tears that trickle from

The eyes of a dear friend.

I wish I had a solution

That I could recommend,

 But I can only offer arms

To hold her as she cries;

I cannot solve her problems or

Keep teardrops from her eyes.

That is a task for someone else,

I’m not up to that test,

For only you can heal the pain

And give her heart a rest.

So I lift up her burdens, Lord,

And, too, her weary heart

Please help her find a peaceful place

And let her healing start.

Matthew 11:28

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Trouble in My Wake

The flurry of the day is done

And settled in my wake.

It started with anxiety

Before dawn yet could break,

But ere the sun had set again

The waves had all grown still.

It seems you had it well in had…

And that you always will.

So thank you for the calming seas

And for the gentle tide;

Thank you for your faithfulness

In staying by my side.

But most of all, I thank you for

Redeeming each mistake

And helping me to leave them all

Behind me, in my wake.

Passing By, But Always Near

Just at the moment you passed by

A thought occurred to me,

Did you watch over me when I

Was lost and would not see?

Did you still hear my pleas at night

When I ignored your voice?

And could you feel the tears I cried

For every wretched choice?

I see you as you walk with me,

Never quite out of reach.

I hold my breath each time you speak

And learn from what you teach.

But for a while, when I was young,

I went my headstrong way

And often ran against the wind,

Blowing myself astray.

I look back now and wonder how

I didn’t see you then,

But I was not looking for you

In those days, way back when.

In looking back, I know that you

Were always passing near,

It just took me a little while

To see that you were here.

My Christmas Prayer For You

May the new light of a Christmas morning

Follow you throughout the whole day,

May you find pace and joy in your stockings

And may they both have come to stay,

May the small child born in old Bethlehem

Grow in your heart and light your way,

And may a rich spirit be yours always;

These are the gifts for which I pray.

Broken

There are so many things to say,

The thoughts pour through my mind,

And yet the words that shape those thoughts

Are those I cannot find.

It’s hard to comprehend the gift

You gave a broken world.

You filled the night with brilliant light

And angel wings unfurled,

Yet sent the word first to the meek

Who by their fires were curled.

It’s as if it was in your plan

To touch the shattered soul

And render it, through fullest grace,

Into a perfect whole.

So on the eve of your birthday

I watch the darkened night.

I long to hear the angels sing

And see the gleaming light,

For I am broken enough, Lord,

To see that wondrous sight.

Luke 2: 10-11

10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.

The Day to Come

The earth lay quiet in the dawn,

Its breath held at the sight,

As if it knew that very soon

His birth would bring new light.

And so it waited, still as mist,

To see, in coming days,

The birth of him for whom the world

Would lift its voice in praise.

John 1: 4-5

4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

For Her Delight

The time is fast approaching now,

Christmas is almost here.

The gifts are wrapped beneath the tree

The house smells of baked cheer.

Each tree is decked with gleaming flecks

Of sparkling colored light,

Reflecting in the window’s glass,

Teasing the long dark night.

To many, these are trappings vain

That cheapen what you gave;

To me they represent the love

That you were born to save.

For each one represents the time

I spent to make it right

For one I love, who once filled my

Christmases with delight.

So thank you for the twinkling trees

And the cinnamon sighs,

And thank you for the chance to please

My precious mother’s eyes. 

Psalm 55:8

When the tempest thunders fiercely

And chaos follows me,

I turn to seek that sacred haven

Where I’m loved perfectly.

I turn my eyes to find the light

That burns within the storm,

Where, even in the grimmest spate,

His love keeps me from harm.

He is my eternal shelter,

The strength in which I bide.

I no longer fear the tempest

When I stand by his side.

Psalm 55:8
I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm.”

Weathering

Just as the winds and water’s course

Can score the fiercest land,

Changing the face of rock and stone

With neither tool nor hand,

So can the troubles that we face

Abrade our coarsest flaw

And change the face we turn to God

From sin scarred fear to awe.  

The Reason that I Write

I spent the morning pondering

If I should carry on;

Some days it’s hard to find the source

From which the words are drawn.

But, then a few thoughts crossed my mind

And my doubts soon were gone.

I thought of friends who read each day,

The insights that they raise;

The friend who shared her photographs

To brighten up a praise;

And those who call to check on me

On those forlorn praise days.

I saw their faces, felt their words,

And clearly understood

Though my praises may help them some

My friends do me such good

And they are clearly why I write.

They’re why you thought I should.

Too Tired to Think

Tonight I feel way too weary

To lift my voice in praise,

But I still want to thank you, Lord,

For these cool winter days.

For when I wake to misty skies

Reflecting in the bay

And sunrise slipping through the trees,

With morning on its way,

I realize how much you do

While still in bed, I lay.

So, while I’m too weary to think,

I’ll still take time to pray

And thank you for the misty sky,

The sunrise and the bay.

Photo courtesy of Suzie Campagna

Wings of Clay

A little bird, made all of clay,

Who longs to be much more,

Peering out the window to

Its fellows on the shore

Where they can splash among the waves

Or spring into the air

To wing away from earth’s dull drag

And fly where ‘er they dare.

A longing roils from deep within  

Its terracotta heart

To leap away from nesting clay

And seek another start

Among the clouds and deep blue sky,

Where all its dreams have flown,

Though it is bound by earthen wings

To dreams as cold as stone.

Dream on, small bird, with wings of clay,

Your dreams are not unknown,

But for this time you’re needed here

And you are not alone.

I too am bound by flightless wings

And dreams I must postpone,

But someday, when the time is right,

We’ll live the hopes we’ve sown.

Psalm 38:9
All my longings lie open before you, Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you.

The Sweet Fragrance of Friendship

It’s hard to know which little bloom

Will yield a pollen sweet,

And so it is with each new friend

That we may chance to meet.

Some are bright and light up a room,

While others cheer your day,

But those that have the sweetest blooms

You never throw away.

Their scent spills through the darkest hearts

And lightens every gloom,

For with them they will always bring

A love that fills the room.

Obscured Vision

For me the view’s not always clear,

I’m easily confused.

Then I catch a glimpse of your grace

And I am more bemused,

For I am flawed beyond repair,

A bird with broken wings,

I am a ship that has no sail,

A song that no one sings,

And yet you call me precious child,

You shed your blood for me,

But why you’d do that for me, Lord,

Is more than I can see.

If I were worthy of such grace,

Then I could understand,

But I can’t see why you hold me

In the palm of your hand.

I see a measure of your grace

In flashes of insight,

But those small glimpses only touch

The edges of your might;

The rest will have to wait until

I have more perfect sight.

Psalm 72:14
He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight.

The Light and the Mist

All the plans that I have laid,

And all that I intend,

Will come to naught without your aid

And I’ll fail in the end.

But from your love a light will shine

Through mists that shroud my way

And in the glory of your light

Those mists will burn away.

James 4:13-15

 13 Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15 Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”

Psalm 147:5

The works of your hands are mighty.

Awesome in their power,

And yet your touch is delicate,

Bees dancing with flowers.

Infinite is your plan, Oh Lord,

Far beyond what I know.

It sweeps the vastness of the skies

And teaches seeds to grow.

Boundless is your loving grace,

As endless as the sea,

Rushing ever onto my shore

And washing over me.

Psalm 147:5
Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.

A Whisper in the Mist

How like a whisper in the mist

Is your voice calling me.

I am lost within a vapor,

Through which I cannot see,

Yet there is one small hint of light

That’s shining so clearly

And I will follow it to you,

For you are calling me.

Luke 19:10
For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

Riding the Roughest Tide

Some days I just couldn’t make it,

Without the help of friends;

The kind who stay right by my side

When troubles round the bend,

The friends who make the journey bright

Although the way is long

And hang on through the roughest tides

Because their love is strong!

The Eclipse

The moon grew dark within the night,

And yet I knew no fear,

For, though the night was way too dark,

I knew that you were near.

The end may seem to loom and grow,

But still I understand;

I do not fear the coming night,

You hold me in your hand.

For, if all light can disappear,

Leaving the moon’s bright face,

And yet it can return next day

How can I doubt your grace?

Thus in the darkest hour of need,

When all my hopes are lost,

I know that I will see your light

For you have paid that cost.

Ecclesiastes 12

 ¹ Remember your Creator in the days of your youth,
before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say,
 “I find no pleasure in them”—
² before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars grow dark,
  and the clouds return after the rain;

Psalm 104:19

The days go by so quickly now,

The nights linger too long.

It seems the sun has just come up

When I hear evening’s song.

The moon light ripples on the bay

And stars begin to shine;

The sun slips down below the hills

Through skies of sparkling wine.

The seasons soon will turn around,

 The world will fill with light;

For you have set the sun and moon

Upon their scheduled flight

And, though it leaves me lost sometimes,

I know I’ll be alright.

But, for now, I must learn to live

With less day and more night.

Psalm 104:19
He made the moon to mark the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down.