Pulled Both Ways

To them, it is a game they play,

For me, a way of life.
I’m always torn between my hopes
And this world’s hurt and strife.
 
I want to live a life of joy,
But I keep getting hurt.
And each time I pick myself up
I’m knocked back in the dirt.
 
I want to do good things in life,
To leave something behind,
But, with the chaos in each day,
All I’ve left is my mind.
 
And yet I still keep fighting on,
Pulled both ways every day,
But grateful that I have Your strength
To help along the way!

 

Psalm 59:17

You are my strength, I sing praise to you; you, God, are my fortress, my God on whom I can rely.

Fallen

A feather, fallen to the grass,

Forgotten by the bird
And left to wither where it lies
Without a thought or word.
 
There are some days we understand
That feather’s point of view.
We’d give up in complete despair
If it were not for You.
 
We’ve all known times when we were lost
And feeling left behind,
When there was no place we belonged,
At least none we could find.
 
It is in those times when we’re lost
And feel most out of place
That we most clearly recognize
Heaven’s redeeming Grace.
 
So, while I don’t like being lost,
Feathers fallen to earth,
I’m not afraid, for You’ll find me
And give my life new worth.

In His Hand

I looked for You when I was lost.

It seemed You were not there
And I was about to give up,
Hopeless in my despair,
But then I saw the truth of things,
I came to understand
There was no need to look for you…
You held me in Your hand.

Psalm 31:5

Into your hands I commit my spirit; deliver me, Lord, my faithful God.

This whimsical and delightful photo was a gift captured by my aunt, JSK. Thank you So Much for such a perfect shot!

The Lost

I’m not the brightest bulb out there,

I forget many things,
And I can be irascible
With all the grief that brings.
 
I’m not the one that you’d pick out
Of any crowd you see,
In fact, I tend to be lost in
Simple obscurity.
 
I am of little value to
Anyone, even me,
By all the standards of the world
I’m boring as can be.
 
And yet I am the very one,
The lost and broken soul,
To whom God sent His only Son
To redeem and make whole.
 
Luke 19:10
For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.

Not Letting Go

Did I not give this up to You

A day or two ago?
And yet I’ve taken it right back
With nothing good to show.
 
This problem’s way too big for me,
That’s why I let it go.
But then I picked it up again
And it just seems to grow.
 
I know that You have this in hand,
And, if I’d let it be,
You’d have it properly resolved
When it came back to me.
 
Yet I seem to be unable
To leave things up to You.
Oh Lord, I mean no disrespect,
Though it must seem I do,
 
I just don’t think I realize
That I have, once again,
Taken back that which I gave up,
And disrupted Your plan.

Joy Comes in the Morning

New hope will dawn within my heart

And I’ll sing with delight,
For there is a new start for me
With every morning’s light.
 
I may have failed once more today,
But I can start anew
With the fresh chance tomorrow brings
And a strong faith in You.
 
So I may lie down in the night
And weep for what went wrong,
But I will rise up with the sun
And sing a joyful song!

A Place Apart

I need to find a place apart

Where I have space to pray,
A place where I can be alone
During my busy day.
 
I live within the outside world
And I have work to do,
But sometimes I need time alone
To spend, Oh Lord, with You.
 
So each day I will slip away
And find a place apart,
A place where I can speak to You,
Then listen with my heart.
 
Matthew 14:23
After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone

Memes

Divine Differences

They were not born to be the same,

But somehow they still fit,
And neither sees the differences
As mattering a bit.
They know that the disparities
Are simply points of view,
And that they all are beautiful
Because they’re shaped by You.

Gather and Rejoice

Oh, Holy Holy is His name

And we rejoice in Praise
For God has forgiven our sins
Despite our broken ways.
 
We turn our faces up with joy
That He might see each face
As we thank Him for every day
We live within His grace.

In Your Shadow

You are so great and I am small,

No one can see me here.
If I just stand close by Your side
No one will know I’m near.
 
Oh let me hide within your shade,
Lost within the shadows,
That I might pass unnoticed as,
Each new day comes and goes.
 
Sometimes I need a place to hide
Until I’m feeling strong.
Lord, please let me hide here a while,
Before I move along.
 
Psalm 17:8
Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings

The Promise of Brighter Days

The wind picks up, the clouds move in

And spring is spring once more,
But these past days gave us a taste
Of the summer in store.
 
The warmth, the sunshine, the blue skies
Reflected in the sea,
Oh what a glorious summer
It seems likely to be.
 
The promise of the days to come
Make even grey skies fine,
And I can face the rain once more,
Knowing those days are mine.
 
Romans 4:20
Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,

Victory

The tree stood barren in the snow,

But with the coming spring
New buds began to form again
And burst to blossoming.

Soon all the buds will fall away
And apples start to grow
Until they’re ready to harvest
Ahead of winter’s snow.

Though life is but a season long,
Death’s lost its bitter sting.
For rebirth comes as surely as
The first warm breath of spring.

And thus it is with mortal man,
Whose life is short from strife.
Death holds no power over him
Whom Christ has given life.

1 Corinthians 15:55
“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”

My Eyes Fixed on Him

I’ll keep my eyes upon the Lord

And follow in His ways,
For He is my redeeming grace
And deserving of praise.
 
I’ll keep my eyes upon the Lord
And follow in His ways
For I will not lose sight of Him
If He’s fixed in my gaze.
 
I’ll keep my eyes upon the Lord
And follow in His ways
For He’s my refuge and my strength
And will be all my days.

Psalm 141:8

But my eyes are fixed on you, Sovereign Lord; in you I take refuge—do not give me over to death.

Teaching the Young

They learn what we teach them of life,

By watching what we do.
The way we live and walk through life
Is how they’ll walk life, too.
 
So teach the children to have faith,
To live their lives with grace,
And always walk through every day
Keeping God in His place.
 
Start them off learning how to live
While they sit at your knee,
And they’ll grow to be the people
That God wants them to be.
 
Proverbs 22:6
Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.

We Gather Together

We gather joyfully in praise,

Each lifts a voice in song,
For He who formed us loves us still
And He has all along.
 
We gather joyfully in praise
Thankful for His mercy,
For even when the seas are rough
He loves abundantly.
 
We gather joyfully in praise
And worship in His name.
His boundless majesty and grace,
We gratefully proclaim.
 
Matthew 18:20
For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.

Sorrow and Joy

I see her teardrops as they fall,

They’re so much like my own.
I know just how she’s feeling now,
As if all joy has flown.
 
Yet in between the memories,
And all the tears they bring.
I’m starting to find joy again
Bubble up like a spring.
 
I know the spring of joy is there
Beneath the tears we cry,
And I know that the joy will last
When all the tears run dry.
 
But until then our tears reflect
The pain that we still feel
And we will weep until the joy
Becomes, at last, more real.
 
Jeremiah 31:13
Then young women will dance and be glad, young men and old as well. I will turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow.

A Friend's Philosophy

Because the world’s been rough on me

Is really no excuse
For me to put back in the world
Reciprocal abuse.
 
There’s no need to snap at the clerk
Whose check-out line is slow,
Simply because I’m in a rush
With places I must go.
 
The server in the restaurant
Is not who I should blame
If it seems everything today
Has gone up in a flame.
 
Because I feel like I could scream,
Does not mean that I should.
My co-workers are not at fault
If my day’s not been good.
 
A friend expressed this thought to me,
When her day blew apart.
I thought it was a lesson that
I too could take to heart.

Cheery Thoughts

It just seemed that a cheery thought

Might lift a heart or two,
But sometimes having cheery thoughts
Can be so hard to do.
 
The world can be difficult, Lord,
And somedays even more,
But just a glance at spring’s first blooms
Says there’s much joy in store.

I felt the world weigh down on me
As this day moved along,
And by the end I was convinced
That it had all gone wrong
 
I left the world behind at last,
Grateful the day was through,
And when I got free of the world,
I caught a glimpse of You.
 
It lifted up my heart to see
The blossoms clustered there.
I thought it might lift others too,
So I took time share.

Be Strong, Take Heart

I felt the tears begin to spill,

Worries are piling high
And when I feel this overwhelmed
I am inclined to cry.
 
But I heard a voice comfort me,
Have faith, it seemed to say,
For, though you feel as if you’ve failed,
Blessings are on the way.
 
You have to walk through troubled times
To learn to call on me,
But there will be easier days.
I promise. Trust and see.
 
And so I wiped the tears away,
Well, one or two slip through.
But for the most part I will smile
And trust and wait on You.
 
Psalm 27:14
Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

Meme's!!

Constancy

The moon rises up every night

And slips across the sky
Though I may not see it up there,
I know it’s on the fly.
 
The ocean moves to the rhythm
Of the moon’s ebbs and flows.
It rises and it falls again
As the moon comes and goes.
 
The mountains reach up for the stars
Rivers run to the sea,
And both can be counted upon
To be what they should be.
 
With all the chaos in my life,
The inconsistency,
I’m grateful for the constancy
That You have given me.
 
The sun and moon, the mountains rise,
The rolling of the sea,
And, most of all, the changeless love
That You keep giving me.

Victory

It lay there, broken, in the bed,

And bloomed with all its might,
For it knew that, despite its state,
It can’t give up the fight.
 
It chose to bloom, despite the fact
That it can’t see the sun.
Being broken is not the end,
If joy is undone.
 
And so it blooms, there in the dirt,
Denying fate its prize.
It’s claiming victory instead
Of weeping where it lies.
 
1 Corinthians 15:55
“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”

Destruction and New Life

The mountain blew itself apart,

Devastating the earth,
But, in the wake of destruction,
New life’s been given birth.
 
Thus it is in our lives also,
When disaster befalls,
Remember that His grace is there
For anyone who calls.
 
Do not let sorrow break your heart
Or trouble weigh you down,
For God has plans to prosper you,
To trade grief for a crown.
 
And, like the mountain torn apart,
New growth will soon begin,
Gladness will overtake your tears
And joy will bloom again.
 
Isaiah 51:11
Those the Lord has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

Master and Maker

The mountain only reaches up

So far into the sky,
And though the oceans reach great depths
Some day they will run dry.
Even the heavens, vast and wide,
Have limits to them, too.
There is nothing in creation
That can compare to You.
 
You are both master and maker,
And hold all in Your hand.
I hear the words as I say them,
But still can’t understand
The magnitude of who You are
And all creations scope.
Yet this I understand full well,
Without You there’s no hope.
 
So I will rest my faith in You,
Though I can’t understand
How You can hold the universe
And me, both in one hand.
 
John 10:29-30
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”

Before They Go

Life is so fragile, soon they’re gone

And we are left behind
With nothing but our memories
And what comfort we find.
 
Our hearts seem empty for a while,
The world a paler shade
Than when they made it bright with joy.
They’re gone, but sorrow stayed.
 
Yet time will pass, as is its wont,
And sorrow’s pain will ease,
Until the day when thoughts of them
Are only those that please.
 
So hold them closely, one more time,
Tell them you love them so,
For life is fragile, then they’re gone.
Love them before they go.

Another wonderful photo from LF and the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. THANK YOU!

Thinking of You

There are so many serious

Moments in every day,
But now and then a simple joy
Happens along our way.
Such moments are not accident,
Though they may seem to be.
They are, in fact, an “I love you”
Left there for you to see.
 
Don’t overlook the small blessings
That add joy to your life,
For they’re more than a passing break
From each day’s stress and strife.
They are the sweet reminders of
The love God holds for you,
And that, though you might forget Him,
He’s still thinking of you.

This photo is a blessing from LF and her trip to the Tulip Festival in the Skagit Valley. Thank you, L!! It's wonderful!

MEMES!!

Standing Firm

It’s stood upon that wind swept shore,

Defying every storm.
The struggle has left it ragged
And twisted in its form.
 
Yet despite all the fearful winds
That ripped and tore its face,
Its roots have delved deep in the soil
And it has claimed its place.
 
It stands, despite all that the world
Throws at it, year by year,
And when the storms are past and gone
That tree will still be here.
 
And I am like that twisted tree,
My faith run deep in You,
Although the storms might tear at me
That faith will see me through.
 
Proverbs 10:25
When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever.

A Little Promise

It’s just a little promise now,

The sweet rebirth of Spring.
It happens this time every year
And seems a humdrum thing.
 
We take for granted all it means,
New life from winter’s death,
The cold gives way to life reborn
Warmed by heaven’s sweet breath.
 
But the promise of life reborn
As witnessed by the Spring
Is just the preamble to what
The Lord of Life will bring.
 
So do not look with jaundiced eye
Upon Springtime’s rebirth,
For there is even more to come
To those born first of earth!

The Last and Least

Though we might see our place in line

As somewhere near the back
Because we are so deeply flawed,
Our souls marred by that lack.
But in God’s eyes we are beloved,
Our sins have been dispersed,
And, through we are the least of His,
His love will put us first.
 
Matthew 19:30
But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.

My Eyes On You

We have to walk a broken world,

Which can be hard to do,
But it is easier if I
Keep my eyes fixed on You.
 
The road down here is often rough
With many rock days,
But when I keep my eyes on You
My heart sings out in praise.
 
I know that we must live this life
Before we come to You,
But with my eyes turned to You, Lord,
I just might make it through.
 
Psalm 141:8
But my eyes are fixed on you, Sovereign Lord; in you I take refuge—do not give me over to death.

Beauty and Mud

The day may not always go well

And troubles may abound,
But there is also great beauty
For those who look around.
I must admit some of my days
Do not bring me delight,
But there are those who make such days,
Seem absolutely right.
So try to look past all that’s wrong
And seek something worthwhile.
Who knows, that might be all it takes
To conjure up a smile!