Psalm 51:12

Sometimes we just don’t want to see

The things we know are there.

We close our eyes, we hide our face,

We say we just don’t care.

But all of it will still be there,

The worry and the pain,

When we look up again to face

The burdens and the strain.

Yet how do we lift up our eyes

When they are filled with tears;

How can we rise above the pain

While drowning in our fears?

Please give to me a willing heart,

I lift my eyes to you.

For in you is salvation, Lord,

And that will get me through.

Psalm 51:12
Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

Psalm 38:9

I have a restless soul, my lord,

I long for something more;

A better life, a sweeter love,

To walk a different shore.

I cannot seem to find the peace

I know you hold in store,

Because I’m busy missing all

That my heart’s longing for.

You know the longings of my heart

Much better than I do.

I’ve seen you answer prayers that I

Had thought could not come true.

Yet many simple human dreams

I’ve had to bid adieu,

And so my restless heart cries out,

In anguish, Lord, to you.

Please show me how to ease this heart

That beats so selfishly

And lead me to the peace, oh Lord,

That’s mine abundantly.

This longing heart, this restless soul

Bring empty pain to me.

I long to long less, to find peace

And learn to simply be….

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

Missing the Better Show

The sun was blazing in the sky

Behind the drifting cloud,

It silhouetted the great tree

Standing strong and proud.

The aspect of them mingling there

Was worth a gasp aloud.

But as I turned from such a view

Still awed by what I’d seen,

Another vision caught my eye,

A faint, but colored sheen.

A rainbow cast across the sky,

Reflected by the sun,

Was cast across the rain dark clouds

Before the day was done.

It had begun, by then, to fade,

And it was hard to see;

Darker where the sky was black,

But lost against the sea.

Had I but waited moments more,

Enrapt by the bright blaze,

I might have missed the precious gift

Born of these rainy days.

Watching the big event unfold,

I’d miss the better show,

How often have I done the same

In life? I just don’t know.

A lesson learned, but not the most

Important of the day.

Remember that the rainbow shown

Most bright where all was gray!

And so our joys shine brightest when

We’ve had to face our pain,

When we’ve been battered by the gales

Then rise to shine again.

For rainbows only come to us

When we’ve endured the rain.

Looking For Tomorrow

Maybe tomorrow my mind will be clear

Maybe tomorrow my heart will know cheer

Maybe tomorrow I won’t feel such fear

But right now tomorrow’s not here!

Maybe tomorrow my sorrow will dim

Maybe tomorrow my delight will brim

Maybe tomorrow I won’t sink, I’ll swim

But right now tomorrow seems grim!

Maybe tomorrow my anger will fade

Maybe tomorrow I’ll stop my tirade

Maybe tomorrow my soul won’t feel frayed

But tomorrow makes me afraid!

Oh come sweet tomorrow, come now to me

Let me be the person that I should be

Dear lord, for tomorrow, I lift this plea

Renew and restore and set my soul free.

Never Too Small to Matter

There was a boat beyond the shore,

Bobbing softly on the still sea,

Ready to brave the wind and wave

To go where it was meant to be.

Upon the shore, among the weeds,

Another boat lay quietly.

It was sheltered, tucked up away

From waves that might yet set it free.

I thought, at first, how sad it was,

That boat kept from its destiny;

Not large enough to ride the winds

Nor brave the waves of open sea.

But then I realized the truth,

That boat was right where it should be,

For its role was a vital one;

A link between the land and sea.

And so it is in our lives, too,

However small our place may be,

We have a vital role to fill,

A great responsibility.

Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer

As I seem to have had a theme of dark rain clouds the past few days, I thought I would do an off the beaten path praise. There’s an old song from WWII called “Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer”. It’s a simple song about a plane that was late in returning from a bombing run. In waiting, and hoping for the plane’s return, the other crews were hovering around the radio when above the crackle of the radio they heard the missing plane reporting in that they were coming in on a wing and prayer with all hands safe.  I love that old song and I often offer my own version of it as I head out on a busy day; or in bad weather; or when I just feel rattled or at the edge and I need a little extra help. I look to God and advise him that I am heading out on a wing and prayer, his wing and my prayer.  I pray that I stay in the shadow of his wing, because I know I’m always safe there, whatever the day may throw at me.

Here’s a link to one of the best renditions of the song that I’ve heard in ages… since it comes from men who were probably all too familiar with living on a wing and a prayer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hY5RJ401lMo

The Sun Still Shines

Although the sun may hide his face

Behind a darkened cloud,

Though he may seem to shrink in shame

Within a rainy shroud,

Though he may stay well out of sight,

Yet still the sun shines proud.

For all the trees grow straight and tall,

The grass is thick and green,

The blossoms burst within their beds,

Bees humming in between,

And everywhere the sun’s effects

Are felt or can be seen.

And God it always right there too

Though sometimes we don’t see

That hand that guides us through the storms

Or holds us lovingly

When all we want to do is cry

Or strike out angrily

But the storms will finally pass

And we’ll know what to do;

Anger settles, the tears will dry,

We’ll look at things anew,

Because, much like the sunshine does,

His love always burns through.

Facing Fears and Carrying On

Last night I set down all my fears,

I laid them in your hand.

Today I must face them again,

But I now understand

Each fear I’ve named, you’ve claimed as yours

There’s no more I can do

Than do my best, trust for the rest

And know that trust’s in you.

It may not work out as I’d wish,

But you will see me through,

You’ve been to Hell and back for me

And I’m sticking with you.

So, though I face again at dawn,

The troubles of last night,

I know that you will stay with me

And that I’ll be alright.

A Bouquet of Joy

The fragrances of dear friendships,

Of daffodils and fun

Filled up my world this afternoon;

And even though it’s done,

The laughter lingers in my heart,

The flowers in my room.

The perfect mix of daffodils

And friendship's precious bloom!

Say Nothing At All

I’ve struggled with my praise today,

I know I have so much to say,

But all my words have slipped away.

So I will pause, be still and pray.

Oh Lord, I hear the steady rain

That washes down my window pane

And all the thoughts that still remain

Are tapping to the rain’s refrain.

The flat gray sky, the matching sea,

The gray sand beach, the stranded tree.

No birdsong and no birds to see,

Just tides that murmur sleepily.

I wanted to make some great plea,

Some parable told poignantly.

Instead you’ve lead my heart to be

At peace through all that you’ve shown me.