Choose Joy

I look for joy in all I do,

The labor and the rest,
For attitude can turn the worst
Into the very best.

Don’t focus on the rain that falls
But what the rains will bring,
The summer fruit, ripe on the vine,
The blossoms of the spring.

For life is made of work and toil,
Of laughter and of joy.
And you determine your life’s course
By which one you employ.

So look for joy in all life brings,
Don’t wallow in despair.
The world is filled with sweet blessings,
Look up and find them there.

Ecclesiastes 8:15
So I commend the enjoyment of life, because there is nothing better for a person under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany them in their toil all the days of the life God has given them under the sun.

Remembering to Be Happy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

The moments, when the sun breaks through

And everything is bright,
Warm my heart, however sad,
With God’s comforting light.
 
The gentle humming of the bee,
So cheery in his chore,
Reminds me that each day's a gift
With blessings still in store.

Isaiah 12:2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Please stay beside me through this day

And guard me through the night.
For I am weak and fallen, Lord,
Please shield me with your might.
 
Watch over me while I am down,
Please stay close by my side.
For I’m afraid of what’s to come
And have no place to hide.
 
Oh Lord, I rest beneath your gaze,
Knowing that you are near.
You are the only shield I need,
And I’ll sleep without fear.
 
Isaiah 12:2
Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.”

Prickly People, Loving Choices

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

As I get older I have found

I have less tolerance
For people who need conflict to
Liven their existence.
 
The pricklier they seem to be,
The more they irritate.
And I no longer have patience
For those who aggravate.
 
But just before I fill the air
With words I can’t unsay,
I ask myself if I love them,
And then, I walk away.
 
For I was once a youthful voice,
Expounding on each thought;
Believing speech imperative,
Whatever pain it wrought.
 
I learned, with time, when I should speak
And when to just be still,
For prickly words make matters worse
And wither all good will.
 
So when you hear the quarrel start
In someone else’s voice,
Just leave them to their prickly thoughts.
You make the loving choice.

1 Timothy 1:16

But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life.

Black and White

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My world is never black and white,

The edges sometimes blur.
So often, when I say I’m right,
I’m really not that sure.
 
But there is one thing that I know
Beyond all trace of doubt,
When I get trapped where my fears grow,
You’re there to lead me out.

To Soften the Landing

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When we spend all of our time in flight,

Winging our way aloft,
There is no doubt we’ll sometimes fall,
And hope the landing’s soft.
 
Or, better still, we can trust God,
Whatever the weather,
To hold us as we fall to earth,
Lightly as a feather.
 
For God, who watches over us,
Will answer when we call
And He will reach out, willingly,
To catch us when we fall.
 
Matthew 10:28-30
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

1 John 2:8

I feel the darkness closing in,
But dawn whispers nearby;
The darkness passes as I watch
The new light sweeps the sky.
I will not quiver in the night
When I know God’s close by,
For the darkness will soon be past,
The true light’s drawing nigh.

1 John 2:8

Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.

Busy Work

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When life becomes too much to bear,

I find work I can do
To keep my mind from thinking of
The things I can’t work through.
By now, you’d think that I would use
My proven, tried and true,
And sit in stillness, name my fears,
Then hand them off to you.
And yet, I still scurry about,
Doing what I can do,
To keep my mind off what I fear…
Until fear turns to rue!

True Beauty

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A beauty, rich and radiant,

Was hers through all her days,
But it was not her pretty face
That earned such loving praise.
For, though she was a stunning lass,
And grew lovelier still,
Her beauty was her loving heart,
In service to God’s will.

Prov 31:30

Beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised

When Labors Become Delights

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Though many seem to think it’s work,

I love to have to mow.
Which turns out to be fortunate,
Because grass likes to grow.
 
It’s not that I like seeing things
Looking clean and neat,
But it's that, when I cut the grass,
It always smells so sweet.
 
What a clever God we have,
Who planned each labor through.
For, when the finish smells this sweet,
The chore’s a joy to do.