Fire Beneath the Snow

The mountain stands sheathed in cold ice,
Yet deep beneath the snow
The fires of its molten core
Bubble unseen below.
 
It seems too still, almost serene,
To hide such fire within,
But that is often how it is
With mountains, and with men.
 
We all hold secrets in our hearts
That no one else can see,
Secrets of loss, of fear, of shame,
Of painful memory.
 
Walk gently then, with those you meet,
For you may never know
What burns at them from deep within,
Beneath the outer snow.
 
Ephesians 4:32
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

On My Father's Rock - Re-posted

I’m standing on My Father’s rock

For He has lifted me.
No longer is the darkened vale
The fear it used to be.
And though I’ll pass through it again,
As I don’t doubt I will,
I know that I won’t walk in fear
For my God holds me still.
So I will stand firm on the rock
Formed by My Father’s hand
And carry it within my heart
Just as My Father planned.
 
Psalm 23:4 
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Now Choose Life - Re-posted

We have before us every day
Choices that we must make;
What we will give most value to
Or which path we will take;
Do we seek good in every day
Or focus on the grim;
Will we let others run our race
Or set the pace for them?

Choose well, because each choice you make
Will follow you for years,
And you will bear each consequence
With happiness or tears.
I will not purposefully choose
To walk the paths of strife,
But I will leap with joyous heart
And make the choice of life!

Deuteronomy 30:19
This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live.

My Savage Heart - Re-posted

You ask so much of me, Oh Lord,

I have a savage heart.
I don’t know if it can be tamed,
Or even how to start.
 
You taught me how to live my life,
When You lived here on earth,
But You were born in perfection,
While I’m savage from birth.
 
You left me with the words You spoke,
The lessons and the praise,
And I try to live as You taught,
Despite my savage ways.

Oh Lord, I’m not sure how we’ll do,
My savage heart and I,
Yet this one thing I promise, Lord,
For You, we’ll always try!

The Easter People - Re-posted

 

We are the Easter people, Lord,

We are not born of the cross.

We live in the resurrection

Not in the sorrow and loss.

 

Yes, we are the Easter people,

Born of redemption not sins.

Death punctuates not our ending,

But marks where true life begins.

 

Since we are the Easter people,

Though the cross darkens our way,

We will step out of its shadow

Into the light of your day.

 

We are the Easter people, Lord,

We no longer fear death’s face.

We live in the resurrection,

In Easter’s redeeming grace.

Waiting, With Faith- Re-posted

Waiting at the door of the tomb

Listening to the sounds of the night

The chirping bugs, the rustling brush
Something scurries by out of sight
 
Waiting at the door of tomb
Watching as the stars cross the sky
They shimmer with the dew of night,
As if they paused a bit to cry.
 
Waiting at the door of the tomb
The dusty smell of death and gloom
The bitterness of useless tears
The unrelenting sense of doom
 
Waiting at the door of the tomb
I’m not sure why I linger still
Death doesn’t change its course for man
And yet, for Him, I trust it will!
 
Mark 15: 42-47
It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph saw where he was lai

Darkness and Grace - Good Friday - Reposted

The darkness that consumes the earth

Was born of sin and pain.

The price of life was paid in blood

And, though the sins remain,

They have been washed from guilty lives

By one who bore no stain.

 

So, though we stand in darkness now,

The light will soon return

And we will reap the blessings of

A grace we didn’t earn.

 

Matthew 27: 45
From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land.

Tears in the Garden - Maundy Thursday - Re-posted

I heard you whisper in the garden,

Prayers raised beyond the skies,

But I was growing sleepy then

So I just closed my eyes.

 

I heard you calling in the garden,

As if about to weep,

But I was too weary to act

So I went back to sleep.

                                                          

I heard you hurried from the garden

By those who cursed your name,

But I was too afraid to speak

So I hid out in shame.

 

I stood there in the empty garden

While your friends fled or lied.

But I too failed you, in that garden,

And, in my shame, I cried.

 

Mark 14: 32-38

32 They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34 “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”

 35 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36 “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

 37 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? 38 Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Relics and Eternity - Re-posted

The relics of forgotten plans

Lie scattered on the shore.
The dreams of that which might have been,
But now flourish no more.
 
The works of man are fragile things,
Inclined to fall to dust,
But that which God formed by His hand
Endures in lasting trust

Psalm 145:13

Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does.

Broken, But Blooming - Re-posted

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 not 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?”