Poetry
So here it is, a collection of poetry that I’ve been working on during this time of isolation. As mentioned in my blog ‘God – A Masterful Poet‘ I’m really only just starting out with poetry, so there is still a lot of room for improvement!
An attempt at acrostic poetry, where the first letter of each line spells out a word or the alphabet. Psalm 119 uses a similar technique but the psalmist wrote no less than 8 lines for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet…
A-Z
Alpha and omega
Beginning and the end
Can it be that such a God
Did come as sinners friend
Enthroned in highest heaven
From there to earth he came
Gave up all his glory
He traded for our shame
Is any earthly treasure
Joyful more than this?
King of Kings
Lord of lords
My sins He will forgive
Now to Him forever
Owe I everything
Poured out his blood to win me back
Quashed hell’s victory ring
Righteousness I seek now
Sinful thoughts reject
Though temptations pull my heart
Unfailing love protects
Verily I love him too
With all my mind and might
Excitedly awaiting I
Your servant day and night
Zion will come swiftly
And home our longing souls
Zion, the great city
All, God’s name, extol
I wrote this after reading the book ‘Chasing Contentment: Trusting God in a Discontented Age’ by Erik Raymond – a very helpful book.
Contentedness
Oh restless heart
Why do you groan
Against your lot today?
Ambitious mind
Why do you plot
For riches, fame and praise?
Don’t you know
Contentedness
In these you will not gain
As hunger pangs
Require food
And parch’ed plants, the rain
The only one
To quiet the soul
And heal its aching pain
Is Jesus Christ
The son of God
Risen from the grave!
This is the poem I started when I first became a Christian…
From Sin to Sin
From sin to sin I floated
Across an ocean vast
No helmsman and no captain
A ship with no compass
The struggle was unending
Fighting the waves alone
My boat battered and broken
No sure land to call home
I felt a soft wind blowing
Unlike I’d felt before
It’s warmth did give me comfort
A hope I must explore
What is this grace and mercy
More precious than pure gold
I did nothing to earn it
But to it I must hold
Christ is now repairing
The rotten parts inside
Though aimless I was sinking
He has become my guide.
My soul has now a new home
Fixed in heaven above
A land of joy, unbroken praise,
But greatest of all, Love.
The Greatness of His Government
When economies are tottering,
And many jobs are lost,
The uncertainty, bewildering,
Unknown – the long term cost.
When lives are shown as fragile,
Clay pots that crack and break,
A tiny, hidden molecule,
Is all it seems to take.
When society is shaken,
And freedom stripped away,
When so much has been taken,
What hope can still remain?
There is a leader we can trust,
Whose words are always true.
His treasures won’t depleat or rust,
His plans will be seen through.
A ruler for eternity,
Who deeply cares and loves us.
In Him we’ll find security,
Who is he? The Lord, Jesus.
Motherhood Insecurities
Always comparing,
Never a rest,
Whose got more children,
Whose behave best.
Whose are more able,
Whose are well read,
In music and maths,
Are they getting ahead?
Whose are best dressed,
Not mine, that’s for sure –
With Christmas tops in June,
And knee holes galore.
Whose baked more bakes,
Ironed all the clothes,
Whose crafted more crafts,
And still painted their toes!
Who had more likes,
On their posts this week,
We know we shouldn’t care,
But we just take a peak.
Who is more charitable,
Who gives up more time,
Whose wiser with money,
Never wasting a dime.
Ok perhaps,
When we’re striving to be better,
But is there a desire,
For others to be lesser?
Lord please free us,
From this joyless endeavor,
To God be the glory,
Both now and forever.
Inspired by the verse in Job 19:25…
My Redeemer Lives
I know my redeemer lives
Even though He died
And I will live on with Him
For ‘finished’ he did cry
I know my redeemer lives
Though the path seems dim
And trouble presses on all sides
I won’t loose faith in him
I know my redeemer lives
When good fortune comes my way
And pleasures tempt my wandering heart
He won’t let me me stray
I know my redeemer lives
And one day he’ll return
Then every mouth will shout aloud
JESUS CHRIST IS LORD
Searching for Meaning
The dreary drudge
Of daily tasks unfolds endlessly
As we await longingly
The day we meet our judge
Search for meaning
While buttering towers of toast
And scrubbing stains from the host
Of clothes that need cleaning
Glimmering light
That breaks through the shame of sins gone by
The constant regrets and whys
As God draws into sight
The race is won
Not by the swift or mighty in strength
But by they who walk the length
Of life with God’s own son
Testing Times
Your love surrounds me
When I’m feeling rejected
Your hand gives me strength
When I’m down and dejected
Your word guides my way
When the world is perplexing
Your peace stills my mind
When all around is vexing
Your son saved my soul
When sin I was wrestling
Your grace will keep me
Till end of earthly testing
Vast and Free
What is this grace so vast and free
That seeks out sinners, bad as me
That even when I pull away
He gently leads me in His way
Fixing my eyes on He
Though Satan whispers in my ear,
Temptations seem so very near
By my side, always is He
For now and for eternity
His word has made it clear
Grace has got me held secure
And though the path looks all a blur
My future’s not engraved in stone
But in those wounds He bore alone
That made this sinner pure
Those hands that made the universe
Were pierced to free me from the curse
And now they build a home for me
Where one day I will live with He
Though nothing I deserve
This poem was written after a week of self-isolating just before official ‘lock-down’
Waiting
Nail biting. Anxiety fighting. Waiting.
Boredom raising. Navel gazing. Waiting.
Downcast. Can hope last? Waiting.
–
Shepherding flocks. Prison locks. Waiting.
Noah’s Ark. A valley dark. Waiting.
Character making. Or breaking. Waiting.
–
But joy of joys when on that day,
All our waiting melts away,
Emmanuel with us to stay,
We with him, to reign one day.
–
But for now. Our lot this day. Waiting.
Weary Child
Oh weary child
Why look you glum?
The saviour mild
To earth has come
And he the victory, won
Oh bruis’ed reed
You will not break
Your every need
He won’t forsake
From even death you’ll wake
Rejoice oh soul
Be not downcast
In Christ extol
Until at last
He comes with trumpet blast!