My Hopeful Expectation - Advent 2011

When seasons change and daylight fades,
Nature takes on somber views.
I find myself in this Season of Hopeful Expectation.
I am not waiting, for waiting implies the here and now.
No, it is with Hopeful Expectation that
I look to God's future fulfillment - Eternal Life.
That is where my heart finds and rests in contentment.
Little do the physical trials of life affect me,
For these are momentary and passing.
I embrace them as cherished possessions from God.
My very soul cries out for His return, when we will
Realize the fulfillment of His eternal designs.
For through God's Divine Providence and Will,
We do not wait, rather, we fully expect the
Glories of heaven upon His return,
- But is He not already with us! -
In Hopeful Expectation, spiritual desires are
answered, Human doubts are no more.
Whatever my condition, Hopeful Expectation
Enlivens and fills the passing moments with
The promise of heavenly rewards.
Yes, Glory to God in both the highest and
Most desperate reaches of my existence!
For my God graced human condition will
Exalt in His promised and most blessed return as I
Prepare the way in Hopeful Expectation!

Sing for Autumn - 8/21/10

Sing for Autumn.
When August begins to wain away
tempered by cooling nights -
September becomes more possible
and my heart yearns for shorter days
and their cooling affects.
The sounds and smells of an aging season
fills me with with a glance of evening shades.
They take me back in time to retrace steps I took,
my steps along the "way".
Memories of Septembers long gone flood back
as if they returned, bringing with them
the tide of time that has passed.
I sing for Autumn when the sunlight
dims and softens the glare, when trees begin to
loose their summer shape and bare their
structure like aged skeletons.
A sudden change will come rendering the summer
a mere memory of what it was.
But we'll go on and find in the change a place
for our hearts well kept and seldom traveled.
Along the fence rows and rock walls, the barriers
between fields and the expanse of sky.
They'll loose their covering and bare the essence
of their design.
Just as we'll be someday, bare and essential,
Souls divine, just as we were intended but tried so hard to avoid.
Just as we were meant to be, but placed this protective
cover upon who we were beneath.
But He knows.
From our earliest whisper of being,
He breathed our presence true.
Our being evolved to become a mirror of Him.

From These Thorns, A Crown - Easter 2011

Enduring beyond human comprehension
The flesh shredding scourging,
Christ's heart was filled with the
Weariness of a troubled world;
And from these Thorns,
A crown they formed.
Unspeakable apparitions incited
And encouraged His tormentors
As they impaled God's own
Flesh and blood with;

The thorns of humanity,
The splinters of earthly sin,
The indignities of their mockery.
Heavenly patience permeated His being,
While an Angelic presence consoled
And spiritually nourished Him
To complete His divine course.
Our Lord accepted His crown of Glory!
Bloodied, disfigured and unrecognizable,
Mockingly hailed as King and Messiah,
Pilate presented Him as "The Man".
But His Kingdom was not of this world.
He transcended the nuisance but necessary
Sufferings of what was, and began to
Ascend to that which will  be.
And from His Father's right hand,
He calls upon our grace filled souls by name.

Becoming Simon - Easter 2010

After greeting His mother with the collective

sin and misery of the world upon His shoulders,

Christ, abandoned, condemned, beaten and

scourged, reached a point of exhaustion.

The Roman soldiers received one directive,

get this 3rd cross to Calvary and this unlikely

victim-king crucified before sundown.

This miserable wretch could go no further.

Selfishly concerned they would need to bare

his burden, they grabbed a bystander.

Fearing for his life, Simon took hold of

Christ by His blood soaked cloak and

helped to support the splintered beam.

To be like Simon, we must be willing to be

pulled from our comfort and called into service.

In our prayer and meditation;

In our no questions asked approach;

In our reaching out and our touching;

In our hands on, pick up our fellow man;

In our wiping off the sweat and blood

from the brow; in our reaching down in the

grace filled blessedness of human suffering;

We become Simon!

We grab a hold and lift the down and

despairing by the raggedness of life.

We support and carry those in our midst as we

set out to complete this course we have been graced,

for His grace is greater than all suffering.

Lenten Returning

(An Ash Wednesday and Lenten reflection & prayer)

Lent is a season of returning to our spiritual roots.

Receiving ashes on Ash Wednesday, we are reminded to;

"turn away from sin and remain faithful to the Gospel".

In the first reading, we will read;

"return to me with your whole heart".

This requires a personal returning.

The Prodigal Son reached a point of disillusionment in life,

that was replaced by spirtiual enlightenment when he

realized he was "lost" and "came to his senses";

"I will set out and return to my Father and say to him;

I have sinned against heaven and against you".

Like this wayward Son, we may have left behind and

wandered away from our religious foundation.

For whatever reason, we may have stepped

away and wandered for a time from our faith

and our God graced eternal inheritance.

Be it physical or mental challenges, temptations of material

want or longing, cravings for something we don't have or

distracting voices that tempt us away from the one true

message, the Gospel message of Jesus Christ.

What voices have have we been listening to, what examples

have we been following, what temptations or habits have

steered us away from the true purpose of life;

Our divine and eternal destiny?

Where did we fall, when did we loose out way?

Do you know He calls for your return!

He has been there since you left and patiently and joyfully

awaits for your return.

Heavenly Father,

Far have I wandered, precious time have I squandered.

Forgotten the altars of my youth, familiar voices of my learning.

I made them distant, until your touch I could no longer discern.

The example was clearly before me, but numb and

complacent I have become.

I'll set aside my personal ideologies,

my platforms and vices, my habits and my hidings,

mortal inclinations & reflexes that keep me from You.

I'll empty myself of my wants and needs and

replace my spiritual emptiness with you.

You Lord, the bare essentials of my humanity.

From a distance you see and call me.

In spite of my wanderings, you welcome me back.

Despite my weaknesses, you strengthen me with your word.

It is I who waited too long and refused to listen.

Allow me to use this season of returning, these 40 days of Lent

to return to the places I left behind, gratitude I failed to express.

"Behold, now is a very acceptable time;

behold, now is the day of salvation".

I will return, for at sunset, You accept me as I am

as I continue my journey of spiritual discernment.

The Kingdom, The Power and The Glory

Now and forever we pray.

Always has and will

Eternal of Creation

amidst the passing of time.

A parcel amidst the multitudes

A taste of Heaven in Hell

No longer will death hold a sting

No longer will our passing be

measured or tied to this earth

for we have been marked

Far above we are, but we can not see

The voice of God within, but we fail to hear

Death will not leave us dead

but merely emptied of this world

only to be filled anew by Christ's eternity

For the Kingdom that lies beyond

our known or perceived world

His Kingdom will come

and has risen

For the Power over evil and death

I yearn and cleave unto

He who embraces the tides of time

with me enveloped within

For the Glory of fulfilling God's

word and course of Creation

A course in which I find myself

gifted to be a part

Prayer for Morning

In the quiet moments of my prayer,
I find You ever at my side.
With confidence in Your word, I step forward
this day to witness and to live Your will in my life.
I ask for wisdom to hear and understand Your call
and courage to answer with a sincere heart.
I pray my actions mirror Your intentions as I
reach out to those in need of comfort and support.
May I set aside my selfish desires and become
a source of reassurance and support for those
experiencing troubling or challenging times.
Assist me in finding the patience to take time and
notice Your good in those around me.
Finally Lord, help me to strengthen my faith in
Your promises of Hope and in turn, become for
others a source of Your good will...Amen

Time Apart

He said his prayers just as
Venus lost it's glow.
It's presence overcome by the
pink of morning,
Heaving a tangy taste
of expectation.

"I won't be back Love
till the day has spent it's course.
I said my prayers for our time apart.
Kissing your brow, I tasted loneliness.
Kissing your cheek, I tasted Love.
Kissing your heart I tasted the eternity
that we will spend together.
Leave the flowers by the garden gate,
I'll pick them on my return".

Ascension

By the ascension of our Lord, we
give up our old selves and through
the Holy Spirit, we are transformed
into something totally new and
pleasing to God. Carrying on in the
faithful teaching and tradition of the
Apostles, we ascend to Christ
through our own faith. Through
prayerful devotion, we can transcend
from our worldly wants and ways to
God's heavenly and spiritual ways.
New life dawns upon us with the
realization that Christ never left our
side. Through our faith, even now,
He dwells in our hearts, and truly,
He will be with us always,
until the end of time.

Sorrowful, even unto death

From the shadows of this Garden, sorrow
Is beyond me, sorrowful, even unto death.
These shadows speak, but do not console.
They frown and scorn and cover
My head in shameful respite.
My sweat and blood embroils the earth
As I bare all mankind’s sin upon me,
Upon my Soul it rests.
The weight of this sin is unbearable.
Amass this burden upon my shoulders
I will lighten the load for the journey.
Remain watchful in the garden,
I will answer your prayers of fear.
I will appease and release the souls
Held bound, for I am the
Evidence that sets your soul free, and
By this Cross, I will become eternity
No, My Father will not allow these shadows
To consume me, for His will be done.
And from these shadows
In three days time, the Dawn

The Garden of Gethsem'ane - Easter 2009

It was in the damp darkness of
The Garden of Gethsem'ane, that
Our Lord accepted and took on the
Burden of sin from all humanity.
Beyond our comprehension, the weight
Upon Him was immense and paralyzing.
An eternity of sin, all sin that was,
All sin that is and all sin that will be.
As the sweat and blood of Christ
Dripped, it embroiled the earth.
The shadows spoke but did not console.
They frowned with scorn and covered
His head in shameful respite.
Faithful companions gave in to
Weakness and slept at moments of
His most extreme pain and isolation;
Though in the spirit, their courage,
In the weakness, their fear.
And upon His soul this burden
Would rest, He the evidence for
Which souls would be set free.
Not by His will, but His
Father's will be done, for
He could see beyond these shadows,
And in three days time, the Dawn.

(Inspired by Mark 14:32-38)

Easter 2006 - Christ the good Shepherd

Lord Jesus, caring shepherd of souls
Like the Apostles in the days following
The resurrection, while at first skeptical,
We welcome the appearance and presence
of Christ in our lives. Beyond our own
denials and failings,
Christ, the eternal shepherd asks us that
very same question He asked Peter,
"Do YOU love me more than these"?
If like Peter, we will answer,
"Yes, Lord, you know everything; you know
that I love you".
If so, then what are we waiting for!
"Go, care for my sheep".

Advent Prayer

Heavenly Father,
In this season of Light,
that ironically is in the darkest time of the year,
It is with uplifted hearts that we Joyfully give
thanks for all Your blessings we enjoy.
Until we surrender all our earthly wants and needs
and abandon all our worries and concerns,
placing them at your table,
are we able to meet Christ each new day and
recognize His presence in all who we meet.
Only in Christ do we discover the true essence of
Your creation - OUR Salvation.
When we place our hope in You,
all faith is fulfilled.
So in this season of Advent,
let us welcome Him home into our hearts,
Your Son and our Lord,
our protector and spiritual guide,
our Redeemer and vessel of all earthly Joy.
May we find the Light in our darkness,
the faith in our doubt
and the reassurance of love
in a world of unknowns.

My way Home

(Inspired by the "Return" in the parable of "The Return of the Prodigal Son, Luke 15:11-32)

If I saw you, my feeble human thoughts
Would be unable to comprehend.
So you are there in my midst as a mist,
A fog, a prayer.
You are there as a meditation upon a word.
A whisper of thought or a gentle nudge of
Assurance from a phrase.
Like the wind, I can not see where it comes from,
Where it goes, but it’s presence is surely felt.
This wilderness wind is a harsh reality of my world.
A presence, cold and bleak.
I do not need such blunt realities to know
Of your presence of love and warmth.
In the simplicity of my prayer, you are there.
No need for reassurance from my human emotions.
That reality is all too present and accessible.
You draw me close, out of these human
Surrounds and encompass me as your own
As I always have been, but failed to feel.
Just as I was designed and destined, but lost my way.
Remove my home, homeless I’ll be.
Remove my comfort, comfortless I wander.
Remove my spiritual compass and I’ll trek a trackless
Void in directionless pursuits.
But you draw me close and encompass me as your own.
No longer an endless round of meaningless means.
In my craving, you appease my appetite.
Your words are a melody, a feast untold.
Your voice is a clear path through moments
Of trackless ways.
Regardless of the obstacles of human enterprise,
Your light is a lantern, your voice
That soft whisper of wind that in my moments
Of silence calls and awakens my soul on a
Path that leads me home.
With you Lord, I can always find my way home.

Harvest Gleanings 10/19/04

This season in decline
Becomes a comfort, you know.
When we seek the warmth of heart and home.
When winds begin to blow and moan and stir
The mix of leaves and harvest debris
The gleanings of the harvest blown astray.
With head bowed and bended knee
In heartfelt prayer we show delight
In the whole expanse of earth and sky
From harvest dust to fruitful seed
We feel we cannot allow
This moment to pass away as day unto night
Without thoughts of our Savior, gleaming bright.
These days pass by the, color fades.
Rolling landscapes become shades of gray
But there in lies a peaceful heart
Who accepts these gleanings as treasures apart.
These offerings left behind in our busy hurry
Are truly blessings once over looked.
Together they bind together the threads of life.
Single threads, they appear so sparse, but together
They weave a tapestry.
A tapestry of moments once discarded and forgotten
They form this blanket stretched across the land.

Aqua lateris Christi, lava me (Water from the side of Christ, wash me)

It is finished.
Scourged and Crucified,
The pericardium pierced,
A stream of living water
Flowed from His side.
The name of this stream is
Called Totality.
From the beginning of creation
To this very moment in time
Death has been conquered,
Salvation is complete.
This final sign of his death
Is a sign of our eternal life.
Our daily dying brings us
Closer to the life to come.
Through the Eucharist,
Communion with His
Body and Blood,
We become and continue this
Stream of Living water for others
And Graciously exclaim,

“Aqua lateris Christi, lava me”

Garden of Passion 2/24/02

Garden of passion, prayer of my Lord.
Sweet is your presence, in loving accord.
I’ve been to your mountain, your garden of will.
Strengthened in spirit, my heart dwells there still.
Calling me further to answer your call.
Each new day I am willing, but so easily I fall.
Many the times do you call me your own.
In deafness of faith, I just roll the stone.
My cross I will carry, though days can be hard.
Your Love fills the void, sin has left scarred.
The passing of time, solitude of prayer does fill.
Taking me back to your pain on that hill.
Arms outstretched against timbers of pain.
All of your sacrifice, was all for our gain.
That day passed slowly, the light soon did fade.
Into the darkness, your earth flesh was laid.
Depth of the darkness and silence you bore.
No sign of life and chilled to the core.
Alone in abandonment, from cold hearts and loss.
The hill of denial where you triumphed the cross.
How could I leave you alone there to pray?
Another chance given, this time I will stay.
Garden of passion, prayer of my Lord.
Sweet is your forgiveness, in loving accord.
I’ve been to your mountain, your garden of will.
Strengthened in spirit, my heart dwells there still.

Who will care for garden 4/27/01

Must I say goodbye?
At early dawn when silence envelops me
I find my Lord in contentment
My prayers have been answered, only too
find peace in my heart
My loves are near me, those I hold so dear
But who will care for my garden?
I pray they find the same peace and comfort
In the long soft shadows of dawn and dusk
as I have found and comforted in.
In early morning the dew will drip and a
chorus of winged harmony fills the void.
Of heaven I long and pray, this earth
can not hold me but
only give me rest in my journey.
My Lord will care for my garden.
He will tend to the weeds of discontentment
and pluck out the cords of human sin.
I lift high my cup of thanks
and find life’s final thirst, quenched
My soul answers my Lord’s final call,
my Lord, the gardener of my soul.

My Own Heart 1/27/02

One, spring day blooming
My heart, in joyful assuming
When in our Lord’s ascending
From death, to life transcending
Shed fear and sorrow forever
Opened hearts to salvations endeavor
Thy hope, in hopeful passing
Thy love, in soul caressing
When my own death – time, is calling
No fear, or thought comes falling
He, in splendor will approach
My soul, my being, He will broach
Your eternal word I prayerfully seek
At times, my own heart, neither gentle nor meek
Accepting your evening call to will
My own heart, you enter and fill
My own heart, quiets – still
Then my own heart, becomes quiet, and stills

March

March wind and breeze
Air filled spring does seize
Across fields and marsh will blow
A scent of change and suns warm glow
Change small it does not care
Light intense becomes soft and fair
Colors in shades of earthen brown
Her majesty, “Nature” in splendorous crown
My heart now lifts and soon will rise
Upon the crest of nightly cries
Winters cold soon becomes seasons first
Mild breezes flow with warmth’s gentle burst
In gullies low where dampness lies
Breathes it’s warmth over land, then dries
As one I change in this Lenten tide
A heavenly father and his Son beside
Your beauty is in subtleties we of flesh cannot see
Until time has turned and your seasons can be

My Garden Within 1/22/02

A place to keep My loved ones,
in times we are apart.
A place to keep the pain and sorrow,
or the broken-ness of heart.
A valley in the morning,
when the sun begins the day.
A hovel of warmth and security,
when My love seems furthest away
A light to guide your foot steps,
on your journey through your hours.
A passage clear through the turmoil,
a wilderness path lined with flowers
A blue sky in time for sunset,
following a day of storms and rain.
No longer a thought of loss or strife,
only a promise of heavenly gain.
Come to the silence of the evening,
I’ll listen to your prayerful pleas.
There you’ll find your answer, and
needless worry and doubt will cease.
In the silent moments at days end,
prayers, tranquility and peace begin.
For all along your walk this day,
I’ve held you in My Garden within.

Ashes

Doing your will in words
And deed
I see salvation true
From dust we are created
Through these ashes we
Will return to you

Fresh from these winter depths
In this season I search for
Green and life and find it
In these ashes – Black.

Blessed the Fruit 12/14/03

From the warmth of the divine baptismal font
At creations peaceful beginning
Gift of salvation was born of sinless obedience
Accepting Mary, Mother of all living
Tranquil is your response to God’s will
Such beauty in devotional Love
Devine blessing showered from above
A star to draw us near
Presenting gifts before our King so dear
All creation bends its knee in the hope
Of our salvations birth
Accept this will your Father’s calling
Preventing death and mankind’s falling
Mother Mary, simple faith so true
Radiant splendor clothed in blue
Intercessor for thoughts and prayers
As we offer up our worries and cares
Mother Mary, The Christ’s simple beginning
In all its humbleness brings life unending
From creations womb, salvation born
Ends with a crown of sacrifice proudly worn

Across these Fields 10/7/06

Harvest skies I welcome
Where blue meets gold and yellow
And breeze metallic shivering
Where in our youth they would tumble and
Crisp Beneath our footfall
Where wind and breeze would collect and coral
And mornings damp frost made silence
Their leafy bodies broke and snapped and dust they became

Across these fields, Harvest grows nigh
Across these fields a whisper begins to stir and blow
A voice within begins to rise like a tide
And calls the harvesters to reap
Like the laborers at mid day we are called
Across these fields where my flesh and bones will
Whither and crumble and dry
Scattered across rolling Plaines
A breath of God hence it came
I know it’s youth can not last
It must end and carry on in a new and fragile way
But welcome this, this breeze of change
This guest come calling my soul

This day is short
From season to season, harvest to harvest
A lifetime to us is but a moment to God
A breath of breeze, of withering blossoms,
dreams never fulfilled

Happy the sower, for this seed fell upon fertile ground
Happy those called to reap this bounty
This parcel of eternity on earth
For God shows us the good earth, the
fertile plots, He sows his word

These fields soon grow silent and dormant
No life, they fall asleep as though never to wake
Harvest moon glow creates shadows and hills
And curves, flattening the color of grey.

We’ll glean these fields of fruitful pilgrimage
We’ll find our place in paradise when called
God’s word nestled beneath the fallen foliage
Where only a patient and prayerful moment
Breaks them free and flutter amidst a few chosen
A haze of souls carried aloft
Across these fields, an open expanse
Ly’s peaceful and dormant.
The harvest complete and beyond eternity

A moment I must be 7/7/03

These fields are green now
They have received the seed, the rain and sun
In the breeze they sway and move to
The chorus of the wind
An orchestra following the rhythm of an invisible director
Without sight, it follows directions of our unseen God
The hand of the maker rests on the small of our back
And gently guides us along this path
Just so, our fields grow rich and green and fruitful
The harvest we foresee is the grace of His loving
Presence, though we can not see
But you feel the wind now warm it brings the rain
You accept the fact that you cannot tell where it comes
From or where it is bound
It circles and cart wheels along rivers in the sky
Escaping over the banks and boundaries we claim
But the wind claims none of these
It has no need or want or desire but desires just these
Freedoms
Is your heart bound to boundaries? Are you contained
Within this list of your life’s requirements?
Norms you have come to expect or accept?
These possibilities or the lack there of?
Or have you thrown these whimsical desires
Away and give way to chance and circumstance to
Work in your days?
Sooner or later we fall and trust in faith.
The requirements of truth will sustain me
Beyond what I believe to be important or required
My ideas and thoughts of what I perceive to be real
Soon fade and I find that I have been sustained
Beyond my human comprehension.
Desire replaced by design encompasses my soul
And delivers me to the moment I need to be.
Not a year, a month, a week, a day or even an
Hour of day, but the very moment I need to be.
Call me and I will do my best, given in to
Rest & relax the anxiety of my heart.
Beyond what I perceive to be the course I
Need to navigate and find myself at the moment
I need to be.

Flesh and Bone 6/7/03

This flesh and bone once dusty dry.
Swirled within the mouth of God and
Expelled through nostrils.
In the timid air was born to life.
Sprouting from earth where it was contained, it
Reached forth upon glory untold.
Glorious gift of spirit, settled upon it and formed
It’s being. An image in a mirror, reflected
The face of God and shadows aligned
To form a past. Future tied to a past and within
Contained the thought and freedom of.
Speak of spirit and life renews.
A sound as rushing wind finds a soul and settles a heart.
These dry bones will rattle and rise
And sinew forth and flesh upon this death
We fear at moments despair.
Despair not but hope for what cannot be seen.
What can be seen certainly will not last.
Spirit will call upon, this flesh and bone
Will be kindled in eternal life’s gift.

Holy Ground 12/30/03

In the early morning when
the entire world is quiet and hushed,
I enter this moment, holy and ordered.
One lone flickering candle flame
Softly this light speckles the darkness
with a softer presence of warmth.
Out of this night arrive day and my Lords
refreshing and flowing word.
I see Anna in the temple darkness.
She empties herself of this world
through prayer and fasting and is filled
with the presence of divinity,
recognizing God in His infancy.
All thoughts of this world are left behind.
Finding God all powerful and encompassing,
each breath, each thought - He wills and knows
In all these passive moments of the heart,
the simplest ways becomes incense and drifts
upward in devotional offering.
Our eyes have seen salvation and still we
stumble as though blind.
The true light of all mankind has been sent, and still
we live in darkness
The Glory of the new Israel has been revealed.
Should we not fall upon this Holy ground?
Should we not come and adore!

My Simple Sorrow 1/14/03

This cross, it cannot contain me,
This burden I must bear.
My Simple sorrow will not last.
I lift my hand to my Father’s Salvation.
I, the will of His creation.
This blessed wood I carried upon my back
becomes a bridge for those of faith, but
a void and endless edifice for those of lost heart.
My poverty is your reward richly given
Your sorrow so divinely taken.
My moment of despair has turned to glory
And in my Father’s kingdom, waits for us all.
My simple sorrow has now turned to Joy
In Galilee we’ll meet, I’ll go before you.
In Galilee we’ll ponder this moments turn.
Your hearts prepared will eagerly yearn.
This pilgrim’s path in communion we’ll be.
So meet me, dear ones in Galilee.
No, this cross will not contain me.
My simple sorrow will not last.
My poverty of all poverties, a distant past.
To Loves prevail, My love to you,
My Father’s will, it shall be done.
Tried, true and fast, Salvation has certainly been won.

The Third Day 4/11/06

That Friday shadow was dark and dreary
When the earth quaked and the skies flashed.
The temple was pierced and from it
Flowed a river of life.
All we knew and found secure passed away as dust.
Our temple treasures melted away.
A fog of silence crept in at sunset as
The tangled King of Kings was removed from his throne.
Joseph of Armiathea secured the sepulcher,
They laid him upon the stone.
The rock rolled in place
Secured this sacred space.
For two nights I could not find rest
And felt this impossible pain of disregard.
Endless loneliness of abandonment.

But the third day dawned bright.
The third day, my beacon light.
Deep within this earthen cell,
Beyond this humanity well.
No longer contained within earthen arms
Freed from those chains,
Heaven within has been restored.

Ready, my soul 8/28/03

(Inspired by Matt.24: 42-51)

Ready, my soul
For time is quick and undetermined.
Ready, my thoughts and set in order
For the moments turn quickly.
When seasons transition and turn
And bare complexions we find hard or no longer recognize.
We can not find ourselves amidst a
Household of fury or strife and discontentment.
We must make clear the path of brambles and thorns
And stones so as not to be tripped up in our fleeing.
Comfort, my heart.
Find welcome at moments unkind.
Find the Word opened at dawn’s faint light
And the passage that carries you free.
In the soft pale light, the dancing flame
Of candlelight.
Into your arms and upon beckoning knee.
Ready my Soul, for quickly time does turn.
Those moments as a child will flutter away.
Amidst the pale light of day you’ll sway,
In the evening when time is nigh.
Welcome the Father, Master and Advocate three.
Refresh in the glory of His eternity.
One with the Father, Son and Holy One.
Ready my soul, the whispers are light.
The passage from this darkness has arrived.
The climax of this earthly pilgrimage.
When the unknown of eternity becomes bright and
this world gently fades away to a soft distant past.
Held aloft, my Soul rises above and beyond
No longer twirling on this sphere in space but gently
Within my Savior’s heart.
Heavenly Father, the reality shines through.
I in You, You in me and together the Advocate, three.

This day, my daily bread 8/4/03

This day, my daily bread I have been given.
Simply to sustain, rather than indulge.
I have been given all that I require from
conception to death, eternity to eternity.
My portion in cup.
Fulfill my need and necessity rather
than my wants and desires.
I shall not worry –
Where I should sleep
What I will eat or what I shall wear;
Not anymore than I require
I must consider my true requirements rather
than yearnings and cravings for more.
When I am empty, I am full
When I am naked, I am clothed
When I am homeless, home I will be.
My needs transcend and favor timely
pursuit for things simple, humble and true..
Through Christ, I truly am fulfilled.

Fields of Harvest 10/4/01

A few short weeks ago, the earth felt young.
Fresh earth, fertile ground.
Waiting for seed and water.
As one with God, a hungry soul.
Yearning for nourishment to grow.
Weary, but persistent hands,
toiling with rock and weeds.
Sifting the refuse for the sacred and the clean.
Rain, then sun and warmth prevailed.
In a natural mix of God’s favor,
our fields began to grow and prosper, then bloom.
In summer sun it glistened green and
bristled with fruit.
But now the greens, yellow and brown,
voice their brittle cries in autumn breezes.
Man’s machines rattle and hum and harvests
earths gentle fruit.
The chaff and stalk left to lie as Gods good soldiers.
Wind born, the dust rises then settles
in the evening dusk.
Fragments of summer green, now brown.
The result of seasons change.
Dark and gray the sky turns cold and eases
my soul to hope in faith.
A golden harvest, a harvest of souls.
Our Lord does speak and call.
Like faithful pilgrims we answer.
We pick up and follow the master gleaner
where prayer finds us thankful
and our harvest baskets full.

Come, keep vigil with me 12/24/05

Gather, little hearts of Christ
Come; let us gather a presence divine
As day closes and draws to an end
Let us become divine imitations of He
Who draws all men unto Himself
Let us find this presence felt among and above
Our tragedy’s and crosses
Let us lift high our praises in the manager
Of our lost hearts
We see this star, this guiding force
Do not let it grow dim within your hearts
Come, keep vigil
This silence of dawning day
This moment calling those gone astray
Can’t you hear this mystery unfold
Exactly as the prophesied had told?
Can not you feel this burden lift?
The choices of this existence disappears
When you open your heart to matters - most
When hailing your soul to the divinely - host
Come, keep vigil this morning bright
Do not grow dim, your inner light
Do not grow dim in fading night
For greater things of we must boast

November Remnants 11/2/05

These moments will pass
Loosened and freed, whirling and twirl
Tumbleweed upon wind and floating free
Touched by natures change
I welcome this grey openness, this vast
Plain unbroken view
Grey is my color
Yellowed and browned, they flutter away
And leaves behind this evenness of grey
Horizon to horizon
Borders of field stems and scrub oak
The subtleness appears in the nakedness of winter
The land laid bare and plain and simple
It’s basic beauty comes to life
In the soft spoken sunlight
This season evens my temper, true and softened
In the fading light
We enter in with the souls remembered and
Exit, welcoming the king

No Longer Earthly Bound - 7/20/02

In just a few moments, I will return
That is a promise – a hope for you
All other faith will pass away
This promise sustains my heart
It frees my soul to soar
Skies can gray and rain
Winds will blow and moan
My heart will not quiver once
It beats steadfast and true
No longer am I tied to this earth
I released my bond to earthly pocession
I now yearn and cleave to heavenly manna
Release me Lord from this earthly station
This moment of momentary pilgrimage
A passing mist am I
Breath of your breath
Dirt of your creation
Along this narrow path I walk and pray
A whisper of your will and I’ll obey
Giving thanks, your gifts of abundance
Cradle my soul, Father so kind
No longer earthly bound
I’m freed to soar above
No longer earthly bound
No ties or fetters to hold me down
No longer earthly bound
My heart sails far above this human din
Beyond these mere human wants and needs
These obstacles of acts divine
This annoyance of life, sublime
Continue me in spiritual wonder
Refine me in your gold so pure
Enclose me in your graceful presence
Your warmth of eternal allure
No longer earthly bound I soar
Sail forth my heart does rise
From earthly domains I reach upward, I leap forth
And grasp my God given heavenly prize