Harbors

The Lord is a harbor
A refuge for me
A corner of safety
In tumultuous seas

Before I met Jesus
Gentle Mother was there
Shielding from danger
With her tender care

The Lord used my Mama
To gather me in
She was the gateway
To comfort with Him

When I was rejected
Devalued and scorned
A shelter she offered
In her caring arms

The Lord is a harbor
My mother is, too
Together their kindness
Has carried me through

Upheavals and hardships
Raging waves of the sea
My days are not lacking
Pain and difficulty

In the midst of the heartache
What solace I’ve known
My Lord and my mother
Both calling me home

Gifts from the Father
Each thoughtful deed
Love in abundance
Lavished on me

I’ll ever be thankful
For compassion so sweet
The Lord and my mother
My shelters of peace

Sharing Life with Mom

Each day comes
With thoughts and news
Little things
To bring to you

Like gathering flowers
Picked as I go
I gathered them up
Waiting to show you

Funny or sad
Mundane or rare
Our daily existence
Always shared

Hearts intertwined
An unparalleled linked
Your fabric is mine
What I feel and think

A part of each other
Mother and child
Deepest connection
Melded for life

Agony now
Torn and raw
But enemy death
You are horribly wrong

This sacred love
It cannot die
It lives despite you
Separation’s a lie

Eternally bonded
My mother and me
Soon back together
You wait and see

I’ll be there with her
In paradise, home
Life everlasting
I’ll know and be known

Closer than ever
Death just a door
Into a new realm
More than before

Nearness unshackled
By sin and shame
Two souls communing
My loss is my gain

Only a breath
Between here and there
Until then collecting
Flowers to share

I’m gathering up, Mom
What I know you would like
How my family’s doing
What I’ve done with my life

You told me to write
To enjoy each new day
Good things are coming
You always would say

Grandchildren will bless you
Retirement, too
You and Daryl will prosper
You’ll see it’s true

Mama, I’ll cherish
Your words and your heart
Our special connection
Will carry me far

You’re now there waiting
To share with me
Your daily existence
In a land that is free

Unfettered devotion
Unexplainable love
You long to tell me
What it’s like up above

How Jesus has loved you
Just like I said
How every heartache
Every pain, every dread

Was gone in an instant
When you saw His face
Entering heaven
A miraculous place

I’ll be there shortly
My mother, dear friend
We’ll be together
Sharing life once again

June 20, 2021

When God Comes Near

When God comes near
He wounds you
You don’t get what
You expect

Ease and strength
Are absent
Disappointment
In their stead

Confused you ask
The question
Why does this
Hurt so much?

You went to Him
For comfort
But left wounded
By His touch

Jacob asked for blessing
But pain was the result
He wanted God to help him
But it ended in assault

Jesus asked for blessing
Remove this cup from me
The father denied his pleading
And hung him from a tree

When God comes near he wounds you
Ignores cries for relief
But in the end the blessing
Beyond what you can see

Jacob’s sons God honored
Forever to be seen
No way to know Jacob’s wounding
Would lead to prosperity

Jesus scorned and beaten
Undeservedly
But he knew what was coming
Life for you and me

When God comes near
He wounds you
When God comes near
There’s pain

But if you accept
The suffering and death
Your loss will be
Great gain

Welcome, Spring!

 

Spring, burst open with your symphony

Of tender grass and youthful leaves

That yearn to explode into sight

Declaring new life to all who might

See with open hearts and curious minds

What God sees

 

Cherry blossom, soft and pink

Whispers hope as it withers and sinks

To the ground it goes

Sacrificing self to usher in the flow

Of things to come as God is moving

We wait for more

 

Revealing mysteries large and small

Through grass and leaf and blossom all

God showing us transcendent truths

In the joy of spring and its blissful youth

Hope, splendor, new birth is here

To set us free