Longsuffering

Matthew 18:21-35, Galatians 5:22-23

My God, there is no patience left in me But some in You there still must be For You have not yet slaughtered me. Though I -- who am so unforgiving, still And hard-hearted, against Your will -- Find all my impulse is to kill And crush these wretched fools for whom You died To save and raise them to reside With You, and in Your love abide. While I, o’er whom that love should hold all sway Would sooner follow my own way In rage, to make offenders pay As though Your sacrifice were not enough: God satisfied, shall I rebuff Forgiveness I, too, have need of? And having been by You forgiven all Shall I now for full payment call From my fellows? Oh God, forestall My folly! Am I not but one of them-- A fool in need of grace? So then, Why am I so impatient when All the mercy that they need Is no more than You've given me?

Matthew 10:8 

(In)Sufficiency

This life of love, it is so hard consistently to live
(But not, my Lord, for You)
[While You, from all eternity]

To all of myself selflessly at ev'ry moment give
(Who bore even the cross)
[Exist as selfless, out-poured Gift]

And in my finite imperfection so much falls between the cracks.
(To make all things anew)
[And now Your love, to heal our rift]

Have mercy, Lord of love: Let Your perfections make up for my lacks.
(Redeeming ev'ry loss.)
[Has made Your Spirit dwell in me.]

O Wake Your Eyes

O Wake your eyes, to drink the light
With vision deeper than mere sight
That sees the love in fire furled
Unrolled in beams that light the world
And more: your soul, if you can see
Through them the God from whom proceed
All good and perfect gifts, whose Word
Sustains all light and life, toward
Which we should ever gaze, until
Our lives conform to all His will.

So wake your heart, to drink like wine
In light the gift of Love Divine
Who gives and undergirds all things
Whose flesh is food, whose blood true drink:
The bread of new, unending life
To raise the dead beyond all strife;
A tonic to heal ev'ry wound
In which sin's poison can be found.

O wake your soul, to drink this Light
Until it all in you abide
In all Its uncreated bright-
ness. Not all those with eyes have sight,
But if you're one with ears to hear
Then wake your eyes, and drink, my Dear.

Temples (A Poem, Regarding Beauty and Worth)

(Dedicated to all of my brothers and, especially, sisters in Christ.)

"Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, whom you have from God?" 
~1 Corinthians 6:19

Temples

Every single part of you

-- not only soul, but body, too --

is Sacred Temple, Holy Ground:

the Garden in which Christ is found

walking, and there He is met

in outward form and lineament.

In your smile Love Himself is seen,

with pow'r to heal, grace to redeem,

and in your laughter, free, unfurled

rings the Delight that made the world

and makes it still. Beauty Himself

dwells in you, making all your self

a well of that Uncreate Spring

which lesser beauties mean, and sing.

And for this dying world, Life treads

loudly enough to wake the dead

in your footsteps, and in your hands

is th' touch of mercy He commands.

No Israelite would curse the place

where God chose to reveal His face

nor scorn the arches, pillars, stones

which God had chosen as His own.

Curse not, then, yours, where Christ is found,

for all of you is Holy Ground.

A Blessing

May your eyes be as bright
As the rising sunlight
And your heart radiant as the dawn
Joined to the fellowship,
Filled with the life
Of the Father, the Spirit, the Son.

A Willing Quill (A Sonnet)

A Willing Quill


Since Thou hast made it all Thy work and art
to write “Redemption” here in ev’ry part
of all Creation, which Thy Word hast made --
each story inkéd in Thine own Son's blood,
which lettering can neither fail nor fade --
and since Thine hands unfailingly can use
as many pens at once as Thou shalt choose,
Lord, let me also be a willing quill,
and dip and fill me in that crimson flood
to write with my life as Thy nib, until
it’s spent. For what more glory can there be
Than that Thou shouldst take up and write again
(though it include all His rejection, pain,
and tomb) Thine own Son’s story, but with me.



Amen.

Recreation

"By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return." ~Genesis 3:19

"O LORD...
You return man to dust
and say, 'Return, O children of man!'" ~Psalm 90:1-3

But one day all this dust shall rise:
With all the logs from out our eyes
removed, we'll sing the world's reprise
with fiery tongues
in eternal abund-
ance of immortal love.
When the Almighty, Faithful and True
Who reigns on the throne calls us to view:
"Behold, I AM making all things new."

[1 Corinthians 15; Matthew 7:3-5; Acts 2:3; 1 John 4:8 + 1 John 3:2 + John 17:3, 20-26; Revelation 1:8; 3:14; 19:11; 21:1-8]

"YHWH" (A Poem and Reflections)

Infinite Peace, Unassailable Bliss
Self-Existent -- Father, Spirit, and Word
Maker, Sustainer, Creation’s Intent

Both Call and Response; Command, Fulfillment
Faithful, True, Holy; All Mercy/Justice
Unending Love without limit outpoured

Salvation, Light, Life; the Sovereign LORD
Gift and Forgiveness, Ever-Acceptant
Union, Communion; All Good that there is.

-----------------------------------------
(Some thoughts and explanations below)

Evensong

Evensong

When evening colors streak the sky
And I fall in love with the fading light
With the dark-blue restful hues
And the restless breezes blowing through
That mark the changing of the times
From light of day to light of night
(For both are in their own way bright
-- Oh grant me, Lord, both eyes and sight!)
Though I am not a seer
Let it be Your voice I hear
In the trees' swaying, cicadas' playing, and the bats' calling
At nightfall.
And for Your own Love's sake
Let it be Your love I take
In the sun's rising, birds' harmonizing, for my eyes' waking
At daybreak.

Freedom (A Poem)

"Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (~Romans 6:16-23)

Freedom

Upon my heart, Lord, set Your throne
For I am Yours, and not my own
Bought with that unmeasured price
Of Your own blood and sacrifice.

Then plant Your flag, Lord, in my mind
Till all my thoughts with Yours align
My body Your dominion be
Till ev'ry part serve faithfully.

Oh Lord,
   Your life extend to ev'ry part
Of me, working Your ancient art
With all Your still unwearied skill:
Conform me, Savior, to Your will.

Jesus is Everything (Good Friday/Easter Thoughts)

   Jesus Christ is both the sinner's repentance and the Father's forgiveness, both the Sacrifice for sin and the Priest who offers it, in the Temple of His own body -- the place where YHWH has made His Name to dwell -- in which the curtain separating mankind from God has truly been torn in two. For He Himself is both fully God and fully Man, the two natures united without confusion, distinct without separation, both in all their perfect fullness joined together in the one Person of Christ -- and thus has He become the one Mediator between God and Man, for Jesus Himself is both.

Prayers, Part 5: Thanksgiving

The series of prayers concludes with this prayer of thanksgiving. It covers the following three areas:

1. Thanksgiving for unasked-for blessings: His original love towards mankind, the gospel and its spread throughout the earth, our own salvation and the means by which we came to know Him, etc.
2. Thanksgiving for blessings given in answer to our own specific prayers
3. Thanksgiving(/blessing of the Lord) for His qualities and Person in general: His mercy, love, holiness, majesty, goodness, etc.

...and it is based on Psalm 111. Enjoy, and let us together thank the LORD for His goodness and love:

A Prayer for Giving Thanks

Foundations

"'Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.'"
(~ Matthew 7:24-27)

"For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ."
(~ 1 Corinthians 3:11)

Foundations

I built a castle out of clouds
Then watched its proud stones turn to rain
But, foolish being that I am,
Learned nothing from the scene
And built my next home on the sand.

The rain, it fell; the flood arose
And washed me with it out to sea
Yet how short-sighted I remained
For in my pride and lunacy
I built a tower on the waves.

Then by the current, sure as fate
I, with it, on the rocks was thrown
But there, more humble than before
A house at last I built on stone,
And finally foundation sure
Upholds it through rain, flood, and storm

For unlike the clouds and sand and waves
This rock of its own strength remains.

Prayers, Part 4: An Intercession

In intercession, we seek the grace and favor and help of God on behalf of others. As with the other prayers in this series (all composed for seminary assignments), this one is meant for use in public worship, and therefore it intends to cover the following five areas:

1.  Church
2.  Ministry
3.  All people
4.  Civil authority
5. Special needs / particular trials within the congregation

Also as with the others (and as was required for the assignment), it is heavily based on the Scriptures and made up almost entirely of Scriptural phrases, references, and quotations -- because, again, it's an excellent way to unite our desires and requests with the will of God, and ask Him for those things He delights to give. Pray with me, if you would:

Prayers, Part 3: For Illumination

Since "prayers of illumination" may be somewhat of an unfamiliar phrase (or perhaps even concept) these days, I thought it was worth including the whole assignment in which this prayer was written. The two questions basically answer "why?" and "what?" regarding prayers of illumination. The prayer itself is largely based on the end of Ephesians 3. Enjoy, and join me in prayer. 

Prayers, Part 2: Confession, Supplication, Assurance

Continuing the series begun yesterday, here is the next prayer. These were purposely composed for public use in a worship service, and are therefore meant to be inclusive and communal (although they will also serve for private prayer) -- therefore, join me, if you will, in praying:

A Prayer of Confession and Supplication, Followed by an Assurance of Pardon

(To admit our sins and ask for God's forgiveness and help, and remember that He has promised to give it)

[Prayer is based on James 1:2-17]

[Assurance of pardon is almost a direct quote from Col. 1:11-14, 19-20]

“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
(1 John 1:8-9)

Therefore let us confess our sin to our God and Savior:

Prayers (A Series) Part 1: Invocation

   Scripture, like theology, is not meant only to be read or memorized, but to be lived. And because it is meant to be lived, at every moment, in every part of our internal and external lives, with every part of our being, it is also meant to be prayed. This is one of the best, most useful, and most beautiful things which I was taught in seminary: To pray the Scriptures, offering back to God the words He has given us -- and thereby becoming united in that offering to the Word and will of the One Who spoke them first. For, "this is the confidence that we have toward [God], that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him" (1 John 5:14-15). And of course, we know God's will most clearly through the revelation given in Scripture.

Divine Simplicity

"O LORD, you will ordain peace for us, for you have indeed done for us all our works."
   ~Isaiah 26:12

Because the Unreachable has Himself reached out, and the Unknowable has made Himself known, and the Creator has clothed Himself in creation, for, "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14). And in that glory, we have seen,

The Transcendent Is the Immanent The Greatness Is the Goodness The Majesty Is the Humility The Authority Is the Submission The Holiness Is the Sacrifice The Fire Is the Water The Truth Is the Wisdom The Exalted Is the Condescension The Justice Is the Mercy The Wrath Is the Love

that cannot be found that cannot be escaped. that deserves gifts that gives. that requires service that serves. that commands that obeys. that demands sanctity that sanctifies. that destroys the unclean that washes perfectly. that must be understood that understands. that cannot be reached that raises up. that requires payment that pays. that condemns Who saves.

                                             -- And There Is No Division

For, "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one" (Deuteronomy 6:4), and, although He is Three Persons in One God, He is never divided into parts, and there is no war within Him. Hallelujah, and Amen!

From Eden 'Til Now

"So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths."
(Genesis 3:6-7)

"Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever."
(1 John 2:15-17)

From Eden 'Til Now

Lord, I confess the same disease

That chose the wrong between two trees

"The lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes

And boastful pride of life" -- these lies

They tempt my heart from all Your good

T'ward all, instead, which drew Your blood

Upon the cross, that barren tree

Where You bore all our misery.

But since my sins have drawn it forth

Cleanse me in it; waste not its worth!

And since myself

They pierce, as well

There, for my good

Inject Your blood

'Til it replaces all my hell

With all of You, and makes me well.

-------------------------------------------------------

This began as a prayer of repentance,

Condescension

When the Sun condescends to the Earth, it's splendor

Makes the clouds overhead not curtains, but mirrors.

   And so it is with Jesus Christ and us. For condescend, in its technical sense, means "to come down to," or "to descend in order to be with," in which case it denotes not the negative connotation of haughtiness or insult, but the positive aspect of the humility by which someone higher stoops to the level of someone lower (as a parent will with their child, or a teacher with a student) -- which act is almost always for the purpose of raising up the lower. And when the eternal Son and Word of God "became flesh, and dwelt among us" (John 1), he shared not only our human nature, but all of the dark clouds of suffering and struggle and temptation which go with it -- and thus transformed them all into manifold mirrors of His glory.

   But that transformation bears a little more explanation:

"Breath and Dust"

You cursed the ground, and with it us
For we are made of breath and dust
Forsaken by Your breath, we die
Who only by You were alive

So here: I bring all I can claim
This wretched pile of filth and shame
My worthy deeds are dirt and death
For such am I, without Your breath

I've done the last of all I can
And reached the end of all I am
And face now death, the boundary
And limit of totality

This limit You've already passed
As form, beauty that ever lasts
To farthest reaches, as a slave
And farther still, beyond the grave

You have desired and sought me
In the depths of my depravity
Brought back the fellowship I'd lost
To raise me up, at any cost

Restored Your image to our flesh
Your dust again filled with Your breath
In Whom we live, and move, and breathe
In Whose thrall only are we free

And with Your blood You ransomed us
Who had forsaken You for dust
On the cross made our rejection
Of You into our salvation

Then rose, to raise us up as well
Having destroyed the gates of hell
For in our furthest exile we
Cannot escape Your love's great reach

Your peace has conquered our violence
Sorrow is swallowed in Your bliss
And our most abysmal sins
Are drowned in Your love's great abyss!


--------------------------------------------

    This is, in my opinion, the best poem I have written to date. It is, at least, certainly my favorite, and so, since it also covers the central themes of the Faith in which I live and for the expounding of which I have started this blog, I thought it would be a fitting first post. More to come, as the Lord allows.