Surrender (a Poem)

My Lord, pursue your victory
Ev'n unto each extremity
Of limb and thought and will in me
'Til each divergent part shall be
Delivered from its mutiny
And, yielding in humility
Be brought to full conformity
To your faultless divinity
By that selfsame authority
By which you shall subject all things
To you.

Amen.

Faithfulness

Father, how unfailingly
Your mercy you extend to me
Though I offend continu'lly
In all I'm not, but ought to be. 

How sharp I feel the lack, my Lord
When I consider all your Word
To which I know to match my ways,
But still rebel and make delays. 

So let that poignance match the nails
Which you delayed not to impale
Christ, who became my sin's redress
That I'd become your righteousness. 

And with that mercy, send your grace
To lift up my downturnéd face
By strengthening me in your ways
To run enduringly this race. 

Uphold me that my steps not fal-
Ter til your will in me is done
For the sake of the prize of your upward call:
To be formed to the image of your Son.

O Great Conqueror

O great Conqueror of sin and death, O Ravager of hell,
What You've done on cosmic scale do likewise to my will:
War against the passions of my flesh and mind until,
Conquering, Your victory extends through me, as well.

Liberator of the captives, Who gave sight unto the blind,
Free me from the lust of flesh and eyes, from boastful pride
Turn my gaze from worthless things to Your pierced hands and side;
Captivate the vision of my heart, my soul, my mind.

O Eternal Word, upholding all creation by Your pow'r,
Righteous Law who rightly orders galaxies above,
Likewise order my life in accordance with Your love
Speak Yourself in me, uphold my soul in faith each hour.

Imprint of the Father's nature, all His glory's Radiance
What You are in essence come and make of me by grace
Dwell in me, make all my body, heart, and mind the place
Where Your name and glory shine in their full brilliance.

Logic of the cosmos, Ground and Goal of each created thing,
Reason for whom all exist, come ground my life in you
Be the wisdom ruling all I want and think and do.
Lord of all, be Lord of me: my End, my God, my King.

Ghosts Upon the Waves

When the sky reflects the sea
And the waves in torment be
We'll lift our eyes to test our faith
And walk like ghosts upon the waves

And though the sea and sky collide
Let our gaze waver not from Thine
That in the storm and ocean's dance
Our hearts may learn to be steadfast

Like rocks amidst the tossing sea
Impervious, teach us to be
Not blown about by wind or change
Not fearing thunder, wave, or rain

Like angels, walk; like mountains, stand
Our faith in Thine unfailing hand.

Reason for Created Sight

Thank You, Lord, for sunsets: rose-impressioned skies
Thank You for Your grace: Your loving presence in our lives
One day we shall see Your face, with wholly unveiled eyes
That uncreated Beauty, reason for created sight.

Anxiety

Lord, since all eternity
And time are in Your hand
Let my only worry be
To do as You command.

And since Your holy Word contains
All I could need or pray
Only this concern remains:
To listen, and obey.

You Make a Mockery of Ev'ry Boundary

You make a mockery

Of ev'ry boundary,

Eternal Life, Who stole our death

To plunder grave and hell,

Almighty God, Who as a Man

Did deign with us to dwell

Here making light of sufferings

And burdens we did own

Though not by jeering, but Your strength

In bearing every one.

Not death alone, but also sin --

First cause of ev'ry grief --

You carried off upon Your back

And brought us back relief.

Inverting poverty and wealth

To meet the debt accrued,

Becoming as we are, a slave

You paid what we owed You

As, turning barriers to doors,

Incarnate, dying, You

Made of divided natures one,

Partitions tore in two.

In furthest exile, shaming all

The distances we'd run,

You met us there, Who are our Home:

All banishment undone.

Your rising made of death a joke --

As well, mortality

Ascended to make all Your own

Share Your divinity

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Be First and Last (A Prayer)

Rev. 1:8-19 + John 3:21

Almighty One, Who are, Who were,
   Who ever yet shall be,
Be First and Last in all my thoughts
   And all that comes between
That all my words might echo Thine
   My deeds be wrought in Thee.
       Amen.

Isaiah 46:3-4

3 “Listen to me, O house of Jacob,
    all the remnant of the house of Israel,
who have been borne by me from before your birth,
    carried from the womb;
4 even to your old age I am he,
    and to gray hairs I will carry you.
I have made, and I will bear;
    I will carry and will save." ~Isaiah 46:3-4 (ESV)


Lord, You have borne me up these many days and nights
Upon an ocean wild and deep.
You have carried me, and ever been my Light
Remained awake, that I might sleep.
And though the rain and wind continue still
You bear me yet within Your hand.

And every grief and pain that I had ever known
You took upon Yourself, and for
A time You wandered here, that I might find a home.

And when no cure was found
For the sickness of my soul
You gave me of Your very blood to drink
That the curse in mine might be replaced
With the life that flows in Yours.

Then when I could not stand
You broke Your flesh, for me to eat
That my weakness might be adequate
When filled up by Your strength.
And though my stumbling continues still
You bear me yet within Your hand.


[This is the oldest poem I have yet posted on here. I wrote it around 10 years ago, now. I was/am in the process of editing it, but I felt like I should post the original first. Enjoy, and God bless.]

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.]

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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This began as a prayer of repentance,