Poetry

Praying the Psalms ~ Psalm 119:81-88

/ The Pastor

These verses in Psalm 119 really struck home for me. The psalmist is pleading for help to remain true to God’s law and not be seduced away. There are many people twisting scripture to their own advantage. There are many pressuring the Church to become more “relevant” and thus the temptation to seek peace with the world. May I stand firm on the Truth of scripture as challenges come from all sides. God help me.

__________________________________________

It’s You that I long for, oh God.
It’s in You that I place my life.
But the world persecutes me, God,
And thus I have nothing but strife.

When will You come to my defense?
When will Your Spirit comfort me?
How long must I endure attacks?
Oh God, it’s You I long to see.

False teachers teach their own message,
And in Your Word they do not stay.
They preach a word that’s not from You,
So keep me true that I won’t stray.

They fight and shout and long to stop,
Your Word of hope – Your Word that saves.
But it’s Your love that gives me life,
So may I stand and be so brave.

When the world fights hard against me,
You’re my salvation and my shield.
It matters not what they can do.
My life is Your’s so I won’t yield.

The Doxology

/ The Pastor

As the Lord’s Prayer ends, we are taught to say “Amen”. Amen means, yes, it shall be so. When asked by the disciples about how to pray, Jesus said, When you pray, say… He gave us the words and thus it makes sense that God is pleased with the words we pray. It is like a teacher giving you the answers to the quiz. It behooves you to use them. Here, in this prayer, we can be confident that we will get that for which we pray. So when you pray, say with confidence: Amen!

________________________________

How should I pray?
You have given us the words;
words pleasing to You,
so we know we’ll be heard.

For You’re our Father,
Holy are You.
Your kingdom is coming.
Your glory is due.

And what do you want?
Our hearts to believe;
Satan’s schemes to be defeated;
Your Word to be received.

You’re the Great Provider.
The Forgiver of my sins.
May I forgive others,
and when tempted may I win.

And now I have the words,
to lay at Your feet,
pleasing to Your ears,
perfect and complete.

Yours is the kingdom,
the power and the glory.
Yes, it shall be so,
for I am in Your story.

Writing Poetry

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

To write poetry draws me deeper into the Word or closer to whatever I am writing about. It challenges me to think more deeply and to reflect more clearly. Words matter. Nothing is simply random. And so I praise my God for inflaming the heart of this pastor to draw closer to Him in such a way.

With that being said, I am working on two more poems. One is based on Psalm 119:81-88 and the second one is the final installment in the Lord’s Prayer poem series, “The Doxology”. I look forward to sharing these with you soon. May these poems, written to the glory of God, also draw you closer to our Father as they have drawn me.

A Teacher’s Heart

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

As a parent of two school-aged children, my thoughts these days are for the many teachers who are either starting classes or are preparing to receive students in the coming weeks. I could not do the job they do and thus I am thankful God raises up people who have a heart for teaching. A teacher is a one-of-a-kind. They show love, commitment, and dedication that few can understand. They have a heart for children as they, mold, shape and nurture the hearts of our precious little ones. They endure stress, judgment and criticism, often from those who do not understand. I can’t imagine what it takes to be a teacher, but God knows. Would you join me in praying for teachers, staff and administration, as this new school year begins. It is to them that I dedicate this poem.

____________________________________________________

A teacher’s heart is special and dear.
And to my child it’s always near.
Love and sacrifice and caring too.
A teacher’s heart will always come through.

It is unique for it’s Your design.
All it’s qualities You did assign.
I can’t imagine a heart without,
A grace that runs all the way throughout.

Oh God would You bless our teacher’s hearts.
And from them would You never depart.
Keep them and hold them close to Your side.
And may Your Spirit in them abide.

Deliver Us From Evil

/ The Pastor

This series of poems exploring the Lord’s Prayer has been a valuable devotional exercise for me – I hope it has been for you too. If you want to recap any of these, simply go to “Categories” on the bottom of the right sidebar of this page and scroll down to “Praying the Lord’s Prayer”. I know I will be reviewing these from time to time.

Now, for this second to last installment – Deliver us from evil. Here, at the end of this prayer, we are praying for deliverance from bodily evil/harm and from the Evil One. On that Last Day, we ask to be saved from this evil world and delivered to God to abide with Him forever. Praise be to God that we have the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

______________________________________________

Deliver me, oh God, from all evil.
Save me from all harm.
Help me,
Strengthen me,
Shield me with Your arms.

Satan never tires of his prowl.
He’s always seeking.
Looking,
Watching,
As a lion sneaking.

I am not strong enough to fight the fight.
I am very weak.
Overpowered,
Overwhelmed,
I am very meek.

Jesus Christ is my victorious king,
He saved me by grace.
Amazing
And awesome
My sins he erased.

Oh Lord, show me Your mercy on that Day.
Take me to Your side.
Mercifully
Lovingly
With You to abide.

Lead Us Not Into Temptation

/ The Pastor / 6 Comments

As a Christian, simply claiming, “the devil made me do it“, to justify a sin is never a defense. We are sinners, plain and simple, and thus we are guilty of disobedience. Satan, the father of lies, is the master deceiver and he will be judged and condemned. For the Christian, our only hope is Jesus. He saves us from our sins, but in this life now, we still must be alert and fight the battle of temptation. Praise be to God that there is forgiveness through faith in Christ. In the meantime, fight, but know that you do not fight alone.

God,
Father,
Lord,
I am weak.
I am a sinner and thus it’s You I seek.
Satan is the father of lies,
He deceives and leads away.
He does this without fail,
Every single day.
I give in,
Even though I know Your way.
THIS I do every single day.
Going astray,
Oh, how I disobey.
I do what I do not want to do.
I don’t do as I should.
I don’t listen as I ought,
Oh how I wish I understood.
Jesus is the Way, Truth and Life.
Your Way is wholly right.
Oh God, I want to walk the straight and narrow,
For Jesus is my great delight.
I know that you don’t lead me into temptation,
That falls to the father of lies.
So help me, Lord and Savior,
For I do not want to die.
And so I cry out to you,
For I am helpless and weak.
Without You, oh Lord my God,
My outlook would be very bleak.
Lead me,
Guide me,
Show me Your way.
This I ask that You do,
Please, Lord, every single day.

Hope and Life

/ The Pastor

The following chalk art was created by my imaginative 6-year-old daughter. It used to adorn the sidewalk in front of our home. Knowing that the lawn sprinklers would soon wash this masterpiece away, I made sure this was digitally preserved. This artwork, from the heart of a 6-year-old, inspired the following poem. To God be the glory!

Through death to Life,
You give me hope.
Through dark to light.
I can now cope.
For the cross rises above this broken world
and life rises from within.
I now have hope and strength for through Jesus Christ
eternal life now begins.
The sun shines,
The flower blooms,
Oh Lord my God my final place is not the tomb.
And now my heart leaps for joy,
I just can not contain it.
My face radiates with love,
Something that will never quit.
So may the cross brightly shine,
A hope for the world to see.
My sins have been wiped away.
That is Your loving decree.

Amazing Forgiveness

/ The Pastor

God’s forgiveness of our sins is amazing when you consider what we deserve. We deserve death and condemnation, but through faith in Christ there is forgiveness. Wow! But to go about one’s life, refusing to forgive others means you really don’t understand God’s forgiveness of your own sins. That’s why clear, consistent and frequent Gospel proclamations are so necessary, lest we forget what God has really done through Jesus Christ. With that, I present the following poem. Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us…

______________________________________

The command is given
The sign is clear
Do not do this
and do not go amiss.

But yet I disobey
I just ignore
I disregard
the command I discard.

And now I deserve wrath
from God my Lord
I’ve disobeyed
For it’s God I’ve betrayed.

Punishment is certain
for my trespass
I deserve it
for that I must admit.

Oh God, please forgive me
in Jesus name
for my trespass
would Your wrath please surpass.

Your grace is amazing
Your love complete
my soul You’ve spared
even though I have erred.

So now may I forgive
and show much grace
as You have done
to show how You have won.

Oh God You’re amazing
Me a sinner
Jesus my King
Oh God, what a nice ring.

Daily Bread

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

When praying for “daily bread” in the Lord’s Prayer, we are not just praying for some good sourdough for supper (or dinner depending where you live). Daily bread is so much more than what we often think about. Martin Luther, in his explanation in the Small Catechism, offers a list of things included. To probe the depths of this petition requires more than a short post, but hopefully the following poem will begin to help you think more deeply about this petition when you pray, Give us this day our daily bread...

___________________________________________

Give me this day my daily bread.
All that I need to live each day.
You’re my Provider and my God,
Putting Your glory on display.

Food and water and air I breathe.
Home and clothing and family.
Work and income and friends with me.
All these blessings come happily.

But there is more than what I see,
Your holy gifts are more complete.
Your grace extends beyond my eyes.
Your blessings just can not be beat.

What I need is Jesus my Lord,
the true and only living bread.
Without this awesome grace from You,
I would most certainly be dead.

But this bread is not mine alone.
You bless that I may give and give.
Turn my heart to see more than me.
Oh God, my greed, oh please forgive.

So may I see Your holy gifts;
returning to You praise that’s due.
Without this holy bread each day,
My days would certainly be few.

Thy Will be Done

/ The Pastor / 3 Comments

What is God’s will? What does God want? That is the age-old question that many people ask concerning their lives, but often the question is asked in selfish terms. Is it God’s will for me to get this job? Is it God’s will for my kids to get into Harvard? Is it God’s will for this cancer to be healed? I have no doubt that God has plans concerning those questions, but we need to ask another question. What is God’s will – for God’s glory? Ultimately, that’s what we are praying when we pray the 3rd petition of the Lord’s Prayer, “Thy will be done“. It is not about our will; what we want. The following poem begins to address this petition of what God wants.

_________________________________________

God’s will is God’s will,
and it happens without my effort.
No strength or plans of mine,
will be able to change or subvert.

God’s rule is mighty,
and His wisdom is perfect and pure.
God’s will is complete,
no one will be able to detour.

So what is God’s will?
What is the desire of His heart?
To keep His name holy,
and from Him to never be apart.

He defeats all His foes;
everyone who would oppose His reign.
God our loving Father,
longs to keep us firm in Jesus name.

So this I ask of God,
that God’s will be my hearts request,
keep me and protect me,
for in His Word I am truly blessed.