Author: joethewaller

Labyrinth (Allegorical)

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Labyrinth photo.jpg

This world is but a labyrinth of lies,
And all of us are seeking an escape
From tunnels which resound with wretched cries,
From sights which leave our speechless mouths agape.
Within this maze there walks a wicked foe
Who wills to tear apart and to devour.
This minotaur in darkness down below
Is claiming lives with ev’ry passing hour.
In vain do we attempt to hide away
From him in hope that we will yet survive.
We tell each other stories of the day
As one by one we cease to be alive.
We cry out for our Theseus to fight
And save us from the terror of the night.

Health and Holiness

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Health and Holiness picture.jpg

I begin to miss Chicago style deep dish pizza if I go more than a week without it. The same could be said of good hot wings: they call to me from afar. I once wrote a poem about how bacon enhances any meal. Needless to say, I deeply enjoy food. Sadly, I often gravitate toward unhealthy foods rather than toward healthier options. Continue reading →

The Dark’s Deception

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The Dark Deception picture.jpg

There is a depth of darkness that, when found,
Appears to the observer to be light,
A light so strange, so buried, yet so bright:
Illumination hidden in the ground.
The world to this observer all around
Appears as filtered through his altered sight,
Assures that he alone is in the right.
In time, his voice will be to him the sound
Of truth amidst a mass of ignorance.
His earth will seem to him a world of slaves
In need of him, the savior of mankind.
In truth, the darkness robbed him of his sense.
He cannot tell he walks among the graves
Of others who, like him, have been made blind.

Searching for God’s Will

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God's Will image 10 10 16.jpg

Maybe you’re like me. When I see an article (or a sermon, book, pamphlet, smoke signal, etc.) on the topic of finding God’s will, I feel a sudden tinge of hope that the message might be “the one.” And, though you may have never defined it that way, you may very well have been searching for “the one” message as well. This one message, of course, is the message that will specifically answer your particular questions about what the future holds. No vagueness or generalities, this article would surely give you clear instructions to determine which decisions to make. Continue reading →

The Ghost

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A photo by Andrea Boldizsar. unsplash.com/photos/1iP1dozVO8I

A boy who died when I was just a boy
Has haunted me up to this very day.
His ghost I fear I never will destroy;
His face I fear will never fade away.
With breathless voice, he whispers in my ear.
With sightless eyes, he stares into my soul.
With ev’ry step I take, I see him sneer
With devilish desire to take control.
But victory for him would mean my doom,
For he would see me suffering in hell.
Though safe am I by truth of empty tomb,
The specter whispers still, “All is not well.”
I am until my final breath a host
Ever departing from him, my own ghost.

Balance

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Balance picture.jpg

O Father, help my heart to feel
The truth my mind affirms,
And stop the doubts that seek to steal
The hope the truth confirms.
Secure in me the surety
Of your eternal hold,
And pardon the impurity
Of my ill ways of old.
But neither let emotion rule –
It too is slavery –
For then I would be as the fool,
Storm-driven on the sea.
Grant me a balance by your Word
To walk the narrow way,
And let your guidance undergird
My life from day to day.

The Signpost of the Imperfect

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Imperfection's Signposts picture.jpg

C. S. Lewis penned something that has long confused me. In Mere Christianity, one of his most influential works, he wrote,

If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.
– C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

While I don’t disagree with him, I’ve never truly understood what he was getting at. I always wrestled with his point here, trying to accept it without truly comprehending it. But recently, I think it’s begun to dawn on me. Continue reading →

Faith’s Effect

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Faith's Effect image.jpg

Success is measured not in thought alone,
Nor victory in mind’s imagining.
Accomplishment is not emotion shown.
Fulfillment ne’er forsakes the offering.
But faith is evidenced by faithful deeds,
By empty pockets and by calloused hands.
It proves itself in prayer, in meeting needs,
In bringing light and love to darkened lands.
It stands against this present apathy
And challenges the heart of selfishness.
If Christ was crushed for sin instead of me,
Then let me never speak but to confess.
True faith compels me to apply the Word
And testify to Christ till all have heard.

Purpose (Extended Version)

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purpose-image

Let my life be more than just existence.
Let me look beyond the day to day.
Teach me the importance of persistence
Till inner resistance falls away.
I am prone to wander, apt to tarry
When the time has come to carry on.
Be for me, therefore, a holy ferry
Through the night until the light of dawn.
Make me know the measure of my being.
Let me look beyond forgiven crimes.
With each passing moment, keep me seeing
Your eternity within our times.
May the purpose of this present moment
Far outweigh all former faults and fears.
Focus me in view of the atonement.
Fetter me to thee for all my years.