Poetry

A Prayer to Hear

/ joethewaller / Leave a comment

I serve a God who speaks-
Who speaks for me to hear.
And though his Word means life and love,
I rarely lend my ear.

Yet still he calls me as his own.
He grants me access ‘fore his throne.
Such love and grace to sinners shown!
Oh help me, Lord, to listen.

The world in wailing wreaks-
Wreaks havoc with its cries.
Though tinged with tones of great delight,
They only offer lies.

For underneath the white-washed skin
The dying soul cries out in sin,
And wonders, could it live again?
Oh help me, Lord, to listen.

I, therefore, need to pray-
To pray to hear his voice,
The whisper in the wilderness,
To make the holy choice.

For Christ has died in my own place
And given me a son’s embrace.
Oh let me look upon his face!
And help me, Lord, to listen!

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Eleven

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Presently:
“-MO! And here we are! Oh look!
A thing! And stuff! And words to read,
The poet’s pen upon the page
With purpose, like in Pond’s old book.
Oh Pond… But wait! Oi! You right there!
You placed a call to me in need
Of inspiration in this age.
Well here I am with fez and hair!
… No, that’s a rubbish entrance. So!
You need a poem topic, eh?
Have you considered space and time?
Just pick a place you’d like to go.
The universe is out my door,
A new horizon ev’ry day,
Enough to fill your ev’ry rhyme.
See what the TARDIS has in store…”

. . .

Sometime, somewhere, in the future:
“Psychic paper text:
‘WRITER SEEKING DOCTOR’S NOTE’
“Well then… GERONI-”

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The Megaphone

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O Pain, the voice that must be heard,
The sound that will not be ignored-
It calls for us to further gird
Our souls with clothing of the Lord.
For we cannot afford to live
Assuming life is only ease.
The sandy ground beneath must give
If we would God’s salvation seize.
And as the dark illusion falls
And we see our mortality,
We find our rest in Kingly halls
With Life for all eternity.

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Logos

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To think a parchment marked by nib and ink
Contain the cautions of a holy curse
And riches rivaled by no ruler’s purse.
The scratches of the quill upon the page
Tell stories of the only perfect sage.
Come to the flowing fountain then and drink,
And find the firm foundation from the flood.
Be buried by the bounty of the blood.
The crossroad of your life is at the cross.
Be brought to life, and lose the life of loss.
The Message of the Maker is the Man.
Find pardon, peace, and purpose in his plan.

Assurance

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What God has spoken then
Seems lost before the now,
The call to enter in
Eclipsed before the how.
The weight of life doth wear
Upon the focused brow,
But God knows ev’ry care.
He ever keeps his vow.

So trust we now our King
And hope in his command
And with the angels sing,
For he has made us stand.
We do not face his wrath-
Eternal reprimand-
For we now walk his path,
The purpose he hath planned.

Though circumstances prod,
Fulfilment we shall see,
In spite of shield or sword
Or strong desire to flee.
Thus says the Lord our God,
And thus it comes to be.
The promise of the Lord-
Reliability.

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New Year

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The days increase that make up time behind,
And days unknown to us now lie before
Our feet, whose steps we never can rewind,
But must advance through this now open door.
The times around us change with each new day
Regardless of our feelings for the change.
Unsteady is the ground we wish would stay;
Our lives seem always set to rearrange.
But steady and unshakeable is truth,
And most dependable is God above.
For all the elderly and all the youth,
The constant in the universe is Love.
So hope as this new year begins to dawn,
And trust the Lord whose reign goes ever on.

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Christmas

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The king was troubled in his soul
As news was told of kingly birth.
He spawned a plot to keep control,
Consumed with thoughts of his own worth.
But even in his selfish ploy,
He could not stifle heaven’s plan.
Despite the sons he did destroy,
He did not stop good news to man.
For God so loved the world.
For God so loved the world.
From long ago the Lord has said
That he would send a saving son
To stand upon the serpent’s head
And bring new life to ev’ry one
Who followed after Adam’s way
In breaking heaven’s holy law.
Messiah came to bring the day,
To rescue men from sin and flaw.
For God so loved the world.
For God so loved the world.
Though earth was lost in darkest night,
The souls of mankind dead and still,
The darkness saw a holy light
It did not, will not, cannot kill.
Now gone: defeat, despair, and death,
For hope and life and peace he brings.
He fills our lungs with living breath.
With triumph, ev’ry voice now sings:
For God so loved the world.
For God so loved the world.

Grace

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Grace beyond what sinful men deserve
Grace that moves this salvaged soul to serve
Grace that opens eyes to truly see
Grace that works in love to pardon me
Grace that guides my steps toward the goal
Grace that takes the wreck and makes it whole
Grace that reaches further than my sin
Grace that opens fellowship again
Grace that knows the longings of the heart
Grace that causes hearts of stone to start
Grace that this, my life, is not a loss
Grace that gave his life upon a cross

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Truth and Heresy

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There never was a “then” when Christ was not,
Only begotten God of God on high.
The Gospel story ever was the plot:
The spotless Lamb for spotted sheep to die.
By nature, men do sin and stand in need
And lack the merit morally required.
And thus, the holy call, “Take up and read,”
Can offer life so lovingly acquired.
The Word was written that we might not sin,
That living branches might bear fruit for life.
Yet when we falter, there is hope again
As Christ called Peter thrice from Peter’s strife.
We read and write for right theology,
That saints would not be swayed by heresy.

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The Example

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Inspired by John 13

Creator of the universe
Inhabiting our little earth
Fulfilling ev’ry holy verse
The highest name of heaven’s worth
His glory he has laid aside
To grant a gaze to sinners’ eyes
The Savior stooped to now abide
To die for justice and to rise
He has the right to claim the throne
He need not face our fallen throes
But still he comes to call his own
To bear the cross his Father chose
His place as Lord is clearly seen
His praises, many men repeat
And yet he comes to make us clean
Our God is washing dirty feet
Humility in sacrifice
Messiah meeting man in plight
Our God has paid the highest price
Salvation springs from dying Light
His victory is now proclaimed
Exalted over ev’ry name
His standard, too, has now been framed
“Go now,” He says, “And do the same.”

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