Central Ohio received its first snowfall of the winter on the night of November 30. The transforming seasons always remind me of how our Lord transforms our lives, faith, and hope. May His grace and peace lead you on your journey.
From Psalm 80:1-3: “Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock! You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh. Stir up your might, and come to save us! Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.”
The Christian season of Advent begins with this final Sunday of November. For myself, this will bring a time of meditation and prayer . . . filled with the hope, peace, joy, and love of Christ, the Messiah.
Three different events are highlighted in this poem, with each one claiming a distinct place in America’s cultural perspective of life. The civil rights movement is greatly influenced the leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. One of the greatest college sports upsets takes place in 1966 when Texas Western upsets Kentucky. While civil rights continues to move forward, the racial landscape of college basketball is forever transformed as Texas Western’s all-black line-up outplays Kentucky’s all-white line-up. The film “Forest Gump” touches countless hearts with its inspiring story.
This series of poems (written in the German-inspired style of Elfchen or Elevenie) shares a total of eleven words in each poem, with a sequence by line of one, two, three, four, and one words.
While my wife and I will be celebrating the blessings of Thanksgiving at a table for two, we will still be thinking of our family in both Ohio and Montana. We have much to be grateful for.
This poem was originally written in October, 2018. At the time, it seemed more of a reflective piece, written prior to the elections in November of that year. The text has been edited to update the overall style, but the original theme remains the same. In light of the election of 2020, it seems to be an appropriate time to publish this poem again.
From Romans 5:1-2: “Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.”
From the words of American pastor and Christian teacher, Charles Stanley: “When facing painful trials, we may be tempted to doubt God’s love for us. Remember that God orchestrated the greatest demonstration of love possible–His Son’s death on the cross.”
Ambition! We must be careful what we mean by it. If it means a desire to get ahead of other people–which is what I think it does mean–then it is bad. If it means simply wanting to do a think well, then it is good.
From Proverbs 13:7: “Some pretend to be rich, yet have nothing; others pretend to be poor, yet have great wealth.”
