Healing Our Divisions

This poem is written as a traditional Sonnet, but it can certainly be read as a prayer.  God’s peace!

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Lives pretending to follow a Holy God

Being of the flesh, greater than the spirit

Living as infants in our Lord Jesus Christ

Thirsty for our Father’s love, we shall fear it

 

Life filled with jealousy and quarrelsome times

Behaving outside of our Father’s design

Belonging to the Left, beholding the Right

Only walking with Jesus, should lives align

 

Sowing life’s seeds for a bountiful harvest

Thirsty for true living water and care

This world’s Master Builder brings His hope-filled Grace

Humbling kneeling at the Cross, hear our prayers

 

Only through our Lord Jesus, rests our foundation

Unifying voices throughout this nation

 

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From 1 Corinthians 3:21-23:  “So let no one boast about human leaders.  For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all belong to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.”

Seeking Us (Elfchen Series #24)

Never Alone

Lost

Darkness abounds

Taking wayward path

Our Good Shepherd searches

Found

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Leading Us

Hope

Radiates forever

Cross stands alone

Leading us to light

Salvation

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Grace

Abundant

God sends

His unending love

Eternal, unselfish, and gracious

Gifts

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The German-inspired poetry style of Elfchen (or Elevenie) contains five lines of poetic verse, usually without the use of rhyming verses.  A total of 11 words are used with a sequence of one, two, three, and four words before ending with a single word in the final verse.

From Her Window

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Peering out from her window

Times changing much, much too fast

Being alone many years

Husband and friends having passed

 

Small home meets her meager needs

But, the neighborhood has changed

Folks come and go, few she knows

Life blurs by, as if arranged

 

Sheltered from the outside world

Homebound most days by herself

Family in distant states

Ignored like books on a shelf

 

Watching some television

Staying away from the news

Remembering old classics

Dreaming of Julie Andrews

 

Reading occupies her time

Local newspaper connects

Crossword puzzle smiling back

Novels thrill with their suspects

 

Peering out from her window

Another sunset draws near

Unfamiliar car drives up

Grandchildren bring happy tears

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His Glory Brings Peace

From Matthew 5:9:  “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”

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Holy Spirit tracks every life

Jesus leaves us with eternal peace

Unlike anything else done by man

Praying to our Lord, life’s centerpiece

 

Peace emerges with fullness and joy

Holy blessing from Christ, filled with love

Feeling gladness and newness in life

God’s gift of Grace offered from above

 

Rejoicing in our Holy Father

Feeling the gentleness from His hand

Bringing daily worries to the Lord

Guarding hearts and minds, from where He stands

 

Salvation comes through our Savior

Encourage each sister and brother

Reaching to us, God’s peace never ends

Heart, mind, soul—transformed like none other

 

Complete and perfect in His goodness

Yesterday, today, and forever

Jesus will always love each of us

His glory brings peace, best gift ever

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From the words of American pastor and Christian teacher, Charles Stanley:  To be a peacemaker is to reflect the image of our heavenly Father–using our breath, energy, and creativity to sow peace wherever the Spirit takes us.

Moments with Nature (Haiku Series #89)

Turf Fight

Eagle’s invasion

Trespassing and threatening—

Tiny bird attacks

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Still Safe

Dark clouds approaching

When thunderstorm moves away—

Tree limbs wave goodbye

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Forever Gone

Footprints on the beach

Nature brings its eraser—

Surf cleans them away

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Monday Memories: A Hole in the Middle

This sweet poem was originally published in April, 2019, and it remains one of Big Sky Buckeye’s most viewed and liked posts.  While I now refrain from enjoying doughnuts (because I need to watch my sugars and carbs), there was a day when I could never turn down a delicious treat.  Enjoy!

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Simple, yet decadent pleasures they are

Being quite easy to locate from your car

 

Driving down the road each day

Now you wonder what it is, I say

 

The coffee’s on and ready to go

Include a doughnut for the road

 

Missing doughnuts for so many weeks

Passing them up is never for the meek

 

Call them “donuts”, many Americans say

For me, I prefer “doughnuts” to this day

 

My doctor instructs me, “No sugar for you!”

Now my doughnut days are sadly through

 

However, doughnut temptation sings a song

If I reach for one, there is a deafening gong!

 

Sorry mister, there will never be doughnuts for you

So I continue down the road, singin’ the sad blues

 

Who made the doughnut hole in the middle?

Now that has always been quite the riddle

 

Waking up in the middle of a lonesome night

Dreaming of doughnuts makes a sugary sight

 

While some folks are addicted to Krispy Kreme

My doughnut tastes envision a different theme

 

Boston Cream, Long John, and Jelly

All sound delicious to my hungry belly

 

Old-fashioned, Sour Cream, and Glazed

Why can’t I enjoy a simple one today?

 

Now in my car and hungrily driving at midnight

The Jolly Pirate Donut shop stays open all night

 

I pull into the empty parking lot with sad surprise

The sign reads, “Closed tonight”— alas no prize!

 

This poem could continue on and on and on for sure

Does anyone have a doughnut to share with this sir?

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Here’s a final footnote:

In the classic film “It Happened One Night”

Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert are a fright

Gable, the newspaper man, enlightens

Colbert, the heiress, never frightens

As they travel the back roads and stop

For a cup of hot coffee at a tiny shop

. . . with doughnuts for dunkin’

His Greatness Stands

From Psalm 146:1-2:  “Praise the LordPraise the Lord, O my soul!  I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long.”

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Bless the Lord’s name forever

Sing praises for Holy deeds

His greatness stands infinite

Loving us like tender reeds

 

Witness our Lord’s mighty acts

Share with each generation

His greatness lauds His goodness

Building our firm foundation

 

Recall love works from His hands

Fueled by Grace’s steadfast love

His greatness flows with mercy

Protecting us from above

 

Call on the Father this day

Pray to Him on humble knees

His greatness lighting the way

Watching over all He sees

 

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From Psalm 145:17-18:  “The Lord is just in all his ways, and kind in all his doings.  The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.”

Scenic Mountain Vistas

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Sitting home, isolated and alone

Taking virtual trips, changes life’s tone

 

America’s landscapes invite us in

Scenic mountain vistas, adventures grin

 

Alaska Range, home to our northernmost peaks

Denali “the tall one” forever speaks

 

Cascade Range roams the Pacific Northwest

Snow-capped volcanoes offer stunning quests

 

Sierra Nevada’s enchanted land

Host national parks, majestic and grand

 

Rocky Mountains form this nation’s backbone

Stunning beauty, more precious than gemstones

 

Sawtooth Mountains salute from Idaho

Endless summits bring skiers to the snow

 

Bighorn Mountains, sacred to native ways

Montana-Wyoming border sings praise

 

Adirondack Mountains, New York’s playground

Winter skiing, fall foliage—best around

 

Great Smoky Mountains push for Tennessee

Fog-covered peaks, spellbinding all agree

 

Blue Ridge Mountains welcome us back home

Free-flowing Shenandoah smiles and roams

 

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Wherever you live or where your travels take you, you may have a favorite mountain paradise.  One of my precious favorites is the Beartooth Mountains in south-central Montana, a stone’s throw away from Yellowstone National Park.  

You are invited to share one of your special places in the comments.

Montana’s rugged Beartooth Mountains [photo courtesy of pinterest].

Accept His Invitation

From Isaiah 55:1:  “Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters.”

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Seeking abundant life

Never arrives from man

All will thirst for much more

Accept God’s Holy plan

 

Our Lord’s invitation

Never hidden from us

Just step forward today

Follow God, always a plus

 

Tasting His bread of life

Never bitter to eat

Peace arrives with each day

Listen for its steady beat

 

Our Father’s always near

Never absent with love

Come, come worship the Lord

Read His Word, from above

 

Finding life’s one true joy

Never alone with Him

Invitation welcomed

Filling us to the brim

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From Isaiah 55:12:  “For you shall go out in joy, and be led back in peace.”

God’s Daily Notes (Haiku Series #88)

Cast the First Stone

Shall we judge others?

Who among you have not sinned?

Room quickly empties

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Compassion

Darkness covers life

Filling with harshness and pain—

Show love to others

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Mighty God 

Believers join God

Salvation belongs to Him—

Good over evil

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