God is good and all-powerful, caring for each one of us as though the only one in His care.
From 1 John 4:15-16: “God abides in those who confess that Jesus is the Son of God, and they abide in God. So we have known and believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.”
From Psalm 100:4-5: “Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the Lord is good; His steadfast love endures forever, and His faithfulness to all generations.”
Master of creation’s universe
Father’s love, boundless and enduring
Defying mankind’s understanding
Endless waterfall, reassuring
God’s lasting presence covers this earth
Filled with unending mercy and care
Sharing His love, bringing us gladness
Hearing concerns, answering prayers
Our world rotates between night and day
Yet, God never ceases His labors
Cherishing us, sheep in His pasture
Caring and loving us—as neighbors
God’s eternal and lasting love flows
Filling every second with love
His steadfast love shall always prevail
Sharing His love from heaven above
From the words of Christian writer, Corrie ten Boom: “There is no pit so deep that God’s love is not deeper still.”
From Psalm 88:1-2: “O Lord, God of my salvation, when, at night, I cry out in your presence, let my prayer come before you; incline your ear to my cry.”
Cold stillness greets early morning air
Dressed in armor’s extra warm layers
Pre-dawn speaks with inviting brightness
Heavenly Father answers prayers
Heart’s emptiness filled with sorrow’s grief
Walking life’s open road with brisk pace
Precious moments with Father’s goodness
He stands ready at this time and place
Frigid frost slaps rosy cheeks and nose
Step after step, life moving along
Chill penetrates through extra clothing
Heart needs comfort, love from Heaven’s song
Absent clouds replaced with brightest sun
God’s advent warms both body and soul
Speaking with loving mercy and grace
Father softens pain from rocky shoal
Walk’s intensity traded for peace
Warmness and hope, alive and feeding
Life’s burdens lightened with God’s blessings
Sharing much more, His presence leading
From Psalm 25:16-17: “Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. Relieve the troubles of my heart, and bring me out of my distress.”
From John 12:44-46: “Then Jesus cried aloud: ‘Whoever believes in me believes not in me but in Him who sent me. And whoever sees me sees Him who sent me. I have come as light into the world, so that everyone who believes in me should not remain in the darkness.'”
Across this world’s vastness
There’s nothing more precious
Than our God-given life
Primed to breath by His grace
Every precious day
Praise God for its richness
Honor life’s simple ways
Praying with thankful hearts
Just as God molds this earth
Spirit works tirelessly
Shaping and stretching lives
Blessing each precious breath
God’s precious hands guiding
Framing, leading, teaching
Crafting lives, filled with love
Accept His blessed gift
Charged with following God
Life’s precious, rocky path
Falling with stumbling steps
But, Father picks us up
Savoring each day’s breath
There’s nothing more precious
Honoring Lord of all
Straight to life’s final end
From Psalm 23:5-6: “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long.”
Following prayer and reading my Bible, my thoughts went into writing this special poem. Indeed, there is nothing more precious than life. On March 17, 2021, my stepfather, Ed, went to the Lord. The love he shared with my mother (his loving Martha) was boundless, and I was blessed to share my Christian faith with him. The unconditional love given by my mother to her blessed Ed will be a lasting gift because it has been witnessed by so many others.
From 1 Corinthians 1:8-9: “He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful; by Him you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Responsible actions
Stir God’s amazing grace
Making a difference
Foundation’s caring base
Lord, master, creator
From heaven to this earth
Making a difference
Anchors ships at His berth
Inviting each of us
Share His Word with others
Making a difference
Love sisters and brothers
Lord calling us to serve
Caring for those in need
Making a difference
Loving each tender reed
Blessed with Father’s goodness
Fortunate with enough
Making a difference
For others, do enough
Our Lord reaches deeply
Into souls, hearts, and minds
Making a difference
Servant’s gifts will He find
From 1 Peter 4:8-10: “ Above all, maintain constant love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without complaining. Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received.”
Actions
Strengthen faith
Praise in worship
Bible study and prayer
Maturity
Love
None greater
Taught by Jesus
Transforming us today . . . and
Forever
Beginnings
Life’s quest
Dust we are
Dust we shall return
Endings
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.
From John 1:16-17: “From His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”
Best and worst of times
God’s grace always chimes
Loving and caring
Promises bearing
God remains at hand
Faith and hope shall stand
Seeking empty hearts
Molding time’s restart
Life’s melody plays
Offer Him our praise
God’s grace taking root
Peace filling love’s flute
Gloom and doom appear
Allow Him to steer
God’s love shows He cares
Guiding day’s affairs
Hope’s beacon awaits
In His hands, our fate
Witness as His child
Life no longer wild
Forgiveness and love
Shared from God above
God’s grace shapes life’s frame
Praise His Holy name
From Lamentations 3:22-23: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
This poem is inspired from some past entries in my “Take-Aways” journal. Each entry is based upon something read and studied in a morning devotional.
Harmonious partnerships are the result of hard work; they never “just happen.” The “hard work” also includes giving just as much as taking. In one word it means being “unselfish.”
From 1 Corinthians 13:4-6: “Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth.”
This re-edited poem, written in July, 2019, features an effortless style. The verses are structured with simplicity because this should be how love exists . . . simple and pure!
Love Conquers
Finding its way
With words to say
Boundless and rich
Love conquers
Despite distances great
Unlocking its fate
With faithful hope
Love conquers
Awakens each morn
Feels like being reborn
Lasts and lasts
Love conquers
Between two hearts
Eager for new start
Together at last
Love conquers
Each special day
Adventure comes our way
Exciting and endless
Love conquers
Thoughts to savor
Bringing each a favor
As sunrise arrives
Love conquers
Arriving without sound
Loving actions abound
Every special moment
Love conquers
Forgetting life’s past
Bringing smiles to last
Faithful and forgiving
Love conquers
God’s at hand
Footprints in the sand
Reigns into Eternity
From Psalm 90:1-2: “Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.”
Life’s amazing blessings
God’s Book of Life unfolds
Single timeless moment
Richer than any gold
Man and woman find love
Fragile lives share restart
Single timeless moment
Merging into one heart
Forsaken child needs home
Foster parents reach out
Single timeless moment
Love sows, ready to sprout
Student facing failure
Here comes love’s helping hand
Single timeless moment
Teacher pulls from quicksand
Family in crisis
Unemployed, dreams stand cold
Single timeless moment
Job opens, God beholds
Disaster strikes city
Many answer God’s call
Single timeless moment
Kindness stands ever tall
Sin’s temptation knocking
Christian brother steps up
Single timeless moment
Christ refills empty cup
Darkening, hopeless world
Father’s infinite grace
Single timeless moment
Love reaches out, embrace
From Genesis 9:11-13: “‘I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.’ God said, ‘This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.'”
