Throw Me Away

Proposed antiphon: God blesses us and keeps us, and hereafter will make us new

Sometime in late spring
The pansies were discarded
Dumped in the common area
Behind the houses
Where the blackberries grow
And the morning glories dance
Twisting from cane to cane

There the soil is rich,
Full of grass cuttings and bits of bark
Discarded potting soil
Leaf mould and pine needles -
The detritus of years past

There the essence of green life
Spirals up like slow flame
Through the stems and leaves
Through the curling growing tips
And into the air

You can smell it, see it
Wafting from the full petals
And shining from the generous faces
Of the pansy blooms that grew there
Burgeoning with beauty and life

Throw me away
Cast me aside
Into the dung-heap of creation
Let the sun beat down
And the wild rains fall
Let me bloom

We Wander in the Wilderness

Proposed Antiphon: Creation starts with chaos

We wander in the wilderness

And all our stars are out of place

We hide in holes and in ditches

And the wind passes over where we lie

We have little

And what we have is taken from us

Once our counsel was sought after

But now we are counted as fools and idiots

Once we spoke and others leapt to obey

Now we speak and only the beasts answer

Friends are struck down

And family members suffer and die

We persist in our prayers

And call out to our God

Where is the path of truth?

Where is the way that leads through this desert?

We wander in the wilderness

And all our stars are out of place

I like this.

Perhaps related: A worn courderoy kind of life

My Shepherd Is The Lord (Reprise)

My shepherd is the Lord
For nothing shall I want
In pastures green I rest
From waters still I drink

My soul my God restores
In fear God gives me strength
When lost God leads me home
And keeps me as God's own

God names me as his child
My sins for me forgives
With oil anoints my head
And sees to all my needs

My home is with the Lord
With God I'll always be
In joy God leads me out
With love God leads me home

In dark I have no fear
In trouble I have peace
In God I put my trust
For God is always near

In faith I have my life
and rise when life is done
The Lord keeps me each day
In life eternaly

(prior entry)

Unclean

His name we deny
And cross it out of our books
It must not be mentioned
Not in public
Or in the counting-house
Or at conference
Or even between strangers

We are embarrassed to call upon His name
We do not stir ourselves to take hold of Him
Wisdom is cast aside
And folly is counted as righteousness

We abandon His houses
And they rot
They are burned and not rebuilt
Or are used to store dead things
Or as drinking halls
Used for revelry and debauchery

Our leaders no longer contemplate His words
But instead their own
Saying that there is no true spirit
Only contemplations

So our portion is taken away
As it should be taken from unfaithful servants
And we weaken and fade
What is your instruction
To the servants who remain?
What is your word?

Struggling With Matthew 5

Why should we feed the wolves,
When our sheep go hungry?

How can we abandon our houses to criminals,
And live in the street, when the wintry winds blow?

Why should we forfeit our shoes to those already shod,
And walk the stony ground with bare feet?

Why do you ask us to do so, Lord?

Why should we labor and struggle to enrich the evil,
When we have not two coins to press together?

Why must we give our time and talent to Satan,
And keep nothing but our souls for the family of God?

Should we hold back nothing from the grifter,
The thief, the con artist?

Why do you ask us to do so, Lord?

(Strugging with Matthew 5)

You Are Given Now

We have only a moment
Not an hour
Or a day
Or a week
Or a month
Or years, decades, centuries, millennia

We have only a moment to trust
A moment to love
A moment to care
A moment to believe

Who that was who came before
- you cannot know
And who comes after
- you cannot see

But you have now
Use it to believe the best
To do the best
And be as much
As fun
As awesome
As inspired
As you can

You are given now

Use it

Balance

Balance
Is not perching on a balance-beam
Is not standing beneath a cliff, or on its edge
Is not building your house on the sand
Is not mortgaging your tomorrows to pay for today

Today you live and breathe
Tomorrow may be very different
Take care of the world, the neighbors and the self you have been given today
Do not sell their or your tomorrows
The world wants you to do this-
Selling your tomorrows can make your todays very comfortable

But when tomorrow comes
With storm
And wind
And earthquake
And chaos
And you find you have mortgaged your future
To pay for a pretty today that is gone
You may regret
Not having taken the slow route

Find a less dynamic way to balance
Plant your feet on the level path
And go in through the straight gate

-LE

Something Interesting to Look At

I love it when creative people colaborate, and here is a wonderful example - Enjoy:

A peaceful Lent to you -

LE

The Voice of Evil

The voice of evil calls to us
Wherever it can reach us
It delights in death, despair and destruction
It raises up sin after sin before our eyes
Look! It says; Humans (even you) are hopelessly corrupt!
There is no use in building,
Everything will be swept away!
Everything you create is already dying, falling apart, will be destroyed!
Your neighbors are criminals, rapists, even pedophiles!
Everyone wants to steal from you!
Your very identity is at risk!
Cancer, murder, terrorism, death and loss!
Darkness, addiction, corruption and evil!

The voice of evil shouts at you from your TV, your radio, the newspaper and the internet. It repeats it's message of death and hopelessness over and over, and good honest people start repeating it themselves.

But there is a reason that the voice of evil must be so strident, and so unceasing, and that is because it is trying to drown out another voice; A voice that permeates all creation, that comes from every thing; A quiet voice, a humbler melody - that whispers to everything from everywhere;

Live
Love
Share
Give
Help
Grow
Build
You are beloved
You are wonderful
You are beautiful
You are wanted
You are needed
You can help
You make a difference
You are One

And in the end, the voice of evil is only a counterpoint to the one voice.
Nothing it said ever mattered in the first place.
It is forever on the outside,
Forever trying to obscure what is true,
Forever living in lies;
There is nothing permanent there,
It lies outside of the truth;
It is darkness and distraction;
It is cloud and mist;
It will burn away in the sun;
It will be swept away by joy.

Listen to the voice of joy;

Live
Love
Share
Give
Help
Grow
Build
You are beloved
You are wonderful
You are beautiful
You are wanted
You are needed
You can help
You make a difference
You are One

Peace to you who are One with Love

Better Living Thru Chaomistry

Hilltop gurus don't have children
They mostly don't have wives
They don't labor for their upkeep
They live stark and simple lives

But up upon a pinnacle
Is not where we're called to live
We have work among the masses
We must compromise and give

And nothing is quite perfect
And much is not so great
Few plans are finished early
We often stay up late

Nothing gets our full attention
Our tasks we often won't complete
Somedays we feel successful
If our families can eat

But we make space at our table
For children, friends and foes
We try to provide some comfort
For a multitude of woes

Life's a business of balance
A little 'take' and lots of 'give'
But if we are to be Christian
This is how we're supposed to live

Creation starts with chaos
Love requires a bit of mess
The Light requires us to be sharing
There is injustice to address

So find faith in growth by measures;
joy in clutter and dissaray
And with God's help we'll move forward,
And make a better, brighter day.