East Neuk Baptist Fellowship |
Over the years I have found that my experiences in life and in my relationship with God have been expressed in poetry. Some of them are included here.
This poem was written after I miscarried my first child.
A life improperly begun, only a might have been.
My child, just recognised then lost, loved though never seen.
Miscarriage is not called death, but I know what I feel,
Though never born, my child has died. The grief and pain are real.
Yet through all the time I suffered, I was not left alone,
For God my Father stayed by me and knew the pain I bore.
He told me, “Do not be afraid, for I shall be with you.
Whatever seems to threaten you, fear not, I’ll bring you through.”
And in the quiet stillness as my child returned to Him,
I felt my Heavenly Father’s grief that He holds deep within.
For those who turn from Jesus cannot be born again
And each one lost to this new birth brings His heart new pain.
I can’t explain the peace I’ve found from this glimpse of God’s heart.
Just knowing that He understands and grieves too was the start
Of healing that has meant that I am free to worship Him
And affirm that God works all for good when I love Him.
Christmas is just past. What does it mean today?
Christmas - time for Christmas shopping,
Holly, tinsel, fairy lights,
Christmas cards on mantelpieces,
Christmas trees decked out so bright.
Christmas adverts on the TV -
Children want expensive toys.
Adults scrimp to save the money
Ads demand for Christmas joy.
Where’s the peace the angel promised,
Sign of God’s good will to all?
Where’s the wonder at the baby?
Kings and shepherds knelt enthralled.
Where’s the joy of peace with God
That Jesus’ life and death can bring?
Money cannot buy this promise.
This is what made angels sing.
That for all the world God gave.
He’s still the most important gift -
Remember His name means “God saves”.
So never mind the tinsel’s glitter,
Try looking past the fairy lights,
To see that at the very centre,
Of Christmas is Jesus Christ.
Jesus - the only baby who was born to die. We remember Christmas only because of the events of the Easter 33 years later.
Marks of Blood
Upon the Cross of Shame I see
The marks of blood shed there for me
By Christ, my Lord.
He bore my sins to set me free
To be with God
Nails in His hands. Nails in His feet.
Upon His brow all sorrows meet.
I cannot bear
To see the pain that for my sake
He suffered there.
If that were all the Gospel’s tale
Truly, then our faith would fail
In misery.
But, praise God, it does not end
At
They buried Him. They thought He’d gone.
Fools! How could they have been so wrong?
Death lost its hold.
Christ rose again in victory,
As they’d been told.
Come see, with me, upon the Cross
The marks of blood shed there for us,
And join with me
In full surrender to the Lord
Of
When life seems tough we need to know where to turn:
Shadows
On the world the shadows lie
Militias fight and children cry
All empires that have been man-made
Quickly shatter, simply fade.
So many lives of hopelessness:
Is this God-forsakenness?
On our lives the shadows lie
With faces masked, the heart can cry.
Our choices seem not wrong nor right
But a blur of black and white.
All seems a moral wilderness:
Is this God-forsakenness?
Not shadows but the dark of night.
On that day, hid the sun’s light
As the Son hung on the Cross,
While the Father mourned His loss.
If God could be in such darkness
Where is God-forsakenness?
No shadows can be in the dark.
It is the light that shadows mark.
If all that you can see is grey
Then you are facing the wrong way.
Turn to the light from the darkness;
To God from God-forsakenness.
Isn't the world beautiful?
God’s Faithfulness
Sun rise, Sun set. Tides flow, tides ebb.
All creatures fit in Nature’s web.
The seasons turn from Spring to Spring.
God’s faithfulness shown by these things.
Night falls. We know the dawn will come.
God’s laws ensure the Earth will turn.
Despite the darkness, the Sun shines
Know this is of God’s love a sign.
The changes in the Moon each night,
Its waxing and its waning light,
The rhythm of the tides each day
God’s perfect patterning display.
So varied, beautiful and rich,
Each creature linked, each plant its niche.
This world’s astonishing design
Of God’s abundant life a sign.
From Spring to Autumn, Summer grows,
And Autumn reaps what Springtime sows.
Winter seems long, but Spring will come -
God’s new life over death has won.
Sun rise, Sun set. Tides flow, tides ebb.
All creatures fit in Natures web.
The seasons turn from Spring to Spring.
God’s faithfulness shown by these things.
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