Meadows or Briars

Meadows or Briars

My child, it makes no difference

What you are walking through.

In the meadows or the briars,

God is walking there with you.

He’ll bring you through them safely,

You never need to fear.

The briars, though they’re painful,

Will cause you to draw near.

If you only crossed broad meadows,

You would then be unaware

Of God’s goodness and His comfort

In life’s perplexing snares.

If you had known no heartache

And experienced no pain,

Your spirit would be poorer

For no growth would you attain.

Though briars leave their mark on you,

They painfully succeed

In driving you to seek the One

Who’ll heal you when you bleed.

Mem’ries of scars may linger,

But they bring a healing balm,

For you know that God will comfort

For He holds you in His palm.

In every life there’re briars,

Though the meadows we prefer,

For we learn we are dependent

When the painful we incur.

As our eyes look in the distance,

We’ll behold a sight so rare,

For a glorious meadow’s waiting,

Peace and rest are waiting there.

This Bitter Cup

I’ll drink the cup You’ve given me

Though bitter be the taste.

For You have only love for me,

This in my hand You’ve placed.

I’ve learned to trust You through the years

Though I’ve sometimes rebelled.

For You have caused my eyes to see,

A purpose I’ve beheld.

And so if I at first recoil,

And from Your cup retreat,

I ask that You remind me, Lord,

The aftertaste is sweet.

Wings of Faith

Not plunging to its peril,

This tiny baby bird,

But forced to learn the art of flight,

For this the nest was stirred.

A seeming drop from heaven,

It learns to try its wings.

It has not been abandoned,

To aid the parent springs.

Some “test runs” may be needed,

But confidence is learned.

And soon it finds it is equipped

To soar as it has yearned.

It takes some outside pressure

To stir us from our nest.

Equipped, yet fearfully we plunge

To put faith to the test.

We too are not abandoned.

Our Father is nearby.

Far more equipped than we believe,

He gave us wings to fly.

We often feel we can’t survive

The height from which we fall.

But if our nest had not been stirred,

We would not soar at all.

Painful Relationships

It takes a lot of polishing

To smooth the roughest stone;

And God will use those close to us

To be our grinding stone.

Our edges are so jagged

We often inflict pain;

And when our roughened edges meet

The sparks increase the strain.

God knew what He was doing

Though we have had our doubts.

He knew the friction it would take

To smooth rough edges out.

The smoothest pebbles bear His mark,

With roughness worn away;

It is the smoothest pebbles

That make the most headway.

Relinquish Yesterday

Relinquish yesterday, live today,

Don’t pause to look behind.

The past need have no hold on you,

Need not control your mind.

Your past was nailed upon His cross,

It’s dealt with once for all.

No longer need it bring you shame;

Now rise to heed God’s call.

You have a bright tomorrow,

Though yesterday left wounds.

It is those very scars He’ll use

To grow His choicest blooms.

Temptation

How sweet the apple on the tree,

Temptation lies in wait.

Whatever form the apple takes,

Our choice decides our fate.

The pleasures of the flesh, the eyes,

The pride of life we crave;

But bitter is the aftertaste,

And we become sin’s slave.

Masks

The fixed facades, the masks in place,

Yet troubled eyes shine through.

The restlessness, the hopelessness,

The shadowed eyes construe.

The masks perform their empty tasks,

For life, it just goes on.

A seeming carousel they ride,

The same from dawn to dawn.

Enduring life, hour by hour,

Repeating one more day.

What was done the day before

Done once again today.

No purpose in the plodding,

They live, so they exist.

No joy performing all the chores

That daily make their list.

The masks in place, few people see

The emptiness inside.

Few people know they yearn for more

Or hear the moans they sighed.

Pretending happiness and joy

They hide the inner pain.

Frustrating tears we’ll never see,

Convinced their life’s in vain.

But there is hope and they must hear

There’s purpose for each one;

Designed by God with gifts and tasks—

A race that must be run.

The fake facade behind them,

The masks removed at last;

Perceiving purposes and plans—

Abundant life forecast.

This life a preparation,

Eternity’s ahead.

A future filled with joy, rewards—

Fulfillment found instead.

New purpose in the living,

God’s gift to reach their world.

A new perspective on their days,

His strength in them unfurled.

With every dawn fresh hope unleashed

That nurtures life anew,

A new beginning for the masks,

God’s purpose to pursue.

A Rose

A vibrant rose, with beauty blessed,

Emits a rare perfume;

And those who linger bask within

The scent that fills the room.

Its color and its purity

Are but the soul’s delight;

And blessed the eyes who truly see

And love this heav’nly sight.

But in God’s perfect timing,

The blossom soon must die.

The fragile petals fade away

And we must say good-bye.

But those who looked upon the bloom

Found wonder in creation;

The mem’ry of the fragrance lasts

To be a consolation.