In the Garden of My Soul

 A tender heart with words unspoken

Glistening tears like rain-drops fall,

A heart so broken filled with sadness

Is the saddest fate of all.

But there's life beyond the mourning,

There is hope in a tossed storm sea,

There's an answer to each prayer

In our own Gethsemane.

So do your best and keep on trying

Though each mountain high with fear,

God will aid the brokenhearted,

He will dry up every tear.

Rest assured a new tomorrow

Will come through with a brighter hue,

Like the prism in each dew-drop

Making all the wrongs seem new.

~ Chris Zambernard

The Lord is close

to the brokenhearted...

Ps. 34:18

The Good Shepherd

 My Shepherd watches over me

He knows my every need.

Through verdant meadows, pastures green,

surely He doth lead.

All troubled thoughts He gently calms,

my soul He doth restore.

In paths of love and goodness

He guides me evermore.

Through dark the road

Thou art near.

Whither my way,

There's naught to fear,

Thy rod and Thy staff

Comfort me still.

In presence of my enemies

A table Thou dost fill.

With oil anointest Thou my head,

my cup runs goodly o'er.

And surely I shall leave Thy house,

Good Shepherd, nevermore.

~ Walter Kamens

The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want.

Ps. 23:1

Spring Celebration

 When I see the golden glory

As the sun begins to rise

And the splendor of the heavens

In the far-off eastern skies -

When I hear the songbirds singing

As the night turns into day,

With fresh dewdrops for their drinking

From the blossoms when it's May -

When the breeze blows soft and gentle

With the scent of sweet perfume

And the hummingbirds are busy

Feasting fast upon the bloom -

Then, with songs and hymns and praises

To creation's Lord and King,

I, with birds and blooms and breezes,

Celebrate the lovely spring.

~ George R. Kossik

The flowers

appear on the earth;

the time of the Singing

of birds is come.

Song 2:12



Multiple Blessings

 Comfort in times of loneliness,

Blessings in times of sorrow,

Guidance in times of decisions

That we must face tomorrow.

Relief in times of suffering,

Courage in times of fear,

Protection in times of danger,

That may be lurking near.

Peace in a time of turmoil,

Strength in a time of temptation,

Forgiveness in a time of conviction,

Would bring to us such revelation.

Warning in times of indifference,

Deliverance in times we are weak;

Rest in the times we are weary,

These multiple blessings we seek.

Where can we find this guidance?

Why, from our Savior above,

Who always watches over us,

And fills our hearts with love.

~ Albert N. Theel

Roll Call

One day you'll bid me come to You,

Forget the earthly cares I knew,

I'll gather roses while I may

To offer You a sweet bouquet.

I'll teach my heart a song to sing

Proclaiming all the joy You bring

To those who kneel to You in prayer

And find Your presence always there.

I wanted You so close to me -

So much I had to learn from Thee -

By learning to love others, too,

Is what has brought me close to You.

Now I look back on all the years

Recall the laughter and the tears

And You were there along the way

To fill my cup for me each day.

~ Edna Fontaine

 Surely goodness and mercy

shall follow me all the days of my life

and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Ps. 23:6

There is a Gift

There is peace; an inner peace
We cannot understand,
It permeates in a troubled heart
when God is in command.

There is joy; a marvelous joy,
To know we're not alone.
Because the Lord provides the light
into our dark unknown.

There is love; abundant love,
Unfathomed and it's free,
Because our debt for sin was paid
by Christ on Calvary.

There is hope; a blessed hope
Because of God's gerat love,
He's promised us, through His own Son,
A place prepared above.

There is a faith; a limitless faith,
And yet a grain or two
can move a mountain; heal the sick,
There's nothing it can't do.

These are the gifts; God's matchless gifts
That are so freely given,
Come and partake; experience
Your own sweet taste of heaven.

~ Margaret E. Taylor

Why Didn't I?

 If only I could take them back -

the times that I was silent,

though I cared.

Why was my "faith in action"

quite so slack

when others' joys and sorrows needed

to be shared?

There were phone calls that

I could have made,

letters that I might have sent,

countless times I could have prayed,

and precious moments I was given,

better spent.

Forgive me, Lord, for

what I haven't done;

help me become a better image

of Your Son.

Then I won't need to chide myself

and sigh,

"Why didn't I? Why didn't I?"

~ Barbara A. McDowell

Silences



A pouring rain makes melodies

Descending from the sky,

But oh, the quiet sunny days

When clouds move white and high.

The songbirds chirps in early dawn,

Each trills his notes in streams,

But oh, the hours when all is hushed,

And we may dream our dreams.

Some afternoons the trees in winds

Are like soft strummed guitars,

But oh, the stillness of the night

Where we can see the stars.

The rushing wavelets on a lake

Make music's loud release,

But oh, the times of waters calm,

When we may find our peace.

All nature's sounds are beautiful

In water, earth, and air,

But oh, the lovely silences

That call our hearts to prayer.

~ Jean Hogan Dudley

...a time to keep silence,

and a time to speak.

Eccl. 3:7

When I'm Afraid

Everytime I am afraid,

And shadows dim the way,

When peace seems to elude me,

Even when I pray,

When I am tired and weary,

Struggling through each task,

And I can find no answers,

To the questions that I ask.

Then, more than any other time,

I turn to You for aid,

Trusting You to set it aright,

The blunders I have made.

Knowing You will gather up 

The pieces from the floor,

Of disillusion, tarnished hopes,

And lovingly restore

Them to their former glory

Without a crack or seam,

And fill the night with peace so I

May close my eyes and dream.

For when I am afraid I know

It's weakness on my part,

Because through every trial I face,

I hold You in my heart.

Dear Lord, please take into account,

This love within my breast,

That burns for You, and know that it

Is all that I possess.

~ Grace E. Easley

Rest

 Lord - give the sun to warm me,

A shower, my soul, to cleanse.

A light breeze to cool - not stormy,

Those hurt - may I make amends.

May my heart and soul be humble

With Your graces, always blessed,

On the road to You, not stumble

Within Your love find rest.

~ James Joseph Huesgen
 

All Things are Possible

 No burden is too heavy,

No cross too great to bear,

If you let God into your life

And let God into your life

And let Him with you share.

No mountain is too steep to climb,

Though high that it may be,

If you let God into your life

The summit you will see.

No goals are ever out of sight

That you seek to attain,

As long as God is in your life

You will not strive in vain.

~ Harold F. Mohn

...if you have faith

the size of a mustard seed,

you will say to this mountain

"move from here to here,"

and it will move.

Matt. 17:20

Winter Wonder

 The ermine mantle covering earth

Deftly hides the world once more

As shapes and forms begin to emerge

That have never been seen before.

Branches drip with mother-of-pearl

And diamond frost and rainbow makes

As icy castles and sparkling stars

Are mirrored in shimmering lakes.

And in this transformed magic land

Coated with soft and silent snow,

God's creatures leave a tiny tail

That vanishes into woods below.

~ Eva Marie Ippolito

Thou has set

all the borders

of the earth:

thou hast made

summer and winter.

Ps. 74:17



Final Chance?

The soft and gentle ways of life -

Like Seasons of the year -

Become less full of life's contents

As Winter years draw near,

For Winter years bring aches and ills

That burden life with grief

And, only, in God's Grace of prayer

Is comfort and relief.

But, maybe, it is preordained

That life should wane, this way -

To bring us unto powers of God

And Grace of Judgment Day -

A final chance, for you and me,

To prove, with crying heart,

Our trust and love and Christian faith

In all that He imparts.

~ Michael Dubina

When Time is Short

There's so much left unfinished

when its time for us to go,

like the salmon swimming upstream

against the river's flow.

A poem that's left unwritten;

A story with no end;

A song without the music;

A child without a friend.

We do our best to comprehend

what lies for us in store,

but can't help thinking in the end

there always could be more.

So let us all remember

each day by passing day

to lend a hand to others

and help on their way.

For God will smile upon us

when our work on earth is done;

the battle finally over...

the victory finally won! 

~ Karen Taylor

And let us not grow weary

while doing good,

for in due season

we shall reap

if we do not lose heart.

Galatians 6:9



I Can't Go Home Again

 I really can't go home again.

It was so long ago

When I was young and happy there

So free from care, you know.

I surely had no worries then -

Just lived from day to day

And if I had some cause to cry

That swiftly went away.

The old homestead is stooped with age,

The building's in decay

As though it were a hundred years

Since I had gone away.

I passed by there not long ago

And paused awhile to see

The aged house where I was born

And it looked back at me.

Its window-eyes are dimmed with age,

The roof is sagging and

The old house cannot long survive

Without a helping hand.

The garden where Mom's roses grew

Cannot be found today;

The creek's flat stones that formed our walk

Have long been hauled away.

The wooden fence and posts are gone

As are the hedge and flowers

Which Mother loved and for their care

She toiled so many hours.

The old pond is no longer there

Where livestock used to drink,

Where bullfrogs croaked and turtles swam

And where I went to think.

I really can't go home again

But thoughts of yesteryear

Are vivid in my heart today -

Those mem'ries I hold dear!

~ Luther Elvis Albright