Posted in Spoken Word, Uncategorized

At Lent’s End…

Enjoy a read, or listen here… https://wickwaves.bandcamp.com/track/at-lents-end

As the final days of 40 pass by
So many start to wonder
As thunderheads don’t seem to show signs of clearing
Is celebration really nearing?
We feel like fasting has gone on for far longer than we signed up for
So sure that we had a choice in the matter
That to deny our selves would make Him gladder
Yet the passing of time starts to shatter the expectation
That there would be celebration simply because we marked the dates.
As if all fates were sealed, and it was up to us to have the Kingdom revealed
But we have not been healed as much as we’d perceived
At least, not a healing that is everlasting
For our fasting was not the type for which He’d asked
Tasked with something far greater than we’d known
To reveal His throne here at the footstool
To undo what cruel men had endeavored to establish in stone
Fruit grown from seeds sown in oppression
And in succession, we protected the status quo
But we know, and cannot pretend to be blind any longer
Knowing that His Love is stronger than any power we might obtain
Framed for better understanding – His Freedom comes demanding itself for all
Listen to the call from Isaiah – Is this not the fasting He Desires?
To inflame the fires of justice for those without a voice
To use our power of choice, our ability to go against the grains
And to loosen the chains of those still bound
To see those building on grounds of shifting sand, and give them foundation on which to stand
Tall – As those who saw their own freedom not only as something to celebrate, but something to proclaim, those given a new name, birthed as creation made new
The dew on the blades of resurrection morning as hearts are warming the air of longest nights
The lights are beginning to dawn from East to West, and “hashtag blessed” is no longer
What we seek – rather, the meek capture our heart because it beats with His
The one betrayed with a kiss, yet lovingly submitted – his head fitted with a crown
Meant to mark Him as defeated, now seated as the Lord
Debt we could never afford to wipe clean
And so obscene when we offered such pitiful amounts of grace to those who owe us
God, show us Your mercy.
Do not treat us as we treat our own brother, but may we discover within the arms of your embrace, the face of true compassion – love not just in words, but in action
We find in all these things, Easter brings reason once again for celebration
For every nation made up of humans being, humans seeing their weaknesses on full display
Again this year we say – Hosanna – Savior Save Us
How grave a situation we were in – grim, our only path
Grafted in to a covenant that came before
Tide returning to a shore we thought was gone but on further inspection
We see the coming of resurrection…

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Posted in Different Thoughts, Uncategorized

A Woman of Prayer

Sometime in the early-middle of my serving as one of the pastors in Decatur, Illinois, there was a woman who impressed me in the area of prayer. We were hosting an “All Night Prayer” at Moundford Free Methodist Church. We weren’t a giant congregation, and many people had other commitments, families to care for, or work that prevented them from coming. But we knew it was important, and so planned to spend most of the night in the sanctuary, or walking from room to room praying over the ministry that happened there and the lives/homes of those involved as they came to mind.

Confession: I’m a morning person. When I stay up late, I drift off easily unless I’m doing something active or with a lot of people. Suffice to say, I was challenged by my abilities to stay awake around 11:30pm as we slowly walked through the church, saying and whispering prayers that came to mind. Yet in the midst of these things, I was challenged all night long by the presence of this older woman, Velva, who was almost 100 years old and seemed like she’d just drank 2 Red Bulls of prayer. She had obviously drank deeply from the wells of God’s Love, and was living from a continued gratitude for all He had done in her life – and an urgent heart that wanted her family and friends to know this same hope and love she’d discovered.

As the years went forward, her heart and prayers never abated. Even when she stopped leaving her home as much, she would text me her prayers once in a while. She prayed for our family as we fought to bring our daughter home from the DRC. She prayed for our family as we decided to become missionaries. I remember visiting her not long after we made that decision, with our daughters at her home. She prayed with us, told us how much she loved Jesus, and showed us some of her paintings. She was not only an artist, she was worshiping actively by connecting to the creative heart of her creator. It was obvious that she had tapped into deep wells of His Love and life, and it just oozed out of her whenever you were able to connect.

At one point, she asked if she could paint a specific scene for us – and what we might want. Sarah and I thought for a while, and then described the kind of scene we’d love to have her put onto canvas for us. It wasn’t long before she messaged that her artwork was ready, and we should come pick it up. Of course it’s beautiful, inspiring, and very much as we’d described to her. On the back, she’d even written for us to remember “From Velva….Age 103”. What a beautiful gift, and it hangs in my office today.

Velva’s painting, along with the final text message she’d sent me.

As we went to Hungary, I made sure she understood we could still keep in touch. She would text me (thanks iMessage, for helping people stay connected on the other side of the world easily!) and ask how the ministry was going, how the family was doing, or just to tell me she was praying for my “sweet family”. I would try to send her pictures of natural beauty that reminded me of the nature scenes she painted. We both agreed – His creation was beautiful, and deserved to be paid attention to.

I never knew when her text messages might arrive, especially when we lived in Hungary. Because of the time difference, sometimes they’d arrive in the middle of the night for me. But I always smiled when I’d check my phone, and see all the heart emojis, praying hand emojis, and a few words to remind me our family was in her prayers, and asking me to affirm, “Isn’t the Lord good??” Yes, He is good, and His Love endures forever. Our frail human bodies, however, do not. It didn’t seem like it could ever happen, but on February 25th, 2023, Velva finally went home to be with Jesus fully. Now she is with the Father, waiting for the completion of all He has in store at New Creation.

I am so thankful for Velva. For her prayers, and for the ways she encouraged and loved our family – even from a distance. I want to encourage you – reach out to your missionaries, your overseas friends, and the people who come to your mind and heart. It doesn’t take much – just a few emoji’s and a reminder “You’re in my prayers today. Remember you are loved.” Know that you are loved yourself as well, and take a moment to notice the beauty of God’s creation – even if it takes a while to find it. It’s worth noticing.

I smile, imagining that perhaps God would hand Velva the paintbrush for some grand sunset, and whisper “Here…you do this one…”

Posted in Different Books, Spoken Word, Uncategorized

I want to share a few poems with you…

..well, over 1,000 poems actually. Let me explain.

It was around Advent 2019, and we had moved to Hungary early that year. New routines were being established as we settled into this season of serving as missionaries. Without the “church office” I’d grown used to having, most of my office work and even personal moments of study/prayer were happening in our apartment. I found some of the things I valued and wanted to be disciplined to include in my day became (as anything can) items to “check off the list”. One of those things was reading scripture on a daily basis, unrelated to “work”.

So as an experiment, I tried to write in response to the Lectionary passage from any given day. (The “Lectionary” is a set of daily scripture readings, spanning a 3-year cycle, used by many Christian churches globally. Each day’s readings usually include an Old Testament passage, a Psalm, and a New Testament passage. I love using this cycle, knowing that many of God’s children around the world are feasting on the same heart of God revealed in those same words on any particular day/week.) To write in response to all three passages, uniting them in a “theme” of some sort seemed a bit forced. I decided to choose one of the three passages each day and write a poem that invited my heart to consider a prayerful response. I enjoyed these first days of experimentation so much, I set a goal of doing this for 3 years which would take me through the entire “Revised Common Lectionary”.

I’ve always loved poetry, and the impact words can have on my heart and mind. I also love thinking and studying scriptures or theology, and have even thought about writing a book for public consumption. But more than once I’ve set out to write a book only to realize what I’m saying has already been said by someone who set it down in words quite well. But the playground of poetry has always been one I feel well-equipped to enjoy. I’m encouraged in this direction every time I find a poem I’d previously written, and feel moved by the words there. Sometimes it’s as if I’m a different person than the man who wrote the poem originally, and I suppose it is true. We are all constantly becoming the person we will be tomorrow while seeking to exist faithfully in the life we’re invited by today.

Not long into this endeavor, the global pandemic threw all kinds of ordered life into disorder, and I found the comfort and routine of writing these poems each day a familiar invitation. They (or rather, the God who met with me in these moments) became a source of stability and a reminder of God’s faithfulness during a time when so much of the world seemed to be asking “What can we still depend on?” As I look back on these three volumes, I’m thankful for the heart they continued to shape in me. I’m thankful for the ways God met with me in these moments. I don’t think many of them were individually life-altering. Rather, it’s the consistent presence and invitation to be Loved within His story that continues to shape my heart in response.

So here we are, having arrived at a point where all three years of poetry are available to the public. I’ve “self-published” them, not because I don’t believe in the power of publishing houses with built-in audiences and powerful stamps of approval, but because I know it takes work/marketing to pursue these roads. If anyone is interested in doing something with them – please let me know (while I continue pastoring full-time, of course). But this was the easiest path toward sharing them with whoever may be interested and preserving them for my kids to read their kids at family prayer times (no pressure, kids). Each book has slightly more than 365 poems included, which makes the total poetry available over 1,000 poems easily. I’ve given them the title “Poems for a Pray-er”, which may confuse some people. The hyphen indicates these are not just poems to be used as a “prayer”, but rather used by someone who wants to pray. Someone who wants to pray, I would refer to here as a “pray-er”. As I confess in each introduction – these are not all incredible poems. In fact, some of them should be re-written. None of them were labored over for long periods of time. But each are unique and written in that moment of response where I sought to hear from and respond to the heart of God revealed in scripture.

For me, there’s an obvious question of “What now?” For my personal times of prayer and scripture, I’ve begun to enjoy reading the Bible on its own again. I still use the lectionary to determine which passages to read most days. I love writing longer “Spoken Word” poetry, and will probably write some new words in this direction from time to time. I look forward to how God continues to use and redirect my passion for words and His Word.

If poems aren’t your thing, I want to encourage you – whatever your “thing” is, experiment with it. But in your experimenting and loving response to a mysteriously infinite God, examine where you might be “checking things off the list”, and ask God if He might delight in a new approach there. You may find that some methods actually retain their effectiveness (as a “Free Method-ist”, I definitely agree!), so don’t be afraid if some patterns stick for years, or even a lifetime. Whatever it looks like, may our lives continue to be shaped and reshaped daily in the Love God has revealed to us in Jesus Christ, empowered even today by His Spirit…