Forever

I will

forever

be at your side.

At your back
protecting you.

At your front
leading you.

I will surround you
with My grace and goodness.

I will
forever
be the One who counsels you,
encourages you,
guides you,
who shows you
the paths of righteousness
for My Name's sake.

I will
forever
be your advocate,
the One who justifies you,
heals you,
delivers you
out of whatever darkness you have walked into,
willingly
or not.

I will
forever
be your comforter,
the One who cherishes you,
nurtures you,
loves you with a fierce and jealous love.

I will
forever
be the One who encircles you,
delights in you,
sings over you
with tears of laughter and joy inexpressible.

I will

forever

be your Savior,

your King,

your Lord,

your God.

Elephant in the Room

 There was an elephant in the room of my mind.

 It stood and watched me silently.

 When I introduced myself to people it looked up
 waiting to be introduced.

 But

 it's my socially unacceptable secret,
 my conversation killer,
 my secret past,
 hidden but huge
 like an elephant in the room of my mind.

 Imagine if I said to someone
 'Hi I'm Sarah. I was abused as a child by someone I didn't know, my family unaware.'
 And they would say...
 well what would they say?

 So I didn't say it to anyone,
 but that abuse had twisted my mind and my soul so I was walking dysfunction.

 For a long time unaware of how broken I was,
 thinking the tormenting demons were normal,
 normal for hell maybe,
 but not meant for a princess of the King,
 a precious child made in the image of God.

 Sinned against yet consumed with shame and guilt
 as if it was my fault.

 If you've broken your arm or leg you get sympathy, understanding, an encouraging smile.

 When your soul's been broken and you limp on the inside,
 you want to say the fact you're broken
 so someone can help you.

 But you stay silent,
 looking at the elephant in your own mind,
 and wishing someone would take it away forever.

 Then someone did it for me.

 It was Jesus.

He appears in different forms,
and he came in the form of an older woman in my church
who was filled with the Holy Spirit.

 And she gave hours
 and hours
 and hours to me,
 listening to my brokenness,
 understanding my pain,
 bringing God's word to my life through prayer,
 hugging me when words just wouldn't do.

 Unlike coffee healing wasn't instant,
 when you've been hurt over a long time
 it takes time for healing to come.

 But it came,
 and gradually I realized
 Jesus had gently but firmly
 led the elephant away out of the room of my mind.

 This is what healing looks like

 the effective,

 comprehensive,

 complete removal of any elephant that fills the room of your mind.

Lonely Place

There is a

lonely place

I need to find.

God wants me

to seek Him there.

During three full years
of ministry,
the Lord withdrew
to a lonely place
to be with His Father.

He left the clang and clamor,
the pressing, never ending
insistence of human need.

He listened to His Father's heart,

and He knew how and what to do.

Heart words are so softly spoken,

you cannot hear them in company.

You need to be in
a separated sky drawn space,

or an empty room,

where stillness can settle your soul
to hear the precious words
that are meant for you alone.

Draw aside to the lonely place,

He is waiting for you there.

Living Letter

He looks at me with eyes of love.

I cannot raise my gaze,

too much has happened to me

to start a conversation.

He keeps looking,

hoping I will be brave enough

to catch a glimpse of His face,

radiant with love,

longing for a lost child

wanting to come home.

I put my hand in His

and whisper heartfelt thanks.

I didn't think I would see

it through another day,

but here I am

with a smile for those around,

who have never really seen me

before now.

Something has changed.

My life has begun again,

as if my book of days

has been renewed, stamped, and released

into the library of life

to be read by others.

A living epistle,

or letter in simpler language,

waiting to be shared

outward and onward,

and have I told you about Jesus

and how He saved my life.

The Eden Project

How would you do

if you had to face the same test as Adam and Eve?

If you were put in a garden and you had to obey

just

one

law?

Do you find yourself thinking
I would never have taken the fruit?

How did you do when you were last faced
with a temptation?

Did you run into the safety of God's arms

or

did you listen to the tempter?

How long would you have lasted
in the Garden of Eden?

How long would any of us have lasted?

We cannot go back to undo what has been done.

We can be thankful for God's answer.

Jesus

the cross

an invitation to receive
forgiveness for our sins

and the renewed opportunity

to walk again with the Lord
in the cool of the day.

Collapse of a Civilization

We are watching

the collapse

of our civilization.

Future history
will say as much.

Scholars will hypothesize
on the details
of its downfall,

and wonder if
the interplay between
economic factors
and social decay
was as strong
as some propose.

Others will study
the legal structures
and political systems,

speculating on
the seeming success,
then fantastic failures
of governments to halt
the downward demise.

Corrupt consciousness,

moral meltdown,

societies sickening slide

won't be seen
in its true darkness,

for humanity is
ever forgiving
of its own sins,

and sadly

that is why

the

collapse

of a civilization

can continue in our days.

This Little Life

This little life

so tightly wound

dreaming of something

beyond our reach.

Hoping but helpless

to move forward

in our sphere of senses without You.

Muddled thought

wishing to express itself

more clearly

than tangent ideas

forming as distant clouds

over a speckled sunset.

Your truth cuts through

and stands coherent

amid the sea of drifting lies.

I can cling to it

as it anchors me

and gives me purpose

in this fragmented world.

I will not forget

Your Word as I press forward

to complete My calling

in some small token way.