Courage, why have you left me
Strength where have you gone
Faith, you fled into the world,
And left me wandering on.
Prayers you seem to be no more,
Hope, as well, has disappeared
To the dark have I lost them both
Just like I had once feared.
I'm afraid I've finally been left alone
Shall anyone notice my cries out here?
But what's more there's a voice so soft,
I stop and wipe from my eyes my tears.
Someone, they're calling something out
It's too faint to hear as I'm too far away
Yet they must be getting closer
For I can start to make out what they say
"Be strong, hold fast, take courage,
A command has He not given you?
For He will not leave, nor forsake;
Every tear that falls will He not come to?"
I stood up from where I was,
For I was no longer Alone.
By the voice of one like no other
Was a light to me shone.
I felt the cold leaving my body
Taking in warmth of the light I heard,
Strength came and filled my bones
At the sound of the Great Shepherd's word.
"Take heart and be strong, little lamb,
Here's something to ne'er forget
Many have been given to me by the Father
And of those many given, all shall be kept.
"This is a promise you have heard before
By it shall Faith and Hope return to you
Who will work together to bring back Prayer
And all this has come when there was naught you could do.
"Then given time Prayer will strengthen Faith
And they will work together along with God's grace
When all have become strong shall Courage come back
And all will have happened in their preordained place."
At the sound of His voice I fell down and worshiped
Just like he said came Hope, Faith, and Prayer,
When I finally looked up I could no longer see him
But, his promise remembered, I knew He was there.
And after some time along with much grace
I found that Courage was put back in his place
For as long as Faith would look toward the Cross
I knew, from God's Word, I would never be lost.
12/6/12