Where is peace?
When all the world seems in shambles
The cries of the wicked fill the streets
Fill the media
Fill politics
And break in the doors of family.
We have strayed from the path, into brambles.
We have lost our unity,
And traded it for outrage.
Among all this folly, where is peace?
We find peace among creation:
The constant lapping of ocean waves on morning beaches
The chattering of birds as they fly between trees,
The wind rustling in the aspen leaves.
But when you no longer hear those things,
Gone once again is peace.
To survive we must find Peace Everlasting
The Prince of Peace who is
The beginning of all creation's peace.
This Peace is living in you.
He will not leave you nor forsake you.
So when the cares of the world
Burden you with extra weight
And seem to stifle your shalom,
Pray to feel the greater Shalom.
Spread Him to the world.
Accept Him, and live in Peace.
Constant, fearless, joyful, and true,
Is the Shalom living in me and in you.

True Love.
I used to believe in it.
I would dream of the moment I would find it
But that moment never came.
Love, I have never felt.
But I know it is there.
And it is cruel.

Love ends in heartache
Love ends in the separation of friends.
Why is love so important to us?
Why is it important enough to die for,
To sacrifice all for,
To break, over and over for
But then I realized,
We have corrupted love.
Love should be patient, kind, and never-ending.
But for us, Love did die
Love was broken
Love was beaten
Love died, for me
For me, the one who spat on Love.
The one who raged against Love,
While drowning in my own wickedness
I nailed Love to a cross.
I killed Love.
And Love rose, for me.
The one who murdered Him.
So I don't need to despair.
True Love isn't something I earn or acquire.
True Love acquired me.
True Love found me in darkness.
True Love abides in me.
And I will never be alone.

No one understands me.
This is something I am sure of.
They might think they have me figured
But they only see my acts.
My mind is a place uncharted,
What you find there weird and unknown.
My friends think they have me figured,
But they don't.
I don't want them to.
If I can't even figure myself out
Then how can they know me?
They know what I show them.
And what I show them is real.
But it isn't me in entirety.
Why do I enjoy the sense of mystery?
Why do I like being the outsider?
All people are unique.
But not all people are this deep.
When no one understands,
There is not to do but leave.
Once alone my mind may roam,
Free to wander in secret solitude.
There I find that once again,
I am alone in my path.
No one, no not one
Know what it is to be me.
I can't truly place it,
I don't know if I could should I try,
But deep down inside
Is a secret.
My friends don't know me,
My family doesn't either,
Not even I.
But there is one who sticks closer,
Closer than a brother or sister.
He knows my heart,
Where I only know confusion.
He saved me from myself,
His Name is Jesus.