I gotta ask

myself, am I mad, or is this that day, again,
did we make a plan to finish something again,
and not do it, again?

I do believe, we have settled that both ignore and
believe are verbs in a modality, meaning

if you do not do it, yourself, it does not get done,
I believe ignorance is an active state, sold as faith,
evidenced by things unseen,
substantially manifested
in the peace you hoped
to find, being yours
to make up, in your mind,

and let it drift into reality, as we breathe our
insides out,

there could be a word for that.

Immediate or infinite.
A different perspective as I look down at my feet and then up to the next bend in the road, if not out to the distant horizon.

Immediate and infinite.
I hold both in my hands and in my heart. Both guide my path.

Immediate and infinite.
My God has made them beautiful and is Lord of both.

Desert Wind

“The lone and level sands stretch far away.” Shelley, Ozymandias.

Ah… And there it is, my friend— “A disembodied thought,”
Found, we’re told, under a soldier’s boot,
Though some have said it is not a thinkingness
But a yearning for the life that held it.

And there, just there, a bit of quartz
As white as cataracts
As final rays of sunlight, once
Caught and held— As black clouds
Boil across an afternoon sky
Eclipse the sun and day falls into night.

Or so the lone survivor told.
But she was blind, it’s said.
She lived another day or two
The legend goes, to say who won.

Though who would care, I wonder?
Surely not the dead.

But we, the living, in seeking, release the past to where
All pasts must dwell, recover hope, however faint,
Rekindle life, wherever present, harken to a living
Wind, attend its voices— those of Jesus, Allah,
HaShem, L. Ron Hubbard, and others.

And having listened and formed our own thoughts
And consulted with prayer and vision,
Rejoin, rejoice, reclaim our own lives,
Today, we are returned.
Today we are alive— and come and go in peace.

Peace
Is not withdrawal
Peace is the surge
The urge
Peace is arising
Swelling
It’s an overflowing
Swing of
Upturning
Turned-up rhythm
Peace is resurgence
Peace is expression
In and of
Common Purpose
Cresting waves
Of purpose
Aligned
Upon a new dynamic line
Peace is
Not withdrawal from life
Peace is not placid
Not flaccid
Peace is active
Busy
Peace is believed
Conceived
Crafted
Peace is for
And not against
Peace just is
See?
And you are its source
And I am its source
And we are its source
Reaching
Reaching from and for and to
Every searching soul
Peace is strength
Of integrity

Peace is yours
Mine
Ours

Peace is ready now

The righteous and blameless Saviour alone carried the cross,
For someone so unworthy and wretched like me, You paid the cost
Through redemption in Your Son, we are justified freely by Your grace
With new eternal life, may we seek Your face

You lovingly sent Your Son to die on the cross of Calvary for me,
Now that salvation is complete, forever I’m free!
My chains are gone, my debt is paid;
Through the cross, new hope for me is laid

My soul rejoices because Calvary covers it all,
Despite my sin and shame, You still gave Your call
You are merciful and faithful to save,
Nothing can ever separate us from Your love and grace!

Come, let us confess our sins and ask for forgiveness,
The faithful One will cleanse us from all righteousness
In Your light, we see light;
For in You, is the fountain of life!

Inspiration: Romans 3:24, 1 John 1:9, Psalms 36

A new year begins, with hectic schedules every day,
Anxieties overwhelm us- in school; work; in every possible way
Often we tend to focus solely on the challenging and stressful circumstances,
Forgetting the power and the capabilities of God, who can help us

Our doubts and tough circumstances are the results of the the powers and principalities of the evil world,
The spiritual war we face each and every day- between spirit and flesh; it is real
The evil one tries to make us doubt God’s love and provision during the trying times;
To counter it, we must have our eyes fixed on Christ, to be comforted in times of strife

When we come before God to acknowledge our weaknesses and inability to stand by our own strength,
Through His mercy, we are beholden to His love and grace which loosens our soul when we get tense
When countless worries come, we must render these known to God in prayer;
His comforting presence, peace and renewed strength in us shall take away all our doubts and fears

Challenges and anxieties from the world can afflict a believer and cause him to go astray,
But if we exercise our faith through prayer, God will help make these anxieties go away
“My child, for all those times when you were full of anxiety and fear,
It was I, who pulled you through; I have always been near.”

Inspiration: Psalm 94:18-19

by s.mckeown

The wail of war horns called the young to throw themselves away.
The peel of mortars, the burning oil launched by trebuchets.
Prehistoric tanks deployed their whistling rounds ignite,
While safe room politicians vow to carry on the fight.

I saw uniforms of every nation duck and dive their course,
Causes armed with children were spent without remorse.
Bloated greed with ruptured seams would spew the willing fodder,
As beasts of corporate virtue ate the souls of sons and daughters.

Every army from long since past appeared upon the watchtower,
From times of stone to nuclear drones each age was called to war.
From Genghis hordes to corporate boards, the parapets of paper,
Would burn again by sword or pen reducing us to vapor.

As if on cue a hush ensued that silenced gun and mortar,
Machines and horses slowed their gait and tanks would go no farther.
The quiet spread despite the rage from flags of degradation,
Lasers dropped from hands and eyes turned toward one direction.

A shaft of light had cut its way through clouds of wrath and fire,
And far below on the valley floor amongst the blood and mire.
The light had found a singing child whose arms were open wide,
The words were strong and strangely clear though the child softly cried.

The melody gently found its way a soothing truthful sound,
The child’s song stayed every hand with words of lost and found.
The dogs of war lay still at last, the beasts gave way to beauty,
The child sang with arms held wide to challenge king and duty.

The song gained strength, the soldiers stopped to turn and lend their ear,
Knights reined their steed to halt their charge from the front line to the rear.
The trenches emptied as soldiers rose to stand behind the wire,
The Gatling barrels turned their last as generals called cease-fire.

I dropped my shield and made my way to where the child stood,
His words cut deep so I felt the need to ask him if I could.
How he found the courage within to sing where death was king,
So I made my way over sightless eyes and mounds of dying things.

Over tanks and trenches, a path made straight to where the child stands,
It seemed I couldn’t help myself I had to understand.
He turned to face me, and then I saw his eyes were full of tears,
“You’re brave to start to sing this song in spite of what you fear.”

And all the while we shared our thoughts he never stopped the song,
While volleys of death were still at rest the words disarm the throng.
I marveled at this child’s voice and how clear the gentle words,
Could make the ageless monsters sleep and calm a war of worlds.

“I had no fear to start this song when cannons first were shot,
The tears are there because I know what happens when I stop.
But you made your way and now are here the only one to ask,
So I will teach you how to sing so I can rest at last.”

So I began with open heart to grasp the lyric and the song,
And though at first we sang together I turned to find him gone.
While song and tears draw soldiers near to come and take my place,
I learn to hold a humble heart that sings Amazing Grace.