Glimpses of Grace and Glory

Moses asked to see God, and was told,
"No one may see God and live."
Yet Jesus on the mountaintop
Revealed the Almighty's Glory
To His three companions. 
They all survived.
What happened in that encounter
Continues now. 
Jesus is reconciling the world to 
The Triune Godhead. 
The temple of the curtain was torn in two
From top to bottom
(Just in case there was any question Who was doing the tearing).
The Holy Spirit rushed in 
And quaked the upper room.
Unmerited, free Grace 
Poured,
And continues to pour
Into the lives of the faithful,
Hinting at the Lord's Power,
And the eclipsing might of His Glory. 

Lord,
I encountered you in my apartment,
After my own fears and misgivings - 
Lies and deceit - 
Resulted in the loss of my home. 
When I stepped into the apartment - 
In those first seconds when I saw
Echoes of my childhood homes - 
You spoke to my soul 
As audibly as a person standing next to me. 
You said,
"You have sinned,
But I am still with you."
A few days later,
When I heard the bells of St. Finbar's
And saw the illuminated cross 
From the back of the Chinese Church,
I felt again your grace
Transforming my guilt and grief. 
You alone have the power to shield and forgive me,
And I will praise You
For the tender mercies,
For the glimpses of grace and glory
That continue to bless my life. 

The Alien and The Orphan

Lord,
I know that you are the Author of Life,
And the Giver of Good Things. 
I know that you place people in my life
At appointed times and seasons. 
You incited a desire in my friend 
To leave all that she knew
On the other side of the world
To start a new life here. 
You established her here, 
And protect her daily. 
Does she know that you are the God
Of the widows and the poor,
The orphans and the aliens?*
Lord,
I am the orphan.
(Twice over!)
She is the alien. 
(She couldn't be further from home!)
Is the kinship we share under Your Grace
What draws me closer to her?
Continue to grant her Your protection
And mercy,
Your favor and kindness. 
Continue to grant me steadfastness and patience, 
A serving heart and discerning spirit
With which to better mirror Your Will. 
Father,
You are our God. 
Be ever near us. 

*Jeremiah 22:3

Laughter from the Tomb

Lord,
From the Garden,
You foretold of the One
Who would reclaim
Paradise Lost
For us.
"I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel."*
At the moment death claimed us,
You promised that it would not keep us.
On that Resurrection morning,
When dawn kissed the sky,
And the stone rolled away from the tomb,
The agony of Your Son
Was transformed into Glory.
The tears shed in Gethsemane
Became the Laughter of Praise...
Laughter that peals across the aeons
And shatters our fears,
Laughter that strengthens our hearts,
And affirms our place with You
In the Garden Restored.

*Genesis 3:15

Orbit

The planets spin on their axes,

Circling the sun,

While moons and rings

Revolve around them.

Wandering stars are pulled into

The cosmic dance,

Flying in from the Oort Cloud

Every 76 years.

Even from far off,

Haley feels the tug,

And begins his long journey back.

The heavenly bodies whirl and cycle

Around the sun

Who represents

The Son

Around whom we ought to orbit. 

Lord,

When I see the night sky

Let me see your heralds,

The signs of times and seasons,

The proclaimers of all that

Was, is, and shall be.

Become as a sun to my path,

Summoning me from all the

Vain conceit and folly of the world.

Spur me along.

Rouse me to follow You,

In union with other heavenly bodies...

To rejoice

In the Triune Godhead,

The End All and Be All

Of Creation's Epic Dance.

The Misfit

A prayer of thanksgiving.

Lord,

Only You know how many times

I have uttered in my soul,

"Why have you made me thus?"

I have rarely felt at home

With anyone or any group

I have ever been part of.

My family, my friends, my peers

Have often whispered about the oddness

That envelops me.

I am never "enough" of any one trait or affiliation

To satisfy others.

Neither Caucasian nor Hispanic.

Neither Catholic nor Protestant.

Neither Democrat nor Republican.

Neither Liberal nor Conservative

Neither a citizen nor an alien.

Someone who often felt like a boy

Trapped in female form,

A floating consciousness more at home in books

Than in her own flesh.

A mind awash with love, wonder and awe,

Yet burdened with the Spirit of Heaviness.

I am an old soul in a young body,

A white collar worker with blue collar tastes.

Unutterably sensitive, yet proven resilient.

Full of compassion, yet critical of the follies of humanity,

With the heart of a poet,

And the steeliness of a life-hardened warrior.

A stumbling sinner who cannot extend

Forgiveness to herself

With the same ease she does to others.

Lord,
I am a mystery to myself.

Why have you made me thus?

The answer flows through me

Before the cry has finished

Escaping my lips

"Would a box or a label satisfy you?

Would you appreciate others' vantage points better

If yours was more narrow?

I have made you thus

To do My Work:

To mourn with those who mourn,

And laugh with those who laugh.

To be hot and cold,

Strong and weak,

Angry and forgiving,

Frustrated and patient,

Cruel and compassionate,

Whoever I need you to be

In every circumstance I place you.

Because you claim no allegiance,

No allegiance can claim you,

And you are free to do My Will

As I dictate to you."

"But Lord," I counter,

"There's nowhere I belong."

"My child," He whispers,

"You are exactly where you belong...

With Me."

Storm

Lord Jesus Christ...

When the Apostles woke you

For fear of being destroyed by a storm,

A word from you stilled the sea and sky.

Storms threaten my shores.

Calm what rages in me!

Counter my thoughts as you did the rain and waves...

"The demands of your job are going to overwhelm you."

(I know all things, and will give you knowledge to help you accomplish your tasks.)

"Everyone else makes more money than you."

(Seek Me first.  I will supply your needs.)

"You are not where you should be with your life."

(You are with Me.  I AM your destination.)

"You can't make a difference in the world, so stop trying."

(I am arming you, sending you out to share the Kingdom News with everyone you meet.)

"You'll eventually lose everyone and everything you love."

(Death is not an end; it is the doorway to the eternal. By the way, that's where I AM.)

Anointed One,

You entered the realms of humanity.

You understand the fickleness of flesh.

Reach out Your hand,

And calm the fear and doubt.

Don't let the storm toss me too far,

And remind me that You are

Ever near.

Good Vs. Evil

When I was a child,
I wrote adventure stories. 
Damsels in distress, 
Heroes in disguise, 
Aliens from space...
Epic tales (for an eight-year-old)
Of good versus evil.
Good always wins, of course. 

Lord, Eli, Abba!
I come before Your Throne
Battle-tried and weary. 
I come before Your Throne
Seeking strength within my weakness,
Resilience within compassion,
Boldness clothed with gentleness,
Equal parts wisdom and kindness.  
Mold me daily
Into the image of Your Son. 
Grant that in the war
Between You and the Adversary
I perceive Your Will,
And desire to conform to it.

When I was a child,
Penning my innocent tales 
Of Good Vs. Evil,
I did not know
That the stakes of the timeless war
Were paid with the currency
Of human souls. 

Drive

Dear Self,

Would you

MOVE OVER

And SHUT UP

So that

The King

Can drive?

Thanks.

Dear King,

Please humble Yourself enough

To step into

What I shall compare to

A 1958 Ford Edsel

Battered and bruised

Held together with spit and bubble gum

Please take the wheel

And drive

Because only You know where

We ought to go!

Wonder

Lord,
I remember 
My youth
And innocence
With startling clarity
And detail. 
I remember 
The wonder at Your bounty,
The reverence for Your creation
The awe of catching and holding
Your creatures. 
Help me recapture that wonder. 
Help me remember the joy felt
Over the leaping grasshoppers
And emerging butterflies. 
In a small and simple way,
Grant me the words
To call forth 
That reverence 
From others. 

Mercy Seat

Morning commute to Metrotech. 
I board the D
And encounter
A broken man. 
His garb and wagon declare him
Homeless. 
I recall the times 
I was without a home, 
And the people who kept me
Protected. 
Why does he have nowhere to go,
No one to turn to?
I have no money,
But I have my breakfast. 
I offer it tentatively, 
Fearfully,
Praying he sees this as an act of kindness,
Not condescension. 
He says "Thank you,"
And I am weeping when I transfer trains. 
Anointed One,
Is this one millionth of the pity
You felt for us,
That kept You there,
Upon the cross?
For the briefest moment,
My spirit surges up and out. 
Like Paul, the scales fall from my eyes. 
I see people now...
And nothing can ever be the same...

Prayer, Richard J. Foster Style

It is a suggestion
In Celebration of Discipline:
How to sanctify one's imagination
"For the work of
The Kingdom of God."
The line reads:
"In a bus or plane we can invite Jesus
To walk down the aisles,
Touching people on the shoulder
And saying, 'I love you'."
The suggestion strikes me as odd and interesting.
Of course I want to try it.
I am on the train, and in my mind's eye
I see
...Jesus...
Tapping people
Saying good morning
Smiling
Telling them to have a good day at work
Whispering to the sleeping young man who looks like he's been working for three weeks straight
That it will get better soon.
Exhorting the stressed out
Mother of three
To turn to Him for the courage she needs to stay strong
For the family that needs her.
He is here, there,
Everywhere,
Greeting,
Welcoming,
Obliging,
Helping,
Strengthening,
Guiding,
Healing.
Now...
Jesus rides the train with me
Many mornings.
We observe our fellow straphangers
I see them through His eyes,
Fallen creatures in a broken creation,
In dire need of God's grace.
I flash prayers at the people
In obvious pain, distress, and exhaustion,
And smile broadly imagining Him riding the train with me.
Lord,
Is this Kingdom work?
Is this Incarnation manifested?
Is this what You mean by praying without ceasing?
Then sanctify what You gave me!
Use my imagination
To bring Your Kingdom
One step closer to us all.

Ready, Steady: One-Baby

You were little more than 
Ounces of gray fur
When you were brought to me. 
With big green eyes, 
And ears you had to grow into,
You were sick,
And malnourished. 
My home became your home.
I nursed you, and you waxed strong. 
Adventurer,
You escaped into the neighbor's cabbages one summer night. 
Retrieving you was not easy. 
I had never scaled a chain-link fence before. 
A night in March, you left the house
And wandered through the backyard. 
Mommie had to calm me
As I washed snow and mud off you. 
Let us not forget
The day you were locked in the refrigerator
(It was only for a few minutes),
Or the day you attacked a telephone installation man.
You have lived with me
For the past fourteen years. 
Now, I watch you wane.
Your kidneys are failing. 
Your limbs are not as fluid as they once were. 
I await the inevitable
Wearily, sadly. 
Lord,
Make me ready, steady me through
The grief and guilt that are coming. 
When You renew this world,
May it be that You restore
The creatures You gifted to us
In this life
Or else make the memory of them
Untouched with sorrow.

Zookeeper

For "The King of the Castle"... Whose kitchen you will often find me in... 

Gold and black seahorses bob to and fro
In the gentle currents of the tank
Shrimp and blue crabs clean and feed
While anemones and feather dusters purify and beautify. 
Parrots live in harmony with dogs and humans
All creatures are welcome here!
Did you know that 
Before the Fall
The Creator made Adam to have dominion 
Over the fish of the sea and
The birds of the heavens and
The livestock and
Every creeping thing that creeps on the earth
May this life foreshadow 
The one to come
When the Earth is restored 
To its former glory
May you spend eternity 
As a second Adam 
Caring for the creatures
At the behest of the Creator...

Wednesdays This Lent

I have never consistently practiced
Actions to bring me closer
To You. 
This Lent, I seek You
Through a new discipline. 
Was it not food that brought about
The Fall?
Was it not for a bowl of soup
That Esau gave away his birthright?
Was it not food that the enemy 
First used to tempt Your Anointed 
After His trials in the wilderness?
I experience grace more fully
When my stomach lies empty
I pray more clearly
When the blood fills my brain
Instead of my belly
I know I am unlocking something precious 
Because the temptations flare hot and furious
On Wednesdays this Lent. 
Lord, draw me closer to You
Replace the hungers of my body
With the hunger for Your Word,
Your Spirit
Nourish me with the Bread and Blood
Of Your Son,
The true Manna,
The fulfillment of every longing
In my heart!

God Appearing

For Theophania, whose name means "God Appearing"

Lord...
There is this girl. 
She is lost. 
Find her. 
She walks in darkness. 
Shine before her. 
Guide her out of the pit. 
Pick her up. Carry her. 
Heal her. Restore her. 
Use me to fortify her
However I can. 
Battles rage within her, 
And wear down her soul. 
Hold her. Protect her. 
Lay Your Hands upon her
And transform her perpetual night
Into day. 
Good Shepherd,
You who seek lost lambs, 
Seek her. Call her. 
Make her see the beauty in life,
The joy in true friendships,
And the hope that is born anew
With each sunrise...