Answered Prayer...

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....Comes in Unexpected

Sometimes Disruptive

Sometimes Downright Disorienting Packages

Like a Rogue Wave

Your Boat is Blindsided

By this New Beginning

Not "Wrapped-Up-Pretty-With-A-Bow-On-Top"

As we've been taught all Gifts should be

But Messy

Misfit

Misaligned with our Best-Laid-Plans

and Illusions of control

Welcome the Mess

Welcome the (temporary) Imbalance

and Loss-Of-Bearings

Know that you are being Lifted

Know that you are Held

Know that you are Carried, and the Way is being cleared

For New-Normal

For Good and not Evil

For Hope and a Future

For More than your heart dared to ask, expect, or imagine.....

For Answered Prayer

For The Beginning.

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"As for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day."

-Genesis 50:20

lost and found II

~*

Amazing,

This Knife's Edge

between 

Fearsome and Fearful

White Tiger

Trembling in the suffocating "safety"

of his self-made hiding place

for fear of being found...

Find me anyway.

~*

-e.a.a. "hindsfeet" 5/11/14

"the son of God came to seek and save that which was lost..."

-Luke 19:10

Gentle

"And He said, Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.  And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of gentle stillness and a delicate, whispering, still, small voice."

-1 Kings 19:11-12

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...God reveals himself here to Elijah, not in destruction, but in Gentleness.

He shows Himself to be trademarked by Tenderness

defined by a "Delicate Voice"

The God Who created the worlds with a Word

reveals Himself in a Whisper.

The One Who could've overwhelmed Elijah with His Magnanimity

instead came to him, His beloved, His chosen

in the minutiae,

in the diminutive,

in the Still Small Voice...

in Gentleness.

It's important to speak rightly of our God, especially to those in distress, those under duress, those dealing with the destruction that this world and its brokenness can bring upon us.

It is important to not be like Job's friends, who came under rebuke from the Most High, for misrepresenting God's character and His heart toward His beloved.

It's been said that those who intimately understand their God are God's mercy to His creation;

Understanding God's gentleness is a good place to start.

Meriam Webster expounds on this, God's defining characteristic, this way:

Considerate or kindly in disposition; amiable and tender.

Not harsh or severe; mild and soft: a gentle scolding; a gentle tapping at the window.

Easily managed or handled; docile: a gentle horse.

Not steep or sudden; gradual: a gentle incline.

Of good family; wellborn: a child of gentle birth.

Suited to one of good breeding; refined and polite: a gentle greeting to a stranger.

Noble; chivalrous: a gentle knight.

One of good birth or relatively high station.

tr.v. gen·tled, gen·tling, gen·tles

To make less severe or intense: The peaceful sunset gentled her dreadful mood.

To soothe, as by stroking; pacify.

To tame or break (a domestic animal, for instance): gentle a horse.

To raise to the status of a noble.

to tame; render tractable.

to mollify; calm; pacify.

to make gentle.

to stroke; soothe by petting.

to ennoble; dignify.

Synonyms

1. clement, peaceful, pacific, soothing; tender, humane, lenient, merciful. Gentle, meek, mild refer to an absence of bad temper or belligerence. Gentle has reference especially to disposition and behavior, and often suggests a deliberate or voluntary kindness or forbearance in dealing with others: a gentle pat; gentle with children. Meek implies a submissive spirit, and may even indicate undue submission in the face of insult or injustice: meek and even servile or weak. Mild suggests absence of harshness or severity, rather because of natural character or temperament than conscious choice: a mild rebuke; a mild manner. 3. temperate. 5. noble. 7. manageable, docile, tame, quiet. 9. courteous; polished.

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"Your Gentleness has made me great."

-Psalm 18:35

Rest - Haiku trio

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Still, I now can feel

God's motion all around me

at Rest in my ark

At Rest, I realize

Noah couldn't steer either

"God is Great, M'Sabu"

Dove and Olive Branch

I smile at my smallness

Storm Spent, Rest in sight...

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Shore

+

My Beloved,

Hear Me:

I AM Sovereign over the storm

I AM steering the ship,

every circumstance

every "happenstance"

every joy

every sorrow

I AM in control

I do not ask you to walk out on water

I ask you to invite me in to the boat

it was not Peter's heroics that harnessed the gale

but rather My Word,

Peace, Be Still.

I AM the Way

where there seems to be no way

and I AM directing your Path

with a Wisdom you cannot now fathom,

in ways you cannot possibly hope for or ask

I AM the good Shepherd,

I AM your Shepherd

I will not leave you lost

you are Mine,

I AM yours,

I AM with you

I will lead you,

and I will,

without fail, Beloved

bring you back

to Shore

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"Do not remember the former things,

nor consider the things of old;

Behold I do a New Thing...

I will make the way in the wilderness

and rivers in the desert."

-Isaiah 43:18-19

Rise

"Rise up, My love, My fair one...

for behold, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone, 

flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come...

Rise up, My love, My fair one..."

-Song 2:10-13

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Buoyant hearts

Resilient beyond reason

Bear witness to the Heart that bore them

hearts having borne a backbreaking cross

given up for dead

thought bested...

But slowly, slowly, long shadows are cast

incredulous eyes turn to see,

Gold dispels dark

Sky turning, turning...
and the Word again spoken,

"Let There Be..."

Life stifled and silenced

now has the final say,

now breaks,

is Reborn in the breaking,

Graveclothes give way to Irrepressible Light

Unfettered,

Unbroken,

Unburied,

We Rise

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"Did I not tell you if you believed,

you would see the Glory of God?"

-John 11:40

safe keeping

for my Maddie

June 11, 2003 - April 18, 2014

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Given me for safe keeping

Given into this life

too turbulent,

too heavy for her heart

she tethered me to terra

when time and again

 I would've flown

and now she flies

finally free

finally weightless,

boundless,

unburdened

Resurrected 

back into the Heart of God

from whence she came

to keep me

+

Rest well, my Dear one

finally at Peace

finally Home

"...this world was never meant for one as beautiful as you..."

-Don McLean

Passover...

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I ask breadcrumbs

from Bread of Life,

settle for glimpses

from The-God-Who-Sees

Lame and Blind

I  await a few alms

When He would make me walk

When He who holds me

as the apple of His Eye

would give me sight...

Egypt bearing down hard

trapped between Sea and Slavery

I beg for a boat

from the Hand Who Parts The Water...

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"He brought them out from there,

that He might bring them in."

-Deuteronomy 6:23

pinscratch

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a million moments had to happen just so,

a thousand planets align,

to make this one pinscratch on the road

in this exact place,

at this precise moment in time

how can that awareness fill my mind 

with anything less than profound peace,

and letting go

and come-what-may trust

why now do I feel I need to protect 

and guard and preserve
the pinscratch....

why can I not lie on my back
a pinscratch on this road myself

arms outstretched,
breathing deep,

laughing out loud

into the sky...


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Cross Over II

Matthew 14:22-33

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Twelve verses depicting Twelve men

unwittingly sent into a storm of hurricane proportions.

 Jesus actually sent his followers,

his beloved,
his friends,

into the tempest,

without Him.

He knew exactly what they were in for.
He knew exactly what He was doing.

He knew the terror they would face
the bewilderment they would bear
the betrayal they would feel.

and yet

He surrendered them to the wind's fury,
letting them battle the waves all night long;
It was more important for these messengers of Salvation
to know their Savior,
to know the Lord of the Storm,
than to be spared the storm.

The gale did not sink God's chosen,
but served to shipwreck the vestiges of their faulty faith

They saw, first hand, Salvation Himself surface,
and dominate what threatened to drown them.

The storm was not an end;

It was an integral part of the path

to the Beginning

Jesus didn't send them into the storm to destroy them,

He sent them into the storm to get them to the other side.

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"Peace, Be Still."

-Mark 4:39

Cross Over

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Be brave, Beloved
Let your eyes take in the View

Step into this bounty

Meticulously Crafted,

Created,
just for you

all was ashes
all is Beauty
all was lost
all is New

Complete your Crossing

into All That Will Be,

behind you now nothing

but an unbroken sea

in which is buried
 all that is past,

all that imprisoned
and possessed you

Time now to Reap in Laughter
Time to Rest in Joy

Time to Return to the Land of the Living
to take leave of tears
and Begin

you endured,

Now Enjoy

Every Good and Perfect Gift

I had waiting for you

on this,

The Other Side

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"Have I not commanded you?  Be Strong and of Good Courage;
do not be afraid, nor be dismayed,
for the Lord your God is with you
wherever you go."
-Joshua 1:9

Held

+

You can Let Go

Because I never do

You can relax your hold

Because it is I, The Most High

Who Holds You

Let fly, Let fly

My little one...

You are Mine

You are Mine

You are Mine

I AM height, I AM depth,

I AM width, I AM breadth,

and you are braced in Me

What fear can possibly remain

when you are so perfectly Loved,

when you have My Word

that Never, will I Ever, Ever forsake you?

What clinging can continue

when you are carved, My Beloved,

into the Very Hand of God?

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"God Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support.  I will not, I will not, I will not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let you down nor relax my hold on you!  Assuredly not!"

-Hebrews 13:5 (Amplified Version)

Resurrection...

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Feel Me

My Love

As close as Breath

And Inhale

Deep

Deep,

As Adam did

That First Breath

Which Began Life

In The Beginning

And Breathes Still

Lay Aside

dogma, deeds, dead works

(all these counterfeit conduits to Me)

And Come

Naked, Open Handed, Empty

Let Me Breathe Again

Breath of Life

Know, as Adam did

This intimate intubation 

Deity inseparably interwoven

with Dust

Enfolded,

Enmeshed,

Emmanuel

With you

In you

One with you,

and

Live

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"Prophesy unto the Wind...and say to the Wind,

'Thus says the Lord God:

Come from the four winds, O Breath, and Breathe upon these slain,

that they may Live."

-Ezekiel 37:9

Here Comes the Sun....

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.....sorry to so shamelessly 'borrow' from the Beatles there,
but Harrison said it so well, it bears repeating......

....especially today.....

it finally happened.....

the first day of

Spring

We made it.......

through the falling, the darkness, the dying......

the cold, the fear, the hard broken road........

Here We Are

on the other side...

Winter now graciously concedes,
her important work completed.

Satisfied, she steps aside,

to make room for Light,

for Life coming back,

for All Things New....

Here comes the Sun my friends,

it's going to be Glorious.

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"Their Path is like the light of dawn
which shines brighter and brighter
unto the Perfect Day"
-Proverbs 4:18

Dark

"I will give you the treasures of darkness,

and hidden riches of secret places"

-Isaiah 45:3

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It is a sacred trust to be subjected to the dark night of the soul.

True treasure is not brandished in broad daylight,

not before it is unearthed from punishing pressure,

considerable confinement,

darkness that feels like death,

black as night,

the treasure hunter subjected

to the same surroundings

as the treasure itself,

deep calling to deep

There is a communion with Christ which only happens

when we share in His sufferings,

when we are crucified with him,

when we undergo the extreme duress

despised by those content with cubic zirconias...

Therein true riches are found

Therein Gift is formed

From this burial we are unearthed

Resurrected

and we become the Reveal

of the One True God,

The Treasure

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"I, the Lord, form the light and create darkness"

-Isaiah 45:7

be healed....

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Healed, we become healers

A beautiful relay of Redemption

A domino effect of Divine Energy

and Grace

Paying forward what we could never have paid for

Freely Given, we freely give

and become fountainheads

for all who are thirsty

for all who need beauty

for whosoever will...

Quenching the thirst of thousands

Soothing weary souls

Holy hands holding gently,

tenderly,

broken hearts,

as our hearts are Held...

...till they too become whole

till they become healed

and in turn

come to know

for themselves

The Healer

+

"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me

to heal the brokenhearted"

-Isaiah 61:1

Beginnings - a haiku ...

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The waters subside

Tempest transformed to New Day

Noah's dove finds Rest...

+

Isaiah 54:11,12

now....

~*

...the smoky taste of my coffee

brimming in my moody maroon mug..

Perfect...

puppy snoozing, breathing softly,

she knows all is well....

Vanilla and Sandlewood

flickering, burning away,

silent and golden in waning winter's light...

and steady Oaks

standing their snowy watch,

ancient and noble outside my window...

their stillness staying me,

grounding me,

in the gorgeous gracious Gift

of

now.

~*

Good Shepherd....

+

He is good, you know....this Shepherd of ours......

not some distant deity,

but here,

nearer than touch,

eating, sleeping, breathing with us,

in it with us,

 for the long haul....

...through green pastures and the shadow of death alike,

guiding us,

rod and staff at the ready,

not to clobber us over the head for misdeeds and missteps,

but to Comfort us,

To Comfort Us....

He looks for and delights in, as all good parents do,

the wonderful in his children,

not what's wrong with them...

That misperception has been impressed on us

by others

by hirelings,

who do not know His heart...

A Heart so consumed with His Beloved

His Chosen

His very own Creation,

His Magnum Opus...

We have a Shepherd Who will go head to head

with anyone who dares say differently

A Shepherd Who will defend to the death

His own,

and indeed,

did just that,

at Calvary...

Shepherd became Sheep,

became Lamb of God,

taking the blows we could not bear,

dying the death He could not bear to see us die,

so that any doubt of His Devotion

of His Deep Abiding Love

would be removed Forever,

so we would follow,

unflinchingly,

fearlessly,

The Good Shepherd

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"I AM the Good Shepherd.  
The Good Shepherd gives His life for the sheep.  
But a hireling, he who is not The Shepherd,
one who does not own the sheep, 
sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep.
I AM the Good Shepherd; and I know My sheep,
and am known by My own."

-John 10:11-14

Live

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It's Safe now

The Storm has passed

Relax your bracing against the blast.....

.....It's Over.

You hung, my Love, feeling helpless

fearing I had forsaken you

when all the while it was I, hanging there with you,

and you with Me,

held by the nails of 

bewilderment,

betrayal,

disillusionment,

despair...

You were never alone, my Beloved,

not for one moment...

I was with you,

bled with you,

in your Garden of Gethsamane...

I walked with you this ancient Way

the road to this death...

But this death,

that felt so terrible,

that was so terrible, my Love,

so merciless,

brutal beyond bearing,

has set the stage for New Life,

for Knowing Me in a way you could not have otherwise,

for making Me known....

There is a time to die,

That time is Done.

You bore the cross with Me,

now it's time to be Born...

Here comes the sun, my Beloved One,

You died with me,

Now Rise with Me,

and Live.

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"I AM the ressurection and the Life;

though he died, yet shall he Live."

-John 11:25

Lost

+

Still your frenetic searching

your manic movements

and frantic feeling around...

Quiet yourself,

Come to center,

Relax your tight grip,

and Realize...

The Light

is looking

for

you

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"The Son of God came to seek and save those who are lost"

-Luke 19:10

Heaven on earth...

(Wintergreen, Virginia)

+

Let my eyes be so Filled

my soul be so Flooded

my body be Lifted

by Your Beauty

all around...

Your sun pour into my spirit

Your mighty oaks take root in my mind

Your watercolors in the sky

soak deep

and course through

my entire make up,

All of me...

Let Your sacredness make me sacred

In Your Beauty make me Beauty

Enrapture me in Your Ebb and Flow,

The Ocean of You

Till I am,

with all of nature,

a view of You,

of Heaven on earth

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"Since the creation of the world 

His invisible attributes are clearly seen,

being understood by the things that are made,

even His eternal Power and Godhead;

in nature we see His Divine Nature."

-Romans 1:20

Beloved

Song of Solomon 4-6

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Oh Beloved,

Blow into this, your Garden,

that its spices may flow out

Kiss me with the Kisses of Your Mouth

and Breathe once again

into dust your Deity...

let me inhale You deeply

and exhale Creation...

With the work of a Skillful Craftsman

Make me the door

through which You come into earth

as You are in Heaven,

and become

for them also

Beloved

+

"He is altogether lovely,

this is my Beloved, this is my Friend."

-Song 5:16

hidden

(Pollak Vineyards - Greenwood, Virginia)

* * *

...hard to believe they'll bloom,

much less bear fruit again,

this landscape of a thousand crucifixes

looking lifeless

and beaten...

but within each cross

flows the blood of beginnings,

perennial promise

of return...

of resurrection...

beneath the stillness,

this suspended animation,

are stirrings...

The scene which holds for the eye only death

belies unseen Life within...

welling up,

mustering,

and moving in ancient circadian concert 

with all of Creation

as it readies itself

for

 The Reveal.

* * *

"To everything there is a season, 

a time for every purpose under heaven"

-Ecclesiastes 3:1

a time to be born

* * *

...still a little nighttime left,

this Path we walk

to Morning,

where New awaits

- a princess poised for the Kiss

that will waken her from sorrowful dreams... -

...I pull my wrap tight around me

huddled up in the cold and deep 

of winter's womb

wherein Life

is fearfully and wonderfully woven,

wherein I breathe,

in and out,

breath that looks like Spirit...

and wait....

Light will be born

out of darkness

where Life begins...

thus it has ever been,

but our disillusionment at the fact never fails -

Dark places are not always wombs

but wombs are always dark places

where all that is good and necessary

is nurtured and knit together

...so I will whisper thanks

into the gloaming,

yield to eventide,

and pause for a moment

to look up,

to see the celestial reflection

of soon-coming sunlight,

and to let the little dipper

ladle me out

a few stars...

* * *

"He has made everything beautiful in its time...

no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end."

-Ecclesiastes 3:11

Redeemer?

* * *

healing, wholeness

another round

still spinning...

seed squandered

is still seed

flung to the wind

carried

to take root

and bloom

in another place

at another time...

...I'm hoping to make that rendezvous...

* * *

"Beauty for ashes"

-Isaiah 61:3