You allowed me a touch, I stretched out my hand to grasp Your hem In that moment I knew my weakness I was overcome by sorrowful joy Tears of forgiveness fell from my eyes As Your embracing Love cleansed my soul There was so little of man left As Your Spirit flooded the gates of mine How do I keep hold of Your robes? But to call out to You and beseech You Master, Father, Saviour of my Soul Redeem this small servant before you Willingly I shake free the shackles of earth As I surely enter the throne-room of the King I bow before my Creator in worship For this is the purpose of my breath Tarry not too long Lord For my soul thirsts for You.
Daily I am faced with arrows of temptation My flesh is weak and unwilling I look at my reflection in the mirror I am filled with shame at my wickedness Lord I long for Your daily washing of my soul I long for the life-giving tears to wash my sin away Daily the world wishes to defeat my flesh But Lord I cling to Your Word made Flesh I fall prostrate before your throne Crying out Abba Father, Your will not my own Lord I cry out for your boldness I cry out to be scorched with the Flame of Life Daily my flesh fails me and makes a deceiver of me I thank You Lord that Your Spirit has overcome The poison of the world’s arrow is dull I will not be afraid or dismayed, I hand over to You Lord
The earth trembles and breaks open Thunderbolts with the sound of giant cymbals Clash and echo all around me Lightning flashes as the earth tears her womb There is a rent in the soil beneath my feet I smell burnt sulphur of fear in the air My body cries out in fear with my heart racing But my spirit sings in triumph and awe As the cry of a newborn is issued from my lips “Messiah! Holy One! Lamb of God! Jesus Christ!” Excitement flows through me in waterfalls of joy As I am wrenched from this place by a force as gentle as a breeze With the power of an ocean. I arise. In this place – It shall be done Amen
He was a man on the streets Covered in nothing but filth and shame They held their noses closed Thanking God that wasn’t them Even the corpses in their grave Were offered compassion and love This man belonged to the undead And his name was ruined He was a man with two feet in hell And a drowning mind swallowed in evil All he saw before him was darkness All they saw in him was darkness Coming to the end of Hope’s road He looked around and saw nobody Falling down he wept one last time Yet no tears fell from hardened eyes Looking down from above Was an angel covered in love His face wreathed in a smile “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God And all these things shall be added to you” Then the man’s hidden heart opened As heavy tears fell from his eyes Where he had no hope, now he was joyful The darkness fled as love’s light Embraced his weary soul… “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God”
tired and dusty, – i have walked the streets of despair and adversity – blinded by the storm’s drumbeat looking for a place of rest i stumble into a stable; my heart filled with unrest, my instincts that of an animal. i find straw for a bed (not aware of Him) i lay down my heavy head and the world grows strangely dim: i feel strong hands gently lifting my weak, filthy body i battle to understand – Who would dare touch me so lovingly?! – i fearfully open my eyes finding myself in an empty manger, i look into the eyes of The Crucified as He kneels before my crude manger. slowly He holds my feet and in a gentle caress washes clean the dirt and the grime of the street. tears run down my cheek in ugly blotches, – full of shame – i watch as they fall On the shoulders of Him who became The Servant so that I may be called Royal. Smiling – he wraps my feet in royal cloth of white – He wipes the trail of tears from my cheek and tenderly embraces me in His Light I succumb to His Love – newly cleansed and replete
Resilience is a daisy blooming in the tread of Fate’s footpath
Faith is absorbing every bit of moisture
Life is to keep growing
But Love is the unseen root…
– Kim Koning –
This is a picture I took on my Sony Cybershot this morning. It is a macro-focus of two tiny, perfectly intact miniture daisies that were in my footpath as I walked to work. It hit me then that truly is what Resilience is. It is an enduring hardiness and toughness even though you may be vulnerable to the pull of fate and circumstance. It is about a miniture creation perfect and whole that lies in the footpath of all creatures.
Resilience is a character facet that will see one through many turmoils in life.
How often do you feel as vulnerable as those daisies?
How often do you feel as if you are in the footpath of life just waiting for the tread of fate to crush you?
Yet if you are resilient like these two daisies, you will continue blooming and you will live the life you are meant to live no matter how short.
As I wrote a couple of days ago, I have started Project 365/2011 being inspired by the Shutter Sisters. It is amazing what sights you find when you are looking for them. I am on Day 2 so far, so 363 days left. Follow my posts on my flickr and my tumblr accounts.
May you also be inspired to seek out images that inspire you.