Constant Guide

I wrote this poem today, and it fast became very special and dear to me. So I wanted to share.

Constant Guide

In thy darkness, hear me speak.

To thy wounded soul I reach.

Child I have heard thy pleas, 

I have seen thee on thy knees.

Thou art calling out for help

In this trial thou wast dealt.

I can help thee to be strong,

Still with me thou canst belong.

In this trial I can see

Thou art needing words from me.

Little one, I"m standing nigh-

He who lovest thee on high.

In my arms I hold thee close,

And to thee my mercy flows.

My embrace will hold thee tight

As I guide thee to the light.

I can't take away this pain,

But I constant will remain

Ever standing by thy side-

Guiding through this troubled ride.

Tempter's hand will mock thy heart,

Tearing thee inside apart.

He is out to seize thy joy,

All thy happiness destroy.

Thou art stronger than he thinks;

Let him not thy ship to sink.

I won't leave thee on thy own,

Still my daughter not alone.

As thou strives to return here,

I will help thee not to fear.

When thy covenants doth keep,

Great rewards will then thou reap.

The Gift of Eternity

In honor of it being Easter Sunday today, I found myself in Sacrament meeting writing a poem. It is not entirely strictly an Easter poem, but it reminds me of the reason for this particular holiday. I have called it Eternal Gift.

Eternal Gift

Child thy sins forgiven still,
Have peace in thy heart instilled.
I am with thee even now,
As thy head thou doth humbly bow.

When thou takes the Sacrament,
Remember my body spent-
Bruised, broken, and whipped for thee;
To lead thee to Eternity.

On the cross my life I gave,
Yet my anger still was stayed.
Them their sins were swept away
There in Gethsemane that day.

Easter is a time for joy-
Chains of death and Hell destroyed.
I have conquered sin and death,
My mercy reaches every depth.

Do not doubt my gentle love-
I descended from above;
Gave my life to ease thy pain,
Then later took it up again.

I can give thee everything,
I will make thy Spirit sing.
Turn to me when in the dark,
Thou wilt find the Living Spark.

Standing here in my embrace,
Thou wilt find thy holy place-
Where my love will never cease,
Within the Kingdom of my peace.

From Broken Heart to Caring Again

I have been really down and struggling this last week and a half. Normally I can write a poem or find the words to explain how I am feeling, but this time the pain hurt too bad for me to fathom putting it in words. So I let it fester, which caused me lots of problems. However, I have a dear friend who reminded me that it was ok to hurt, ok to feel, and the song she had me look up was just the song I needed to get the words flowing, to understand my feelings, and where to go from here. The song, by Linkin Park, is called Breaking the Habit, from their album Meteora. It spoke to my soul, telling me that I could find a way out of the darkness that was surrounding me, and then the words began to flow. Several times I broke my rules with this poem, called From a Broken Heart, but the words and the feelings are exactly what needed to be said. Here is the poem.

From a Broken Heart

This ache I feel tonight

Is tossing me aside.

The hurt I have to face-

I cannot find a brace.

The darkness churns anew,

Inhibits all I do.

The silver lining fades,

Against the sharpened blade.

The night is falling fast,

Brings out the shattered past.

I fall into despair,

The shadows darken there.

The serpent wins again,

My heart is rent in twain.

I spiral down the hole

That opened in my soul.

I hit the bottom now,

The pain inside allow.

The treason of my heart

Begins the fall apart.

While wading through the rough,

How can I say enough?

My strength is all but gone,

I'm searching for the dawn.

He tries to reach to me,

And yet I still do flee.

I know His Healing Hand,

He's calling me to stand.

He promises His love

Sent down from up above,

If I will but receive-

Remember to believe.

I fall upon my knees

To put my fears at ease.

The Spirit enters in

To calm the storm within.

Dearest child, I am here.

Again let go of fear.

I have not walked away,

I'm keeping winds at bay.

As I mend thy broken wing,

I can take away the sting.

Turn to me in time of need

And remember me I plead.

Please let me in to heal

As thou doth try to feel.

Thy hurt inside is great,

But still it can abate.

Don't forget I love thee still,

I will help thee climb the hill.

Reach up to take my arm,

I'll keep thee safe from harm.

Trust in me to make thee strong,

I will carry thee along.

From these wounds will come a time-

Joy and happiness sublime.

Dear child, have some faith,

I come with love unfeigned.

I will not let thee down-

I will be here, all around.

Here Comes Christmas...Whether We Are Ready or Not

As it is beginning to be Christmas Time, I felt like I wanted to take a moment today, and over the next couple of days to share some poems to remind us of the true meaning of Christmas. I know that Christmas time is a highly commercialized event in the world, but let us all remember that the true gift of Christmas lay in a manger bed long ago, bringing a light and life to the world that enables us to return and live with our Heavenly Father and with our Brother Jesus Christ, and allows us to be perfected in Him if we use this precious gift of love and sacrifice to become better; closer to Them.

Christmas Gift

Silently He lay His head,

Angels round His manger bed.

Choirs singing thru the skies,

Praises sung to God on High.

Jesus Christ, Anointed One,

Mortal Reign is just begun.

Come to teach and life to give,

That all may return and live.

Mother Mary's gentle love,

Held close this gift from above.

She knew of His Godly worth,

Loved Him fierce right from His birth.

Angels praise and glory give

Holy Babe on earth to live.

Father bathed Him with His love,

Circling gently as a dove.

Shepherds came and left their flocks,

Saw the Lord in swaddling cloths.

The Lamb of God, Shepherd true,

Knew so young just what He'd do.

The wondrous story oft retold

Of frankincense, myrrh, and gold.

Wise men came and saw the Son,

God's Beloved, Atoning One.

His mission here to fulfill,

Preach his word and teach His will.

Loving gift for all mankind,

Gave His life to ease the bind.

Christmastime is meant for this,

Shows the way to Endless Bliss.

Don't forget this wondrous gift,

He is there, our souls to lift.

Silently He lay His head,

Angels round His manger bed.

Choirs singing thru the skies,

Praises sung to God on High.

Jesus Christ, Anointed One,

Mortal Reign had just begun.

Came to teach-and life He gave,

That all may return with faith.

Letting Go

For years I held on to bitterness and grudge. This made it practically impossible for me to move forward with my life. Over and over I would get stuck because it wasn't fair that people had been so mean to me. At least, that was how I saw it. Gradually I began to realize I had a part in all that I had seen as injustice in my life. By realizing my part, I was able to move forward, at least in part. It wasn't until I was ready to Let Go and Let God, ready to forgive and move forward, that I really started to live again. My poem entitled Letting Go was a huge step in the right direction as I tried to right my life and be the person I wanted to become.

Letting Go

Anger, hurt, frustration too;

God on high, please pull me through.

Standing here on solid ground

And trying hard not to drown.

Bitter taste of all these years,

Now I struggle through the tears.

All the feelings I have stuffed,

Is it time to say enough?

Am I willing now to find

Darkest corners of my mind?

As I try to find my voice,

Spirit whispers of my choice-

Live in darkness all thy life,

Or find the way through this strife.

The choice is now up to thee,

Hold thy chains or become free.

Daughter don't forget I'm here,

I can sense that thou doth fear.

Don't forget my loving arms,

I can keep thee from thy harm.

This too for thee I have done,

And this battle can be won.

I can give thee strength to try,

And I 'll give thee wings to fly.

In thy sorrow I will lead,

Turn to me in all thy need.

All this anger, hurt and pain

Is for thy good, for thy gain.

The time has come here at last

To heal thy pain from the past.

Know I will not let thee down,

I will be there all around.

Trust in me and feel my love,

I am guiding from above,

I was never gone away-

I am always here to stay.

Show thy strength and lift thy head,

Give to me thy doubt and dread.

I will take thy wounds all hid

And be there, thy troubles rid.

Just Imagine

I take a break from poetry now as I share with you a little prose that came to me a few weeks ago as I was contemplating what it would feel like if we understood the extent of the Atoning Sacrifice that Christ made for us, and understood that it was His great love for us that allowed Him to give us this amazing gift. We may never understand exactly how much He loves us, but here is a small inkling of what that love must be.

Just imagine...

Think of your best friend. In a way, they mean the world to you. Find your best memory of your parents, that time you looked into their eyes and just knew- knew that they loved you and were proud of you, and would do anything for you; die for you even. Next, think of how you feel wrapped in the arms of the person you love and want to spend the rest of your life, the rest of forever with.  Imagine the mantle of love you feel as a missionary, or in a calling that places you in a position to serve your fellow ward family. Remember your siblings and how much you love them, though you may not always see eye to eye. Finally, think how much you love your nieces and nephews; children in some cases. Now, combine all this love and times it by a billion, and you get the faintest idea of how much your Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ love you.

Jesus Christ, your brother. This man who willingly took your life upon Himself, suffering an agony so real and so indescribable for you, because He loves you. Think of your deepest misery, caught in the depths of sin. The smallest child's spat to the darkest mistakes of the wayward adult, any hidden secret you can find. Take this and times it by every stumbling block you may see. Now times it by every person who is, has been, or will be on this earth. The mistakes, loneliness, shortcomings, and afflictions of every person on this earth were paid for by this wonderful man who willingly came to this earth to die for you. His blood was shed for you that through Him you could become clean and partake of Eternal Life in His Kingdom, to become like Him and return with Honor. Through His Atoning Sacrifice, you can become perfect in Him.

Atoning Grace

Here is my last "Grace" poem, one of my favorite of the poems I have written.

Atoning Grace

Gentle daughter, do not fear.

Know ye not I'm always near?

I'll not leave thee in the dark,

Thou hast not yet missed the mark.

Thru thy pain I quiet reach,

Listen to the words ye speak.

My gentle voice whispers soft

Thru the waves thou hast been tossed.

I hath sent the storms to thee,

Asking thee to trust in me.

I will be thy gentle stay

As I lead thee on thy way.

Thou hast yet a lot to come

On the path that leads thee home.

I will give thee strength to bear

All the burdens sent thee there.

Daughter thou art yet a saint,

And I hear thy soul's complaint.

Even those with mighty strength

Only run a little length.

I ask thee to do thy best,

Then I come to do the rest.

All I ask is for some faith,

Then I succor thee in grace.

As I come to lift thee up,

I will take thy bitter cup.

I can't take away thy pain,

But I'll give thee strength again.

I will bear thy burdens too

As with grace I pull thee through.

Peace will enter in thy heart

As ye strive to do thy part.

Satan's chains will harder pull,

Trying ye to falsely lull.

When the darkness closes in,

Turn to me in need therein.

With my strength ye can move on,

Sorrow, pain, and heartache gone.

My atonement was for all;

Every pain and every fall.

Ye can enter in my joy

But ye must my help employ.

I will help thee come back home,

Thou wilt reap what thou hast sown.