Category: Poems

Some rhyme and some are free verse.

How the Virus Stole Easter

This poem was forwarded to me and is so relevant to the time we’re in that I wanted to share it with others. I pray your Easter was very special even in the midst of lockdown. I pray you are well and taking care that you don’t get ill. I also pray for those who are sick, whether at home or in hospital, that God gives wisdom to the doctors and others involved in how to care and what medicines to use in this unusual disease.
Sandra Meyer

How the Virus Stole Easter
By Kristi Bothur
With a nod to Dr. Seuss
 
Twas late in ‘19 when the virus began
Bringing chaos and fear to all people, each land.
 
People were sick, hospitals full,
Doctors overwhelmed, no one in school.
 
As winter gave way to the promise of spring,
The virus raged on, touching peasant and king.
 
People hid in their homes from the enemy unseen.
They YouTubed and Zoomed, social-distanced, and cleaned.
 
April approached and churches were closed.
“There won’t be an Easter,” the world supposed.
 
“There won’t be church services, and egg hunts are out.
No reason for new dresses when we can’t go about.”
 
Holy Week started, as bleak as the rest.
The world was focused on masks and on tests.
 
“Easter can’t happen this year,” it proclaimed.
“Online and at home, it just won’t be the same.”
 
Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, the days came and went.
The virus pressed on; it just would not relent.
 
The world woke Sunday and nothing had changed.
The virus still menaced, the people, estranged.
 
“Pooh pooh to the saints,” the world was grumbling.
“They’re finding out now that no Easter is coming.
 
“They’re just waking up! We know just what they’ll do!
Their mouths will hang open a minute or two,
And then all the saints will all cry boo-hoo.
 
“That noise,” said the world, “will be something to hear.”
So it paused and the world put a hand to its ear.
 
And it did hear a sound coming through all the skies.
It started down low, then it started to rise.
 
But the sound wasn’t depressed.
Why, this sound was triumphant!
It couldn’t be so!
But it grew with abundance!
 
The world stared around, popping its eyes.
Then it shook! What it saw was a shocking surprise!
 
Every saint in every nation, the tall and the small,
Was celebrating Jesus in spite of it all!
 
It hadn’t stopped Easter from coming! It came!
Somehow or other, it came just the same!
 
And the world with its life quite stuck in quarantine
Stood puzzling and puzzling.
“Just how can it be?”
 
“It came without bonnets, it came without bunnies,
It came without egg hunts, cantatas, or money.”
 
Then the world thought of something it hadn’t before.
“Maybe Easter,” it thought, “doesn’t come from a store.
Maybe Easter, perhaps, means a little bit more.”
 
And what happened then?
Well….the story’s not done.
What will YOU do?
Will you share with that one
Or two or more people needing hope in this night?
Will you share the source of your life in this fight?
 
The churches are empty – but so is the tomb,
And Jesus is victor over death, doom, and gloom.
 
So this year at Easter, let this be our prayer,
As the virus still rages all around, everywhere.
 
May the world see hope when it looks at God’s people.
May the world see the church is not a building or steeple.
May the world find Faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection,
May the world find Joy in a time of dejection.
May 2020 be known as the year of survival,
But not only that –
Let it start a revival.

The Captain

I am a soldier
Weary after a long and tiring battle
Battered, bruised, bleeding –
Needing healing for my wounds.

I am a soldier
But I am also a captain
Called to lead my men
To fend off enemy forces.

I am a soldier
But I was sorely wounded –
Neglected my duty to my men
Allowed enemy troops to overtake us.

I am a soldier
Fallen in body but fallen in leadership –
Asking forgiveness of my broken and harassed men,
Asking for another chance to lead to victory.

I am a soldier and also a captain –
Rallying from retreat
Repairing shattered defenses
Taking up our weapons to win this war.

I am a captain –
Leading my fighting men
Pushing back the enemy
Retrieving taken land.

I am my Lord’s captain –
Marching as He commands
Leading my men onward and upward
Proclaiming the Lord’s victory.

The Battle

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Groveling about in the mud of despair
Rejection and pain cast me down
I want to get up – but how?
They hang about so close
Enveloping me
Surrounding and confusing all my thoughts.

Yet, I know a way out of this tunnel
I know I must take it
Or deeper I go.
But I’m so lost in the darkness
Almost giving up hope
Almost but not quite.

I know my hope rests in Jesus my Lord
So I call out His name in desperation.
“Here I am,” He answers me.
“Grab hold of my hand
I died to set you free –
Yes, your freedom rests in Me alone.”

Jesus pulls me from that muddy pit
He washes all the dirt from my face
Then He dresses me with clean white clothes
And tells me, “Next time, put on your armor;
Do not let those thoughts pull you down
But fight with all your might.”

“Fight with all your might
And stand, stand strong upon my Word
Store it up in your heart
For it is your defense;
When distress comes your way.
My Word conquers every foe.”

Satan knows he’s defeated already
But he figures you don’t know
So he attacks with all his might to overcome.
You need not fall, for you have armor
And the sword of my Word stands strong
You will surely win when you stand and fight.
___________

See Ephesians 6:10-18 for details about the spiritual armor of God.

The Children God Seeks

How God’s heart must hurt
As His children misunderstand Him so;
While He reaches out in love,
They go the way of His foe.
 
God seeks children who will
Spend time with Him, wanting to be near;
But who can He find, willing to give Him time?
They are too busy, and His presence they fear.
 
God seeks children to love Him,
To return His love in some small measure;
But His children’s eyes are self-centered,
And they seek to provide their own pleasure.
 
God seeks children committed to Him,
Who — by loving others — give Him glory,
Those who are willing to forget themselves,
To live for God and tell His story.
 
God seeks all over the earth
For children such as these.
Will you be one that He can find,
Give Him time on bended knees?

The Christmas Season

2 Comments

At this special time of year
We think of others far and near;
As we give gifts to those we love
Let us also give to the One above.

Churches tell the story in word and song
So many will know where they belong;
Christmas is a time of good will to others
Men more willing to help their brothers. Continue reading →

No Labels for God

God, I wish I could label You, Put you in a little box,
Know just how You will act,
And what your thoughts are;
Could say, You are this way, And You are that way.

I wish I could grasp You And confine You
And then understand You.
At least, I think I wish all that.
But if it happened, What then? Continue reading →

Foolishness

Foolishness is a man wrestling against God,
But oh, how hard he tries!
He thinks he can win – if he holds out a little longer;
He doesn’t know God controls even the skies.

Foolishness is a man setting his heart against God;
He decides he will go his own way.
He doesn’t know God’s way is best:
Facing him is utter dismay.

Foolishness is Christian, turning from God,
Trying to walk in the way of sin.
He will never be happy and never be blest;
He will only face sorrow within.

The Captain

I am a soldier
Weary after a long and tiring battle
Battered, bruised, bleeding –
Needing healing for my wounds.

I am a soldier
But I am also a captain
Called to lead my men
To fend off enemy forces.

I am a soldier
But I was sorely wounded –
Neglected my duty to my men
Allowed enemy troops to overtake us.

I am a soldier
Fallen in body but fallen in leadership –
Asking forgiveness of my broken and harassed men,
Asking for another chance to lead to victory.

I am a soldier and also a captain –
Rallying from retreat
Repairing shattered defenses
Taking up our weapons to win this war.

I am a captain –
Leading my fighting men
Pushing back the enemy
Retrieving taken land.

I am my Lord’s captain –
Marching as He commands
Leading my men onward and upward
Proclaiming the Lord’s victory.


					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
The Anointing
			


	


				

					

		
				

			
If I were preaching or teaching

 Or witnessing to the lost,

 I’d say I needed the anointing of the Lord

 So that His words would be said

 In the power of His Spirit and might.


But if I live my daily life,

 At home or work or play,

 I may not think I need God’s anointing.

 For who am I to need His power

 In the mundane things I do?


But who am I, indeed, to need His power,

 Whether at home or work or play?

 How many lives do I touch

 By the sermons and the teachings

 I unknowingly live today?


 Yes, Lord God, anoint me indeed

 With the power of your Holy Spirit,

 For you alone know the ones I reach

 By the strength of my faith,

 By the words of my testimony.


    

  • Anoint, Anointing:  Anointing in the New Testament also refers to the anointing of the Holy Spirit, which brings understanding (1 John 2:20, 27). This anointing is not only for kings, priests, and prophets; it is for everyone who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ. The anointing occurs physically with a substance such as oil, myrrh, or balsam. But this is also a spiritual anointing, as the Holy Spirit anoints a person’s heart and mind with the love and truth of God.
    • 



(Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary; copyright 1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers; from PC Study Bible.)


 

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
My Destiny
			


	


				

					

		
				

			
Joy unspeakable!

 How can I describe this blessedness?

 So far surpassing all I imagined

 The greatest words cannot do it justice.


“What joy,” you ask,

 “What brings such rapture?”


The sign of my Jesus’ face!

 How can I picture such love

 Such compassion, even for me?

 What word describes His glory?

 The glory of the only begotten Son!


Then I see my Father!

 Abba, Father.

 The tears fall down my face

 Tears of humility, adoration and love.

 I kneel at His feet and worship

 Almighty God!


No eye has seen

  No ear has heard

  No mind has conceived

  What God has prepared

  For those who love Him.

 (1 Corinthians 2:9)


I cannot tell you all this wonder; 

 Truly, you must see it for yourself!

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Unshackled Wings
			


	


				

					

		
				

			
Have you ever been in prison, my brother

 Where shackles held you tight

  And every move you’d make was denied?

 Where even the breathing seemed harder

 And joy was a friend who seldom appeared?




Then, have you ever been set free, my sister

 Where chains no longer bind

 And your heart sings to a rhapsody of music?

 Where your soul takes flight

 And dares to dream of once-forgotten dreams?


Have you ever been set free, my friend

 So love flows to those who misunderstand

 And even sorrow cannot engulf joy?

 Where excitement for life comes at any age

  And problems are opportunities to be solved?


Many kinds of prisons fill the world today

 And only the obvious show their bars and shackles:

 Disease and limitations of the body

 Circumstances one cannot change –

 All claim thick, unseen walls.


But the worst prison by far is one

 That shackles the mind and the spirit of man

 That causes him to dread the next day

 To forget past ambitions

 To look, unseeing, at a beautiful world.


Whatever the shackles that bind you

 And truly they are all real

 Seek God’s way to undo them.

 Come, let your soul fly away with mine

 Spreading our wings to limitless possibilities.


 

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Poems of Inspiration
			


	


				

					

		
				

			


Beautiful Full Moon
Beautiful Full Moon


Beginning back in the 1970’s I started writing poems and attended the Austin Poetry Society and a couple of my works were featured in their anthology. Some of those early ones I no longer have but later wrote others that became my favorites, and those I share on this site. While most of the early ones rhymed, later poems were mainly free verse. Rarely now do I write poetry, preferring instead prose.


 Continue reading →

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Trusting God
			


	


				

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When life on earth

 Comes to a close,

 We reach our final destiny:

 The road we’ve traveled

 All our lives to find –

 That eternal home.


We often don’t understand

 God’s ways and means,

 But He said they are

 Much higher than ours.


We cry out in pain,

 God, help me understand!”

 But must know He has a reason;

 Trusting Him –

 Though we cannot see how –

 To bring good

 Out of all we call bad.


Cast all your cares upon Him,

 For He cares for YOU!

 (1 Peter 5:7)

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Welcome to Your New Home
			


	


				

					

		
				

			
God is getting ready a sign

 Welcome to your new home.


That home

 filled with love

 forever in His presence

 worshiping our Lord

 in all His fullness and grace

 no more tears

 no more pain, uncertainty or fear

 seeing all the saints

 who’ve gone before.


But centered on Jesus

 our Savior, Redeemer

 the One who prepared the way

 the Lamb of God

 and Lord of lords


Also centered on our Father

 God Almighty

 Creator of all the universe.


Yet knows the hairs on our head

 holy, just, having nothing to do with sin

 but gave His only beloved Son

 so we – you and I –

 might call Him our Father.


Yes, God’s getting ready His welcome sign

 but there’s no need to fear

 fear is not from God

 but the enemy of your soul.


There’s only such joy and peace and love

 as you’ve never known on earth

 Trust Him to carry you there

 even as a mother carries her newborn baby.


Do not be concerned with leaving this life

 God will watch over your loved-ones here

 He will guide and keep them

 and one day prepare a welcome sign for them.


Oh, welcome to your new home

 Rejoice – the best is yet to come

 all your earthly life as been

 merely preparation for eternity ahead.


Welcome to your new home,

 Blessed child of God.

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
The Waters
			


	


				

					

		
				

			
When the waters pass over your head,

 Stand thou still.

 This thing is allowed of Me;

 It is within my will.


Running will not help;

 Fighting will get you down.

 Only by standing still,

 Can you win the victor’s crown.


When the waters pass over your head,

 Simply be still and rest;

 Relax in my strength alone;

 I will bring you through the test.


No matter how deep the waters appear,

 The way up ahead is clear.

 Simply standing, resting

 Will bring you through this testing.


See Isaiah 43:2; 30:15-21; Jeremiah 29:11.

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
The Edge of the Pit
			


	


				

					

		
				

			
On the edge of the pit of self-pity and despair

 I wavered and stumbled – an unseen force pulling me in.


On the edge of the pit God saw my need,

 Showed His warriors the danger of my place.


On the edge of the pit those friends saw my plight;

 They talked, they loved, most of all they prayed.


On the edge of the pit, overcoming prayers

 Sent ministry to my spirit, opened the eyes of my mind.


On the edge of the pit I saw the light of Jesus:

 His tender arms pulled me from the edge of the pit.


.