Thursday, June 01, 2006
The Dream
You gave me a dream one day, O Lord,
of midnight on a storming sea,
Hurricane winds blowing free,
washing up on an unprepared shore.
I watched as the waters swirled and rose,
huge swells washing all away
there in the darkness far from day,
The works of hands shattered in the water flows.
I watched how puny are the works we prize
The works of hands and sweat and dreams
Falling there beneath the streams
Nothing of man stopped the water's rise.
And yet, there on the water's face
Bobbing lightly as the waves moved on,
Survivors surfacing towards the dawn
Rafts and boats and planks and boards in place.
Even though wind tossed, and frightened there
even though battered in the night
they escaped into the light,
By the hand of loving care.
"My mercy," said the Lord to me
"I gave them refuge in my heart,
As the darkness took their world apart
Because they put their trust in me.
.
"Take care to understand and know
When darkness seems too dark to see
That I will hold you close to me
In darkest night, when storm winds blow
"If you will give your heart to me
To keep within my heart of love
You will always float above
The darkness of that midnight sea.
"Cling to my mercy now, this day,
The storm clouds gather, the darkness grows,
The seas are rising, the dark wind blows,
Come into my heart or wash away."
Susan E. Stone, 2006
of midnight on a storming sea,
Hurricane winds blowing free,
washing up on an unprepared shore.
I watched as the waters swirled and rose,
huge swells washing all away
there in the darkness far from day,
The works of hands shattered in the water flows.
I watched how puny are the works we prize
The works of hands and sweat and dreams
Falling there beneath the streams
Nothing of man stopped the water's rise.
And yet, there on the water's face
Bobbing lightly as the waves moved on,
Survivors surfacing towards the dawn
Rafts and boats and planks and boards in place.
Even though wind tossed, and frightened there
even though battered in the night
they escaped into the light,
By the hand of loving care.
"My mercy," said the Lord to me
"I gave them refuge in my heart,
As the darkness took their world apart
Because they put their trust in me.
.
"Take care to understand and know
When darkness seems too dark to see
That I will hold you close to me
In darkest night, when storm winds blow
"If you will give your heart to me
To keep within my heart of love
You will always float above
The darkness of that midnight sea.
"Cling to my mercy now, this day,
The storm clouds gather, the darkness grows,
The seas are rising, the dark wind blows,
Come into my heart or wash away."
Susan E. Stone, 2006
Labels: Divine Mercy, God Our Shelter, Jesus' Love
Joy
Joy unlooked for is a gift you bring,
O Beloved Master,
like a promise of light
whispered in the depths of a grieving heart
lost in remorse for its sin,
a gift that will bloom like the fairest rose
held in the hand a lover,
this joy you give us,
undying even in the midst of our pain and sorrow
Love’s gift,
unearned,
offered freely by the most generous of hearts.
Thus is the joy you plant within our hearts, Beloved Master,
a gift like a glowing gem,
a pearl filled with the promise of heaven,
in purity, perfection,
a taste of that perfect joy we shall know
when walking those streets
where you are the king enthroned.
Be enthroned in my heart,
O Master, O King, O most perfect Beloved,
You who bought that pearl so dearly,
giving your all so that you might offer all
the joy that comes from walking with you
hand in hand,
from darkness into the light.
O Beloved Lord,
O Master,
O Jesus,
here at your feet,
in the perfect joy that only you can provide,
may I find my true home forever.
Susan E Stone, 2006
O Beloved Master,
like a promise of light
whispered in the depths of a grieving heart
lost in remorse for its sin,
a gift that will bloom like the fairest rose
held in the hand a lover,
this joy you give us,
undying even in the midst of our pain and sorrow
Love’s gift,
unearned,
offered freely by the most generous of hearts.
Thus is the joy you plant within our hearts, Beloved Master,
a gift like a glowing gem,
a pearl filled with the promise of heaven,
in purity, perfection,
a taste of that perfect joy we shall know
when walking those streets
where you are the king enthroned.
Be enthroned in my heart,
O Master, O King, O most perfect Beloved,
You who bought that pearl so dearly,
giving your all so that you might offer all
the joy that comes from walking with you
hand in hand,
from darkness into the light.
O Beloved Lord,
O Master,
O Jesus,
here at your feet,
in the perfect joy that only you can provide,
may I find my true home forever.
Susan E Stone, 2006
Labels: Jesus' Love, Praise and Thanksgiving
Darkness Falls
Darkness falls -
O Lord, be thou my light!
As the storm draws near
Keep me within thy sight.
Be Thou my strength,
Hold up my wavering hand
As the flood grows deep
Across this trembling land.
May thy cross be
A beacon bright as day
To guide my feet
When darkness hides the way.
Thy Mercy is
My only refuge place,
There is no hope
Without thy loving grace.
As midnight falls
With sword and cry and grief,
Only with you
Will my soul find relief.
Susan E. Stone, 2006
O Lord, be thou my light!
As the storm draws near
Keep me within thy sight.
Be Thou my strength,
Hold up my wavering hand
As the flood grows deep
Across this trembling land.
May thy cross be
A beacon bright as day
To guide my feet
When darkness hides the way.
Thy Mercy is
My only refuge place,
There is no hope
Without thy loving grace.
As midnight falls
With sword and cry and grief,
Only with you
Will my soul find relief.
Susan E. Stone, 2006
Labels: God Our Shelter, Help Me O Lord
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Prayer for National Leaders
Thus says the LORD: "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his arm, whose heart turns away from the LORD. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.
"Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately corrupt; who can understand it?
"I the LORD search the mind and try the heart, to give to every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings."
Jeremiah 17: 5-10
O Lord, have mercy on us,
each and every one of us
for trusting in our own strong hand
instead of in your hands.
O Lord, you who know all hearts,
soften our hearts,
awaken us to where we have failed,
awaken us to whom it is who gives us our strength,
and teach us to walk in your ways.
Today, O Lord, I send up my prayers
particularly for those who lead our nation.
Be with each and every one of our lawmakers,
those who have to sift through all the voices calling upon them to do this or do that.
Lord, you know what is right.
It is you who determined that there would be leaders to guide and protect the nations,
insuring the safety and justice of the people you entrust to them.
Today, O Lord,
send the light that will pierce through the darkness,
open the hearts of our leaders to their responsibilities
to care for the nation,
strengthen the ones who walk in your light,
soften the hearts of those who need to answer your call,
and teach them the ways of justice, truth, faithfulness.
Remind them that their responsibility to their duties is a holy obligation,
and show them the way they should walk to insure peace, prosperity, and justice,
safety at home,
and how to make our land an example of uprightness to the world.
O Father God, I ask this in your son Jesus our Lord's most holy name,
Amen.
Susan E. Stone, 2006
"Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately corrupt; who can understand it?
"I the LORD search the mind and try the heart, to give to every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings."
Jeremiah 17: 5-10
O Lord, have mercy on us,
each and every one of us
for trusting in our own strong hand
instead of in your hands.
O Lord, you who know all hearts,
soften our hearts,
awaken us to where we have failed,
awaken us to whom it is who gives us our strength,
and teach us to walk in your ways.
Today, O Lord, I send up my prayers
particularly for those who lead our nation.
Be with each and every one of our lawmakers,
those who have to sift through all the voices calling upon them to do this or do that.
Lord, you know what is right.
It is you who determined that there would be leaders to guide and protect the nations,
insuring the safety and justice of the people you entrust to them.
Today, O Lord,
send the light that will pierce through the darkness,
open the hearts of our leaders to their responsibilities
to care for the nation,
strengthen the ones who walk in your light,
soften the hearts of those who need to answer your call,
and teach them the ways of justice, truth, faithfulness.
Remind them that their responsibility to their duties is a holy obligation,
and show them the way they should walk to insure peace, prosperity, and justice,
safety at home,
and how to make our land an example of uprightness to the world.
O Father God, I ask this in your son Jesus our Lord's most holy name,
Amen.
Susan E. Stone, 2006
Labels: National Leaders
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Choose
Wrapped in white,
he stands alone,
in that place a memorial of the fruits of evil
Yet marked this day by the promise of God.
He stands in prayer,
acknowledging the darkness
with all its burning hurt,
yet proclaiming the light.
Look you, who think only in grays:
the fight is on,
in all seriousness.
Choose your side --
barbed wire or the rainbow.
Labels: current evils, Need for God, Pope Benedict XVI
